I’m not sure I like spring anymore. I used to love September/October - a time of the coming of warmer days, earlier sunrises and lots of great sport to watch and play.
Now I’m struggling with my second hay fever-induced sinus infection of the year (in fact the whole family has been hit), we can’t work out if the duvet needs to come off or stay on as the weather keeps flipping, and because I’m on this hectic eating plan I can’t even soothe my nerves with a nice Scotch.
Champagne problems, though. Get yourself together, Geldenhuys. I still like that seasons change, I still like the beauty in this season, and I miss the whiskey, but the eating plan is working and I once again fit into my favourite jeans.
I think that’s the point of this missive. Don’t wish for winter on the hot summer days and embrace the heavy rains and cold floors in the middle of winter. And really lean into the shoulders, as they give you the best of both. Be present with what you have and enjoy it. Or as that quote goes: “Wherever you go, there you are".
Two weeks ago, I reported that the Springboks would have a 50/50 chance of pulling off mission Argentina. They didn’t, and Manie Libbok caught most of the flak for (predictably) missing the pressure kick that would have won it for us. What was telling about all that was the leadership's reaction. “Yes, he missed it. No, we don’t hold it against him. We should not have been in the position to lose it that way anyway”. On message, supporting the player, taking the flak for once again exposing a key weakness of the guy.
It's part of my 9th Building Block in my Boks to Business book, on sale next month. Direct and Deflect is what great leaders do – they share the credit when things go well, they make the tough calls, and they cop the flak when things go wrong. It’s not a popular notion in our government ministries, but then that’s politics.
So, Rassie took the heat for Manie’s kick. And instead of dropping him, instead of further denting his confidence, he made the call that he’ll never put him in the position of fielding the important penalties again, but rather give him a starting berth – and let him focus on what he is amazing at, which is direct play and launch lethal running attacks.
The championship-winning result this last Saturday reflects how that decision panned out. Manie was a beast, Hendrikse did the kicking, and Pollie brought it home for us. The man so derided by the public a week before received rapturous applause when he left the field. Good for you Manie.
We would all love for Mannie Libbok to also have steely nerves and an unmissable boot for the big moments. But he doesn’t. He has other gifts, and wishing your accountant into an awesome sales guy or your best sales guy into an amazing financial manager is also wishful thinking. As Jim Collins puts it: “Get the right people on the bus, and then figure out where they are going to sit”. If they are the right people, and they sit in the right seats, magic will happen. Both those things are on you as the leader, by the way.
I always struggle to be present. To let go of the past, to stop fretting about the future, to focus on the here and now. If we learn anything from this glorious age of Springbok rugby, it should be these three things:
Think Vanilla Ice. Stop, collaborate and listen. Enjoy this season of amazing success. It won’t last, that’s ok. Just lean in and have fun with it.
Take the lessons from Rassie, though. Focus on the important thing. Experiment. Fail. Learn. Correct. And put the right people in the right seats.
When you fall down, shake it off. Get back up. And keep showing up until they can’t ignore it. Manie Libbok is a great example of keeping faith in yourself.
Oh. And man alive, are we going to miss PSDT when he is gone…
PG’s Pro Tip:
Don’t recruit people you “vibe” with. Sure, that’s important, and it’s nice to bring in someone that you also want to have a glass of wine with. But more importantly, hire for fit. What’s the job? What are the skills? What’s the attitude like? If you aren’t rigorous with these questions, you’ll set them up for failure. Hiring on a detailed scorecard is a good way to go about this, and the Enneagram and/or Clifton StrengthsFinder is also useful…
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