I had a #FanBoy moment when I met Mr. Prakash Padukone recently 😊
Mr. Padukone won the All England Badminton championship in 1980 and that changed the course of Badminton in India. His victory is considered as one of the greatest achievements in Indian Badminton history. Since his retirement, he has coached many players some of whom are now top-ranked players in the world.
Among many things that Mr. Padukone spoke about, the one thing that struck me the most was his simple framework of looking at performance in sports and continually improving on these 3 things to deliver a peak performance on a given day:
1. Mental Strength
2. Physical strength
3. Technique
He also spoke about how sports science and technology have evolved over the years to help players find new ways to improve on the above 3 things.
Taking forward what he said, I think you can draw parallels between sports and professional or business world
1. Mental Strength
· Resilience: Just like athletes need mental toughness to perform under pressure, business professionals must stay resilient in the face of challenges, setbacks, and uncertainties.
· Emotional Intelligence: Successful leaders, like top athletes, excel in managing their emotions, handling stress, and making balanced decisions.
· Leadership: Mental strength fosters confidence and decisiveness, which are key traits of effective leadership in the corporate world.
2. Physical Strength
· Health: Physical well-being is crucial for maintaining productivity. A healthy body fuels sustained performance, both in sports and business.
· Time and Energy Management: Just as athletes manage their physical energy to perform at their peak, professionals need to manage their time and energy to avoid physical burnout and maintain consistent performance.
· Endurance: In business, long-term success requires stamina. The ability to persist and stay the course in projects, ventures, or corporate initiatives mirrors an athlete’s physical endurance in a game.
3. Technique
· Skill Development: Just like athletes constantly work on their technique, professionals must continuously develop their skills to stay relevant and excel in their roles.
· Strategic Thinking: In business, the equivalent of technique is the ability to think strategically, leveraging market insights and competitive intelligence.
· Mastery of Processes: Like athletes refining their technique, business leaders need to master processes and systems to drive operational efficiency and innovation.
Technology and data play a similar role in both worlds, offering analytics, insights, and feedback mechanisms for improvement in performance.
It was inspiring to listen to Mr. Padukone at the CX India tour event organized by Genesys in Bengaluru.
