Working on an article for VisionRoom.com about the power of TNT (it’s probably not what you think), I was reminded of this post from a couple of years ago. Since we’re in the middle of football season this time of year, I thought it would be appropriate to bring it back again.
There are a few scenes in the movie Remember the Titans in which “game film” plays a critical role:
The school’s math teacher breaks down an opponent’s plays.
One coach’s daughter loves watching game film with her dad while the other coach’s daughter thinks it’s silly.
By the final game, the reluctant daughter has come around and joins her new friend watching the team’s film every week.
It’s a great film with lots of leadership lessons—one of which is the importance of leaders watching their own “game film.”
Seeing the movie reminded me of a great article by Dan and Chip Heath (authors of Made to Stick, Switch and Decisive). Published in Fast Company magazine, it’s titled “Watch the Game Film.”
You really need to check out the whole article, but here’s a quick summary:
Football coaches use game film to spot things they’d never see in real time. They have an entire week to review a 60-minute game.
In the business world, every day is game day, and leaders don’t take the time to “study the film” of their activities. It’s unfortunate, because studying game film can yield unexpected results.
Doug Lemov, a consultant to school districts, utilized film of top-tier teachers in the classroom to train other teachers—resulting in raising students a grade level and a half in one year.
It doesn’t have to be film—Jump Associates, a strategy consulting firm, uses trained observers to record client meetings. After the meeting, the Jump staff holds a debriefing, modeled on the Army’s after-action reviews.
What insights might your team be overlooking because no one is observing carefully enough?
Maybe it’s time to press the PAUSE button and start screening some game film.
There are some things you’ll never see unless you look.
