I would have to say that two weeks ago, when the Olympics started I was pretty much the `Olympic Grinch'. I was very peeved that my SkyTV subscription had gone up on account of their purchasing the rights to screen the event. Prior to it starting, London 2012 really only
held one potential highlight for me _ and that race would be over in less than ten seconds.
My mood didn't lighten, when the family commandeered the television to watch the opening ceremony which was the most unintelligible mish-mash of Morris dancers and Kenneth Branagh possible. And what the whole `boy meets girl via social networking' thing had to do with upcoming equestrian and Greco Roman wrestling events I am still trying to figure out!
But once the nonsense of the opening ceremony was put to bed the actual sports began and, from that point on, I began to get drawn in by the sporting performances and the guts and determination of the competitors.
Over the past two weeks we have seen what many years of work and training culminate in. For some it is just about being there and competing, for others it is about personal bests and going as far as you can go. But for the select few, it is about scaling that mountain top and realising the lifelong dream of being the best in the world at what you do.
Some of the stories are pure inspiration and played out in front of an audience of billions. And while it would be easy to write about these highlights I am going to make a different point.
What fascinates me isn't the achievement and the participation in the Olympics, I would encourage you to look at what is behind these achievements _ at the things that we do not see. The training, the early mornings, the pain as bodies and muscles are pushed to the edge, countless conversations with support people. All of this happens out of the public glare, but is essential to success.
Add to the above, the mental processing which goes on inside an athlete's head and all the work it took to build the confidence to perform at the highest level.
For each of us, our businesses are much the same; if we do the work behind the scenes we can put ourselves in the best position to be successful. If we are confident it is more likely that we and our team and our business will perform.
In any endeavour, there will always be someone who is the best and invariably that person, team or business will be there because they have prepared themselves better than anyone else in their field. So when opportunity presents itself they are able to capitalise to achieve clearly defined goals.
Your customers may not be spectators to the `behind the scenes' effort, but if you consistently put the effort in you may find yourself with the gold medal with your competitors in your wake.
Congratulations and well done to our local Olympians.
Zenith Solutions is a Wanganui-based management consulting practice. It specialises in providing strategic planning, business process improvement and financial management services. Contact russell@manageable.co.nz or phone 021-244-2421.
