Playing to Win and Not to Not Lose

Guest post by: Keith Hanna
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Lag Time - By Keith Hanna

The third period of the Gold Medal hockey game was excruciating to watch. Canada got up by two goals by midway in the game and then seemed to change their strategy. In the first part of the game they took the game to their opponents and this resulted in the two goals. Then, as the weight of national pride and the whiff of victory began to waft through the arena, they began to protect the lead. This is of course human nature. The US got one goal and we all got more anxious. The last five minutes of the game consisted of the increasingly desperate American throwing wave upon wave of attacks at the Canadians who were getting increasingly desperate to knock the puck back out of their end. I saw it coming, as many people did, and with less than a minute to go the US tied the game. It seemed inevitable. It was only a matter of time and based on results they had the time to wear down the Canadians.

In the fourth period the defensive strategy of "trying not to lose" was done because there was no longer a lead to protect. The Canadians were forced back into "trying to win" and returned to taking their game to their opponents. With the strongest offense of Canada against the strongest defense of the US, a 4 on 4 was bound to come up in Canada's favour. It was just a matter of time.

"Playing not to lose" is much different than "playing to win" because it focuses attention on we don't want, which is bound to then happen. The two phrases seem semantically equivalent but they are not: one brings fear to the mind (losing) and the other brings the goal to mind (winning). One brings about panic and the other a conscious competence. It's the latter than is the winning approach.

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Lag Time - By Keith Hanna

About the Author: Keith Hanna

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Keith Hannaâ€™s experience as a coach spans over 15 years and includes helping entrepreneurs and growing companies identify and implement the changes needed to take their success to the next level. With a commitment to creating tangible value for his clients, Keith has worked with leaders in a wide variety of industries and at every stage of their careers and personal lives. His career as a coach began as a natural extension of his work as a product designer helping entrepreneurs turn their vision into innovative products. Through that work, Keith realized the most important innovations entrepreneurs had to make were inward focused. Those who were able to deal with the stresses caused by personal and business changes around them were able to make those changes work for them, and were able to live greater lives and build greater businesses. Keith holds a Masterâ€™s Degree in Environmental Design from the University of Calgary, with a specialization in industrial design and new venture development. He is author of two books, StepUp and Higher Purpose, Higher Profit, as well as an accomplished speaker and facilitator. Keith lives with his wife and two children at the foot of the Rocky Mountains in Bragg Creek, Alberta, from which he makes mountain climbing excursions in the summer and dog sledding trips in the winter.
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