Monday, February 13, 2012

Money Ball, 'It's a metaphor....'

I'm not a movie watcher, my husband is.  He asked me last weekend if I would watch Money Ball with him. So of course, I asked him what it was about. He said baseball.  As soon I was about to say "No thanks," he said, "Brad Pitt is in it,"  (he knows me all too well) so I obliged and watched it with him.

What he said was a movie about baseball struck me more as movie about motivation and leadership.  I won't ruin the story line for you if you haven't watched it, but here are some of the ideas I took away from the movie, besides the image of Brad Pitt.  Maybe you can pick up on where I'm coming from if you have watched it or plan to.

1. Get the right people on the bus and in the right seats on the bus, as Jim Collins says in his book Good to Great.   Maybe a worn out catcher does need to be tried at first base. You need him on your team because he gets the results you need on offense, find the solution for him that also fits your defensive needs.   Also, realize that your bus may not be the same as the New York Yankees' ride and that's okay.

2. Tell people their role.  David Justice needed to be told his role was to step and be a leader.

3.  The people who don't get the  mission of what you are trying to accomplish need to go.  Case in point, the player that was dancing on the table in the locker room after a loss had to be traded.

4. Take a risk on the nerdy guy with a new idea or way of doing things. It may win you 20 games straight.

5. Some people just have no idea how good they are.  A constant focus on their shortcomings by themselves and others leads them to miss when they have knocked it out of the park.  Tell people when they have hit a home run, or even a single or double.  They are more likely to hit them more often when you do.

6. It isn't all about the money.  Sometimes it is about your little girl singing.

What have you learned about leadership and motivations from Money Ball or any of your other favorite movies?

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