The Superbowl Example of "Stay Ready"
Back in January, I wrote a post about how entrepreneurs should always stay ready for potential opportunities (rather than get ready once they pinpoint one). Well, today seems like the appropriate day to provide a real-world example of staying ready.
I met Jared Retkofsky in the fall of 2008. Jared is the long snapper for the Pittsburgh Steelers. Rather than tell you Jared’s story, I believe these 2 articles do a fine job:
Special Skill Gives Steeler a Moment To Savor (NY Times)
Pittsburgh Steelers’ Jared Retkofsky took long road to Super Bowl (Chicago Tribune)
The articles fail to mention that after Jared spent his work day moving furniture, he would head over to a local practice field and practice his snaps late into the night. And Jared practiced even though the NFL season was halfway over, team rosters were set, and no try-outs were scheduled.
But thanks to those nights, he was ready when opportunity arrived at his doorstep.
So here’s a guy who, in less than 12 hours from now, could be hoisting the Lombardi Trophy. That’s 3 months from moving furniture for $12/hour to being at the pinnacle of the NFL. And all because he chose to stay ready when no opportunities were in front of him.
Regardless of the outcome of today’s game, he’s a great example of how opportunities are only realized if we are ready for them.
About the Author
Ryan Roberts is a startup lawyer and represents technology companies through all phases of the startup process, including incorporation, seed & venture financings, and exit transactions. Click here to learn more about his practice.
View Comments
This is fantastic advice for founders in all industries. It brings to mind a great article by Donald Sull in Harvard Business Review called "Strategy As Active Waiting," (Sept. 2005–easy to access at HBR Online) in which he describes the inverse relationship between the frequency of opportunities and their size. That is–the biggest opportunities are very rare indeed (while tiny, everyday opportunities appear, well, every day). So successful founders prepare themselves to seize advantage when the big opportunities do come, and they know how to stay in touch with the marketplace to spot the whoppers as they emerge.
I think the key is being clear about what you want, continually honing the skills/knowledge relevant to that goal, and immersing yourself in the networks/markets that will lead you to it.