A Legendary Horse. A Legendary Performance.
On June 9, 1973, over 90,000 horse racing enthusiasts descended on Belmont Park near New York City in hopes of seeing an uber-popular stallion named Secretariat win the Triple Crown. They would not be disappointed.
Secretariat sprinted around the 1.5 mile track in 2 minutes and 24 records winning by an astonishing 31 lengths over the next closest competitor. His still record-time has stood for almost 50 years.
Photographer Bob Coglianese took the famous picture shown above of jockey Ron Turcotte looking over his shoulder at the remaining horses far behind in the distance.
There is something quite noticeable about this moment from a leadership perspective.
Ron Turcotte is looking at what is behind him.
Those in attendance were looking at what was behind Secretariat.
The announcers were talking about what was behind Secretariat.
You know who was not looking behind Secretariat?
Secretariat. That’s who.
Secretariat was looking straight ahead. Secretariat was focused on what was before him. Secretariat was prioritizing the task at hand. Secretariat knew the race wasn’t over. Secretariat understood there was work yet to be done.
The Leadership Lesson
Successful leaders approach life and their assignments in the same manner. They are laser-focused on what lies ahead. Leaders are forward-thinking. They are focused on what’s next. What is in their windshield is always bigger than their what’s in their rearview mirror.
Nothing is worse than spending time with someone whose stories are all from 20 years ago or longer. You are a leader. Your best days should be in the future.
Looking behind can only add value to leaders in two ways:
- If looking at past failure, it provides data points on what is needed to improve moving forward.
- If looking at past successes, it should only be used to give you confidence that if you do the right things, success can be achieved again.
Past that, we need to learn from Secretariat’s example. Let everyone else look at what is behind. As a leader, you’re focused on what’s in the future. You’re thinking about what’s next. There is work left to be done.
For your enjoyment, I have included video of Secretariat’s legendary performance below.
The Top 60 Leadership Quotes From 2021 Part 1 is my latest ebook. For many entering a post-pandemic environment, leadership looks completely different than the pre-pandemic world. People are more broken now. They are more uncertain. Fear and anxiousness are unwelcome constant companions. Cultures are more unhealthy. Relationships are more dysfunctional. Hope seems to be in short supply. Every day seems to bring a new hacking, natural disaster, or unexpected calamity.
Therefore, the fundamentals of leadership are more important than ever. The quotes in this book deal with the basics of leadership. If you want to be the best leader you can possibly be, click HERE or on the image provided to download this FREE resource. The lessons learned from last year, if applied, will sustain you for years to come.