Leadership Development

Pickleball: A Powerful Metaphor for Leadership Development and Team Building

In the world of sports, some activities transcend their recreational value and offer unique insights into other aspects of life. Pickleball, a rapidly growing racquet sport, not only provides fun and fitness but also serves as a remarkable metaphor for leadership. This article explores how playing pickleball can be an ideal tool for leadership training and team building within businesses.

I. Agility and Adaptability:

One of the key qualities of effective leaders is their ability to navigate challenges with agility and adaptability. Similarly, in pickleball, players must swiftly adjust their strategies based on their opponents’ moves and court dynamics. By experiencing this dynamic nature of the game, leaders can understand the importance of being flexible and quickly adapting to changing circumstances, thus improving their decision-making skills in real-world scenarios.

Is the U.K. Government Invincible?

Of course I’m taking about Boris. With each step on his journey he’s found to be wanting, he’s found to be lying, he’s found to be incompetent, he’s found to be making poor decisions, he's found to be out of touch, confused, passing the buck, over promising and under delivering, should I go on?

And yet millions of citizens in the UK voted for him to lead this country, to lead us into a pandemic of epic proportions, with an epic death toll, that is still rising every single day.

We gasped when even one person died from COVID19 and now we don't even bat an eyelid when the death toll totals 96 (on 20 July 2021).

Leadership in government globally has been the worst in decades, but how do we know this? We only need to look at Gareth Southgate, the England Football team manager or Jacinda Ardern, the New Zealand Prime Minister. Why can they be outstanding leaders but our governments can’t?

Leaders are failing is everywhere

Hugh MacLeod

How do leaders become leaders? It’s a question I have asked myself since 1977.

That’s the year I started work in London and have worked for a variety of leaders, some good, some bad and some very ugly.

The ugliest of leaders walk around like they own the joint, order us to follow their commands and if we step out of line will tell us in no uncertain terms to either buck up or ship out. I’ve seen plenty of those in my career and in fact those are the ones I remember the most.

Bullying behaviour has a massive influence in leaders becoming leaders. You only have to look at Korea, Russia, Syria and the big old USA.

At heart we’re still all apes and warriors and our evolution hasn’t changed much in our desire for ‘dominance hierarchy’.

So when the loudest ape in our community shouts, everyone listens and takes notice. Generally the loudest ape walks away with the prize, in the world of apes it means controlling the tribe and getting priority in choosing mates. No different in human communities then!

I know the population delivers some pushback from time to time, dictators have indeed been toppled, but usually only to be replaced by another one. Somehow we want the bully in control, because they have the best chance of winning over our adversaries, our enemies, other threatening neighbours. If the bully is in charge we feel we’re safe and our family group is protected.

We have chosen our leaders, whether you like them or not, we’ve all voted them in, believing they will be our saviours and of course they have no such intention. They are only out to save themselves, just like you and me.

Happy voting!

Michael de Groot