Robert Kraft, the Chairman and CEO of The Kraft Group (more popularly known as the owners of the New England Patriots), recently said, “Winning can be addictive….Losing is a hangover.”
I like the story that he told. When the Patriots win a game, Kraft always grabs a cup of coffee by lining up at a nearby coffee shop. When they lose, he buys his coffee in the drive-through. And when they lose really bad, he laughingly said, he makes it at home.
As a business leader, you have to be passionate about winning. If you only think of your leadership role as a job and as a platform for preparation for your retirement, you are doing justice neither to yourself nor to the enterprise that you lead. (Related link: How to create high-value companies?)
There are several things that we all can learn from Kraft: the impact of treating right each employee of the company, regardless of the level in the organization (he cited the example of the guy who cuts the grass: one could look at him only as a blue-collar worker who makes close to the minimum wage or someone whose mistake could cost a win), highest standards of work ethic (whether you are a superstar on the team or just the guy who cuts the grass, Kraft expects the best work ethics all the time with no exceptions), and not taking all decisions based on business analysis alone but to go with your guts when you know you have made the right decision