Football playoff season is upon us. The post-season games are exciting and unpredictable. An underdog team beating the top seed is just as likely as the top seed beating the underdog. Throughout the season, many of us become Monday morning quarterbacks and coaches, commenting emphatically on what should have been done to get our team more points and the win.
For instance, the Chiefs vs. Texans game last weekend was insane! The game ended with the Chiefs winning with 51 points to the Texans’ 31. At one point I think I saw Andy Reid telling his team to ease back on the throttle a little. The game did not start out that way. The first quarter ended with the Texans scoring 21 points and the Chiefs yet to put any points on the scoreboard. Overall, the game had a bad start for the Chiefs and a bad ending for the Texans.
Here is my quarterbacking/coaching feedback a week after this game: what I saw happen with Kansas City during the first quarter was a lack in executing on the basics. They were dropping passes because they were not turning around and looking at the ball. They were dropping hand offs because they were in a rush to run towards the goal. In the 3rd and 4th quarter I saw the same mistakes being made by Houston. The basics were being executed poorly by both teams throughout the game.
If the basics of what you do day in and day out are not executed properly, success becomes difficult. You cannot become an expert at what you do if you don’t understand and execute on the basics just like Jiro Ono, the sushi guru in Tokyo. The basics can appear very simple, but mastering them is essential. In every facet of life, it is always necessary to go back and revisit the basics, especially when you feel stuck. By being mindful of them, and practicing them every day, in all we do, we will get better and better.
“It’s often okay to go back to the basics. After all, tall buildings have rock solid foundations” – Sumit Vanjani
Have a basic weekend.
Vijay