Powering through Challenges

Last Thursday the 2023 NFL Season kicked off in Primetime with the defending Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs playing host to the upstart Detroit Lions. As a lifelong Chiefs fan, I was certainly hoping for a better outcome, and while the “Monday Morning Quarterbacking” started on Friday I still think there is something businesses can learn from Head Coach Andy Reid on powering through challenges.

Whether your personal hot take on the Chiefs season opening loss to the Lions was focused on dropped passes, injured key players, or missing talent on the field through a classic labor dispute. There are certainly many ways that we can spin the loss and try to lessen the pain or frustration we feel as fans.

The bigger lesson here is how Head Coach Andy Reid handled the conversation following the loss with a simple observation about his team and the challenges. “No excuses at all,” Reid said, “We’ve got guys that can play.”

For business the challenges of staffing, supply chains, rising costs, a changing business environment and many other factors can have an impact on how we perform and succeed. Sometimes it’s easier to point to these issues to find an excuse and maybe slightly shift responsibility or liability off our shoulders.

But as a leader in the business community Andy Reid sets a good example for handling a loss that wasn’t expected. Simply own the issue, believe in your team, and be prepared to get back out there and try to improve each week moving forward.

Here's to working through challenges and moving forward and Go Chiefs!