Three Leadership Lessons from the Kentucky Derby

87731525With over 15,000 attendees and 16.5 million viewers, the Kentucky Derby is a major sporting event seen around the world. And, while the primary athletes of this event aren’t human, these highly-trained, million dollar horses do have a few traits any leader would do well to adopt.

Maintain Your Stamina
While it may be called “The Fastest Two Minutes in Sports,” the derby is no sprint. It’s a race over 1.25 miles, and the best horses are the ones that pace themselves. Similarly, a good leader will know how to pace themselves through projects, each day, and through the course of their career.

Bring Your Best
The fastest, most high-performing thoroughbred won’t win “The Run for the Roses” if it doesn’t have it all together on the day of the race. No matter your drive, passion, or experience, if you don’t show up everyday mentally, emotionally, and physically ready to lead your team to success, you could miss out on that big victory.

Pick Your Battles
In both business and horse racing, the point is to come in first when it counts. Just as the winning horse doesn’t usually start out ahead of the pack, it’s probably not necessary for you to be first all the time. Choose the biggest challenges you want to beat, and then focus your energies on those – don’t get distracted by all the little sidetracks along the way.

While you may never be valued at two million dollars or be covered with a blanket of roses, being a good, focused leader is invaluable to your employees and your business. So, take a few lessons from these four-legged leaders to ensure you get off to a running start and lead your team to the finish line.

One Response to Three Leadership Lessons from the Kentucky Derby

  1. eBay Listing Service July 25, 2011 at 2:55 pm #

    This is really great content. Thanks a lot for this.

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