Sportsmanship and Business: What We Can Learn from the Olympic Brownlee Brothers?

Sportsmanship and business: What we can learn from the Olympic Brownlee brothers? While recently watching the final race of the World Triathlon Series in Cozumel, Mexico, I witnessed something astounding. British athlete Jonny Brownlee, who had previously won Bronze in the London Olympics, recently Silvered in Rio and was in the winning position for this race, suddenly slowed down, began to stagger and almost collapsed. His brother Alistair, the two-time defending Olympic champion locked in a battle for second place, stopped his own race, pulled Jonny’s arm over his shoulder and began guiding him to the finish line (see video here). In an admirable act of selflessness, Alistair forfeited his own chances and pushed Jonny across the line to captured second place honors; whereby Jonny immediately collapsed and was admitted to a hospital suffering from dehydration. Now you might argue well that’s what brothers do. But after the race during an interview, Alistair simply declared “If it had happened to anyone, I would have helped them across the line. It’s an awful position to be in. If he conked out before the finish, and there isn’t medical support, it was a dangerous position to be in.” And this type of selfless attitude is not limited to families. Take for example the women’s 5,000 meters at this year’s Olympics, when the American Abbey D’Agostino and Nikki Hamblin of New Zealand collided and fell, then helped each other across the line. What can we learn from these acts of sportsmanship in our day to day businesses? Winning is an amazing outcome. But how much are you prepared to sacrifice to get there? Where is your personal line between sportsmanship and winning at any cost? Our careers and lives will hopefully be long and productive. People remember kindness, acts of selfless behavior and that sometimes it is important to put the interests of others before your own. While most of us don't want to be seen as "too soft" at work, you certainly don't want to be the guy or gal everybody hates dealing with. You know, the hard-nosed jerk with a singular objective who considers a win-lose outcome as the only acceptable outcomes. With this in mind, I offer you three things to consider when it comes to sportsmanlike behavior in the workplace: 1. It does not matter at what level you are at in your career. Treat those around you with respect, support them as best you can and listen to their perspectives even if they may differ from your own. In the future, that person may be the individual who grabs your arm and helps you over the finish line ahead of their own goals. 2. A loss is not necessarily a bad thing. Do not let losing a deal, a promotion or even a job define you. Look for the positives in what you can learn from the experience and act upon them. I recently completed a book called ‘59 Seconds: Think a Little, Change a Lot’ by Richard Wiseman and I would urge you to read it if you want ideas on how to address and learn from negatives. As they say when given lemons, make lemonade. 3. What can you do selflessly for others? While this isn't the objective of your actions, I guarantee the outcome will always benefit rather than be a detriment. Little things make a big difference. For example, how can you help a colleague who has recently lost a job? Spending 10 minutes thinking about who you might know and actively introduce them to connections may make a significant difference to their long term career. Or it might be as simple as taking time at the end of the week acknowledging your gratitude to co-workers who have ensured you personally had a successful week. That doesn't take much time, but can you honestly say you do it? When have you observed sportsmanlike behavior at work? Have any examples of how your actions or those of others have made a difference? .

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