The 5 'Wills' We Need

Everyone craves success, but few truly know what it takes to attain in.

“Winning is not loyal to you, it doesn’t care about you,” a Georgia Tech football coach says in the above video. “Winning doesn’t care how sore you are. Winning doesn’t care how much sleep you get. Winning doesn’t care how hard you work at times. Sometimes, a guy doesn’t outwork you and he still wins.”

The coach then asks a critical question we as leaders would be wise to consider each day: “Are you willing to sprint when the distance is unknown?”

According to the Harvard Business Review, people who expect to receive a reward for completing a task — even unsuccessfully — simply do not perform as well as those who anticipate none at all. In other words, those who have a will to win rarely need incentive.

So how do we as leaders create that will in our teams?

We must possess five different wills first:

1. THE WILL TO PREPARE — When we demonstrate a high level of preparation in our days, we make those around us strive to be the most prepared.

2. THE WILL TO WORK — Everyone works hard. But those who work intelligently and efficiently while blocking out distractions are ultimately the ones who demonstrate the will to work.

3. THE WILL TO CHANGE — Being adaptable is the key to being a winner. We must evolve and learn, thus becoming more adaptive to change.

4. THE WILL TO RESIST — Being able to say no is critical to having the will to win. “No” is never easy, but those who learn to resist draw closer to possessing it.

5. THE WILL TO PERSIST — We all routinely face adversity, but if we’re able to prevent hardships and setbacks from altering our concentration, we show those around us that they, too, can continue their fight.

The sum of these five wills is ultimately the will to win.

But not every leader is willing to do the math. Are you?