The Olympic Duel by John Maxwell

A Failure of Olympic Proportions....


DAN & DAVE: THE OLYMPIC DUEL
from Leadership Wired ezine VOLUME 11, ISSUE 15





by John Maxwell

In 1991 Reebok was entrenched in a battle with Nike for top spot in the athletic shoe market. Looking to gain an advantage, Reebok gambled on an ad campaign featuring decathletes Dan O'Brien and Dave Johnson — co-favorites to win a gold medal at the 1992 Olympic Games in Barcelona.
Dan was trendy and hip; Dave was straight-laced and steady. Dave held a 3-to-2 edge in contests against Dan, while Dan had recorded the highest-ever point total in a decathlon. The athletes' good looks, dissimilar personalities, and tremendous talent made their rivalry the perfect fit for Reebok's marketing strategy.
During the 1992 Super Bowl, Reebok introduced Americans to Dan and Dave. The cleverly written commercials were a sensational hit, and, almost overnight, Dan and Dave were vaulted to celebrity status. Sensing the popularity of the TV spot, Reebok poured $30 million into its efforts to put Dan and Dave at the forefront of their brand's promotions.
From January through June, Dan and Dave were ubiquitous on television and in American pop culture. Anyone who cared anything at all about sports chose sides. Reebok executives patted themselves in the back (and padded their wallets) on account of their decision to market via Dan and Dave.
DAN & DAVE: THE EMBARRASING FAILURE
At the American Olympic Trails in June of 1992, the unthinkable happened. Dan O'Brien, gold medal favorite and marketing icon, failed to qualify for the Olympics!
Overestimating his ability in the pole vault, Dan set the bar too high — an epic blunder. On his first attempt, he missed. No worries though, he still had two more tries. On his second attempt, he didn't even come close. By his final attempt, Dan was so tight with pressure that he had no hope of clearing the bar. His Olympic dream was dashed, Reebok's ad campaign was trashed, and Dave Johnson headed to the Olympics alone.
DAN O'BRIEN: OLYMPIC CHAMPION
After the anguish and public humiliating of missing the Olympics, Dan could have given up his dream of winning Olympic gold. He was the laughingstock of the media, and he had missed a rare opportunity to compete on the world's greatest stage. However, Dan was a competitor, and he bounced back.
For four long years, Dan O'Brien funneled the emotions of his failure to fuel his resolve to make the 1996 Olympic Games. Rather than drowning out the memory of his mishap at the Olympic Trials, O'Brien repeatedly watched his botched attempts in the pole vault. Refusing to wallow in his setback, he learned from it, and he redoubled his training efforts.
At the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, O'Brien gained redemption and achieved his dream by capturing the gold medal in the decathlon.
LEADERSHIP LESSONS FROM FAILURE
"That failure set the path of my life for the next four years," Dan O'Brien said in reflection. "I learned more from it than I had learned the previous 30 years combined."
Dan O'Brien's Olympic journey is instructive on the nature of failure. Here are a few lessons from his experience:
1. Failure is inevitable
Everyone, even the most decorated Olympian, knows the taste of failure. We all lose, fall short, or miss the bar during life.
2. Failure is a fork in the road
When we fail, we have several paths in front of us.
We can blame our failures on others.
We can identify with our setbacks to the extent that we view ourselves as failures.
We can ignore or deny our failure.
OR, we can embrace failure, learn from it, and use it as a springboard to get better.
Our response dictates where we end up on the path of leadership.
3. Failure is fruitful
Failure is the surest path to success. It tests, strengthens, and refines us. Passing through it qualifies us to lead.

Swimming upstream

I in no way agree with astrology but include the following article from:<http://www.success.bz/newsletters>....

as an example of a truth of a basic principle of leadership that each of us must not just learn about then go on to learn the next principle of leadership but must struggle to handle each day to become not just a better "leader" but a better "person".





The key truth to gain from this column is the fact that we do deal with uncertainty and as a person that is attempting to be a person of "value" in a world where each person attempts either attempts to be one of value by swimming upstream in the river of life or attempts to tread water in the river of life This is a concept that one must deal with in a proactive way or it will not just cause you to tread water but to possibly sink.

Living with Uncertaintywith Dick Sutphen

An astrologer recently reviewed my chart, marveled at some of the planetary comings and goings, andsaid, "You're being taught to live with uncertainty."
"That sounds about right," I said. "But aren't we all living with uncertainty all the time?"
Pema Chodron is a very wise American Buddhist nun who lives in Nova Scotia. I decided to review herbook, "Comfortable With Uncertainty. "Here are some words that stood out:
"A warrior accepts that we can never know what will happen to us next. We can try to control theuncontrollable by looking for security and predictability, always hoping to be comfortable andsafe. But the truth is that we can never avoid uncertainty. This not-knowing is part of theadventure. It's also what makes us afraid."
She completes this short discourse with, "If we find ourselves in doubt that we're up to being awarrior-in-training, we can contemplate this question: 'Do I prefer to grow up and relate to lifedirectly, or do I choose to live and die in fear?'"
Pema speaks of a warrior as a bodhisattva -- not one who kills but a "warrior of nonagression whohears the cries of the world." The warrior's sword of wisdom cuts through delusion.
I also looked up Osho's words on the subject: "Life is basically insecure. That's its intrinsicquality; it cannot be changed. Death is secure, absolutely secure. The moment you choose security,unknowingly you have chosen death."
It follows that the moment you choose life, you choose uncertainty.
Continuing on the subject of security, Osho adds, "The moment things are secure you will feel boredbecause there is no possibility of any exploration." ("Theologia Mystica")
So no matter what the planets are up to, life is always moving from the known to the unknown. Thecrossing point from the known to the unknown is where uncertainty sets in. Looking to the positive,if we choose uncertainty and insecurity, at least we won't be bored.