Think smart like SKY to win deals!

Earlier this month, I had written a post that delved on Surya Kumar Yadav's spectacular catch in the men's T20 Cricket World Cup final, which played a crucial role in India winning the trophy. That glorious moment has probably triggered a purple patch for SKY. Around 3 weeks after India won the World Cup (which also saw India’s full-time captain Rohit Sharma retiring from T20I cricket), SKY was made India’s men’s T20 cricket team’s new captain for the series against Sri Lanka. Roughly 2 weeks later, he led India to a 3-0 clean sweep against Sri Lanka in the T20I series that concluded last night.

Winning and losing is all part of the game and that is not the point of discussion here. What caught everyone’s attention in the T20I series against Sri Lanka are some aspects of SKY’s captaincy. Let’s look at those aspects and understand how these are applicable in our daily work life as well:

Risk-taking: In competitive sports, success follows the brave, and the brave ones are those who are willing to take risks. SKY did that multiple times in the Sri Lanka series, but the one that topped them all was in the 3rd T20I, where he threw the ball to Rinku Singh (who had never bowled in a T20I till then) to bowl the 19th over when Sri Lanka needed only 9 runs to win of 2 overs with 6 wickets in hand! It was worth the gamble, as Rinku snapped 2 wickets and gave away only 3 runs in that over to bring India back in the game.

Similarly, in the corporate world, risks are the order of the day. If you want to crack new business deals, or open up more business avenues from your existing clients, you need to take your chances. Risks could range from trying a new service for a client where your expertise may not be the best, or increasing cost by adding resources or software but ensuring the promised ROI is met, or venturing into a domain you have not worked before but has good potential for growth. Unless you take risks, you won’t be able to move forward or scale up.

Innovative-thinking: Be it modern day cricket or corporate work space, you need to think out-of-the-box in order to outthink others. Referring to the 3rd T20I against Sri Lanka again, when everyone expected Md. Siraj to bowl the last over of Sri Lanka’s innings with 5 runs to defend, SKY surprised all by deciding to bowl himself. It turned out to be a masterstroke as he picked up 2 wickets and gave away 5 runs, which tied the game and India eventually won the match in the super over. The reason this move was innovative is because SKY realized that the pace at which Siraj bowls, even an edge can help Sri Lanka get a boundary. He also realized that the pitch offered a lot of turn for the spinners, and since he had never bowled in a T20I till then, it meant he was an unknown quantity for the Sri Lankan batters. So he brought himself on and executed the task successfully.

Thinking innovatively is a critical aspect in our work life as well, especially after the advent of AI, which does almost everything it is asked to do. Every organization has talented resources, every company is aided with modern technology, and now almost every firm is benefitting from AI. So, what extra can you or your organization offer to make the cut? That’s where innovation plays a very important role. Whether it is BAU deliveries, or business development meets or presentations, or Presales calls, or POCs, you need to offer something more or something different that your competitors aren’t providing.

Never-say-die Attitude: Sri Lanka’s score at the end of the 14th over in the first T20I read 140/1, needing 74 runs of 6 overs with 9 wickets in hand to win the contest. It was a run-fest till that point, hence getting those runs seemed quite possible. But India didn’t give up, just like what they did in the T20 Cricket World Cup final against South Africa, defending 29 runs in the last 5 overs. They tightened the screws on Sri Lanka, picked up wickets regularly, and eventually won the match comfortably. A repeat of this was seen in the third T20I, where Sri Lanka needed 30 runs to win from the last 5 overs with 9 wickets in hand. But India’s never-say-die attitude once again reaped rich dividends, as they tied a match that seemed all but lost for them, and even went on to win it in the super over!

This attitude is extremely necessary in the cut-throat corporate world as well. As an individual, as a leader, as a team, as an organization, you will face situations where it may seem all is lost, but if you trust your abilities and stick around, the results will come your way. Like I had mentioned in an earlier post, it is the winners who are remembered. If you want to be a winner, it is necessary to have the grit, determination, and tenacity to win conversations and crack deals.