Becoming a Gold Medalist in a Startup
Having spent the last 2.5 years in the Atlanta startup scene, I can say one thing for sure: startups are hard, y’all!
If there’s one thing I’ve come to realize during this process, it’s that becoming a “gold medalist” in the startup world is all mental meaning you’ve got to have the right mindset in order to win.
I love the sport of gymnastics and I’ve been following it for a long time. Every time I watch a meet, I’m reminded of how similar winning at gymnastics is to winning at startups.
ESPN recently published this article “Aly Raisman: How I Handle The Pressure of Olympic Trials.” Aly is one of my favorite gymnasts, not only because she was a gold medalist in the London 2012 Olympics, but because she’s defying the odds to do it again in Rio at the ripe old age of 22 (unheard of in the sport). Most gymnasts would be satisfied with winning once and retiring, but not Aly. She’s challenging the status quo of gymnastics.
So how is she doing it and what the heck does that have to do with winning at startups? Let’s take a look.
Let It Go, As Much As You Possibly Can
Training for the Olympics is no joke and Aly admits in the article, that despite her years of training, that she still has bad practices that sometimes get the best of her. In fact, this happens a couple of times every week. She’s had to work hard on letting things go and keep moving forward.
In the startup world, tough days are inevitable and there probably will be times where it gets the best of you. Its important to figure out how to let it go so it doesn’t prevent you from seeing the big picture.
Focus On Yourself
Gymnastics is both an individual and a team sport, which makes it especially interesting. It requires you to personally be at the top of your game so you can contribute as much as possible to helping the team win.
The best way to compete is to focus on yourself, and if you’re doing your job, you’re helping the team. The whole U.S. team has that mentality: Competing with yourself is how you can be the best version of yourself.
— Aly Raisman
Startups often have a small team and the contributions of each team member matter so much. Every person has the potential to either make or break the team. To help the team win, you have to make sure you stay at the top of your game. It means coming in every day with a winning mindset and limiting your distractions. It also means taking care of yourself personally to ensure you can perform at the highest level.
Keep The Press At Bay
While Aly loves seeing herself in an Aeropostale window or featured in the latest teen magazine, she admits that it adds tremendous pressure to perform. She also says that she tries to limit her view of what her competitors are doing. Her focus now is to keep her head down and execute on her daily workouts that are preparing her for next week’s Olympic trials.
Sound familiar, startup friends? I’ve had the privilege in helping to lead the #FlipMyFunnel movement over the last year and build the account-based marketing category. The media is ripe with buzz about the category and all of the activity within it. I do read these to stay abreast of market changes, but I try to keep my head down and stay focused on continuing to build this movement.
Take Time For Things You Love
Aly has a passion for fashion and she loves spending time designing her leotards. She also loves spending time by the pool or taking long walks to clear her mind.
Winning at a startup requires the same type of mentality. While it may be tempting to spend every waking moment thinking about your company or product, this can quickly lead to burn out no matter how passionate you might be.
I love to dance. There’s something about heart-pounding cardio and the resulting flow of endorphins that keeps me coming back for more. I try to make time for this a few times a week to unplug. Often, because my mind isn’t on the problem I’m trying to solve, I end up developing my best solutions and ideas in the dance studio.
Pace Yourself
Aly focuses on consistency over constant perfection. Even in the 2012 Olympics, she made the team because National Team Coordinator, Marta Karolyi, knew that she could deliver a consistent performance. Making it to an Olympics is often the culmination of years of training.
Same applies to startups. When you have an exciting idea, there is a desire to win as quickly as possible. But that path to success is often long and winding with lots of setbacks. You have to mentally prepare yourself for this and continue to deliver a consistent performance while fine tuning your capabilities to stay competitive. Remember that most “overnight successes” are often years in the making.
Celebrate Wins
Aly admits that getting to the Olympics a second time has been just as tough and exhausting as the first time. What gets her through is remembering how all her hard work paid off in the past and the incredible feeling of seeing it all come together.
It is important to celebrate the small wins in the startup world and taking time to reflect. When times get hard, what often fuels me and helps me to get through that “mental block” is remembering how far I’ve come. I often look back on obstacles I’ve faced before and how I’ve overcome them like a champion. This gives me the confidence to know that I can do it again and helps me push forward.
Time to go win that gold medal!
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