What businesses can learn from sportspeople: Business advisor shares lessons learnt from the Olympics

A business advisor is urging business owners to take lessons from sports when measuring the success of their companies and setting and reaching goals. 

Colin Bielckus, who runs The Outsourced Finance Director believes that in both sport and business, the one who reaches first place isn’t the only measure of success. 

The Outsourced Finance Director helps business owners to make decisions that will benefit them financially. 

He says that just as an Olympic sports team’s progress isn’t solely determined by winning every medal, businesses must recognise the value of the journey and the milestones along the way. It’s about perspective, not just victory. 

According to Colin: “The essence of success is in recognising how far you’ve come, celebrating the goals you’ve reached, and understanding that not every victory needs to be absolute to be meaningful. 

“Sometimes it’s not simply about becoming the best in your industry, but having perspective and looking at the overall picture. Is your business providing you and your staff with a healthy work-life balance? Are you allowing people to work to and excel their strengths? Do you have a happy workforce?

“In sport, reaching that extra 1% of performance might require 50% more effort. The same applies to business. Sometimes, the cost of squeezing out that last drop of improvement is disproportionate to the benefits. It’s crucial to assess whether the additional effort aligns with your overall objectives and values.”

He continued: “An essential lesson from The Olympics is the recognition and celebration of diverse strengths. In a team, each role is critical to the team’s overall success and every individual sports person provides an opportunity for the success of the whole team. Similarly, in business, not being the market leader doesn’t equate to failure. Companies can excel in niches or specialised areas where their unique strengths shine. 

Another thing Colin noted was the disappointment of not “winning gold” that can be a detriment to the mindset and motivation of the team. 

He said: “A marathon runner and an Olympic sprinter have two very different skill sets, but are equally impressive, just as two members of the same team can display different strengths that play an equal part in the outcomes of the company as a whole.

“This perspective is especially relevant when considering the incremental gains often pursued in both fields.”