Yesterday, I wrote an article entitled 8 Characteristics Of A Winning Culture. Wow, did it ever strike a nerve with countless leaders! The article is a series of lessons learned from Mikel Arteta’s introductory press conference when he was announced as manager of the Premier League soccer club Arsenal. One of the eight characteristics mentioned was winning cultures are defined by passion and high-energy.
Little did I know these attributes would be on full display the exact same day in Arsenal’s last second 4-3 victory over Luton Town.
A Miracle Finish
As the match was approaching its conclusion in the 96th-minute, a 3-3 tie looked inevitable. However, Arsenal’s Martin Odegaard sent a long last-second pass towards the Luton Town goal. It was then Declan Rice brilliantly headed the ball into the net for a miracle 4-3 victory.
Below is a must-watch video of Rice’s exciting miracle goal.
A Winning Culture Personified
Afterwards, a jubilant Arteta said in this article from The Athletic, “We don’t want a draw, we want to win! That drive, that energy, that risk and emotion that we put in the pitch, you can sense it. I think we should have scored before with the chances that we had, but we didn’t. We tried hard until the end and got rewarded.”
From Arteta’s post-game comments, we learn the following six benefits high-energy people bring to your organization:
High-Energy Provides Purpose
High energy focuses your efforts and intentions. It provides clarity, direction, and cuts through the clutter. Arteta proclaimed, “We don’t want a draw, we want a win!”
High-Energy Enables Risk
High-energy gives you the courage to take risks. You sometimes feel like you can accomplish anything. High-energy also provides enough mental margin that if you fail, you bounce back quickly and continue moving forward.
Arteta continued, “That drive, that energy, that risk and emotion that we put in the pitch, you can sense it.” Which leads to the next point.
High-Energy Feeds Your Emotions
High-energy people are not generally passive individuals. There is a passion to their life which results in emotional buy-in.
High-Energy Compensates For Your Mistakes
I find it interesting that Arteta pointed out, “I think we should have scored before with the chances that we had, but we didn’t.” High-energy is like perfume, it makes everything smell better. It allows you to cover up and quickly recover from mistakes. You simply move on to the next thing.
High-Energy Results In High Effort
Arteta noted, “We tried hard until the end.” High-energy shows up as work hard. You have stamina. When you are at the end of day, week, month, quarter, year, or in the 96th-minute of a highly-competitive game, your effort and energy enable you to finish strong.
High-Energy Yields High Rewards
This is a result of the previous five qualities. Purpose + Risk + Emotions + Overcoming Mistakes + Effort = Rewards. But this equation is not possible without high-energy. High-energy provides the fuel which ignites this entire process.
Conclusion
Winning cultures are made up of highly-energetic people. As a result, winning cultures always seem to find a way to get the job done. They are purposeful, risk-taking, resilient, hard-working, and accomplish much.
Winning cultures look like Arsenal and are led by leaders like Mikel Arteta.
If you want to know more about creating a winning culture in your organization, make sure you purchase a copy of Revolution: The Rise Of Arteta’s Arsenal by clicking HERE or on the image below. It will make an incredible resource or Christmas gift for you or the leaders in your life.
