How to handle the tough times (according to Everton manager, Roberto Martinez)

Roberto Martinez became the manager of Everton Football Club, following a successful period at Wigan Athletic. Given the budget and size at his disposal when he managed Wigan, it's extraordinary that they survived in the premier league, season after season and when finally relegated under his leadership, they at least did so in style, winning the FA Cup in the same season!

Martinez is highly acclaimed as one of the best managers in the premier league and when interviewed  by the BBC, he offered some invaluable insight on handling your team when times are tough.

"Don't torture yourself with the maths. The moment you are trying to reach a specific points tally you are going to be clouding your aim. Everyone in the bottom 10 is playing against each other, which means it is impossible to tell the points tally needed. The easiest way to approach it is with the mentality that you can get something out of every game and try to get as many points as you can."

So surely this is just about football? What's it got to do with business?

Martinez elaborates further that being tortured by the maths spoils the enjoyment of football for the players at Wigan Athletic and once they don't enjoy playing, their performance is undermined, something which will make their predicament worse.

What's true for football is also true in business. When times are tough, it's easy to become obsessed with targets and figures but the more you get bogged down in the numbers, the less mental energy you'll have for lateral thinking and the more your morale will dip. We obviously all need to appreciate the mathematical picture of our businesses and keep in mind the steps we will need to take to hit our targets, but we'll achieve more if we focus on our minds on our performance and how to make the business happen ... whilst trying to enjoy the process at the same time.

Tip 1:

When it comes to your business performance or team performance, find the balance between mathematical appreciation and mathematical obsession!

Tip 2:

Coach performance not results and when you're on the back foot, find the small yet real victories within each of your defeats and be thankful for them. 

Thanks for reading

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