Career lessons we can learn from football

The English Premier League is without a doubt one of the most followed leagues in the country. Kenyan diehards can name the starting lineup of their favourite teams, but they can’t do the same for their local teams, let alone the national team, Harambee Stars. Did you know we can learn some career lessons from football?

Promotion and relegation
Teams that get promoted from the Championship League to the EPL exhibit so much pomp and fanfare. The opposite is true when the three bottom teams are demoted. The promoted teams often go on a shopping spree, buying the best talents to boost their squads ahead of the new season, while demoted ones dispense with some players whom they feel didn't do much for the team. Players that were instrumental in helping the team gain promotion could end up being overlooked, benched, sold or loaned to other clubs.

In this same way, a new hire can end up shining and going up the career ladder in the organisation ahead of seasoned ones who have stagnated. It is not unusual for your job description to be narrowed as a new employee takes over some of them, even though you were once a dependable cog in the wheels of the organisation. It is similar to a team captain being stripped of the captain’s badge and being reduced to a mere player. Anticipate such scenarios and prepare accordingly for them.

When burnout sets in
In football, sometimes the mercurial players that were previously running rings around the opponents’ defense and scoring freely begin to fade both in form and speed, and struggle to find the back of the net. Eventually they're dropped from the starting lineup, and are only brought in as substitutes in the dying minutes of a game.
 
It is the same at the workplace. When burnout sets in, even talented employees may experience a dip in productivity, yet you may find a boss demanding more from such an employee without being empathetic of their situation. Don’t yield to such a boss. Burnout can negatively impact your health and you don’t want to crash.

Taking blame when one takes praises
Assume the team is leading against an opponent by a solitary goal and there are few minutes of regular play time left. A melee erupts at the goalmouth and a player inadvertently scores an own goal, thereby handing the opponent a reprieve. Then in extra time, the opponent scores the winning goal, and defeats your team when you had home advantage. As the losing players walk towards the tunnel with crestfallen faces, fans are booing and abusing the one who scored an own goal. In the post-match presser, the player owns up to the mistake, even though your team has been knocked out of the tournament. This is a picture of a good employee.

There are some people, especially bosses, who will insist on things to be done in a specific way, and will not take blame if the outcome is not desirable. Instead, they will lay the blame on others. A good boss allows employees to be innovative instead of asking them to do things the conventional way.