The annual college basketball hike up Final Four Mountain began this week.

While the names of the schools change from year to year, the qualities of championship-caliber teams are consistent. What are they? And how can you learn from them to win championships at work?

Here are 3 strategies for winning positively as a team while working positively:

Play offense and defense

Championship teams know how to score a lot of points and how to prevent the other team from scoring as many. Many teams excel at one or the other. Championship teams do well in both.

And your work team? Do you play offense and defense equally well?

It’s easy in a challenging economy to play defense well. To reduce expenses and increase productivity so you can get more done in an hour than before in a month. And that is important to keep the doors open.

But how is your offense? Do you have sixteen decisively opportunities to increase sales? Do you shoot high-percentage shots, think of them as layups, and look to hit the 3-ball?

Who is an underserved group in your primary target market segment? How can you solve your problems and fulfill your dreams? When are you going to take a photo?

Sure, you’ll make a lower percentage of long shots, but the return follows the risk. You score faster and get ahead of the competition faster.

See the whole court

Championship teams understand that their mission is to score and resist being scored. His vision of the court focuses on the current game and simultaneously beyond it. They come across the field, aware of the playing conditions now and in the next second. They move quickly and efficiently from defense to offense and from offense to defense.

And your work team? Are you in the moment while planning for the future? Do you see the entire playing field of your industry, how it is performing today and how it is heading into the future?

What are you doing today to serve your customers while anticipating how to serve them in the future?

Execute plays as practiced

Championship teams practice to win and play the way they practice.

Former NC State coach Jim Valvano used to have his team practice cutting the nets, replicating the thrill of winning the ACC title and the NCAA championship … which they did.

Each player assumes personal responsibility for successfully executing the plays called for the team to win. Individual stats are sure to be kept, but only the team wins or loses.

Does your team win as a team and also take personal responsibility for fulfilling a role? Clarify the roles. Practice winning plays. See yourself as a winning team.

As you play offense and defense, see the entire court and execute plays as they are practiced, you increase sales with greater productivity, so get out of the office earlier to celebrate your victory with family and friends!

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