Ernst and Young did a recent study and what they found comes as no surprise to those of us involved with fastpitch. That many of the most successful female executives are former or current athletes. These moguls share the experience of being an athlete and give a great deal of credit for their success in the business world to what they learned as athletes.
- There is no “I” in teamwork. Every organization values team players. While individual incentives are always a part of any team the ability to mold those individual goals into the team is what makes for great successes. Team-oriented people are likely to gain respect from their teammates (co-workers) which allows everyone to pull in the same direction.
- Failure is part of the game. Over time, athletes learn to bounce back from defeat and failure. They develop a resiliency that many others don’t possess. And for females in the corporate world, resilience is a very valuable skill. It’s all about picking yourself back up and getting back to work. And when faced with gender biases, they already possess the skills to deal with the challenges and thrive in the face of resistance.
- Having a Game Face! In sports we all know that acting confidently, carrying yourself with the belief that you can get the job done is crucial to success. Female athletes generally exude confidence and that confidence gets noticed. In a separate study, it was learned that non-athlete female employees were less likely to apply for a promotion than males with similar qualification,s but that former athlete female employees broke this mold and applied at a similar rate to their male counterparts.
Armed with confidence, knowing how to overcome adversity and being a team player will allow anyone to be much more successful in the real world. Knowing these skills go hand in hand with being an athlete makes the idea of sports for girls a no-brainer!
So you thought you were just a softball coach?
Comments? Questions? Suggestions?
