Years ago I had the opportunity to be on the sidelines of an Indianapolis Colts football game. They were playing the Dolphins, a divisional rival at the time. Peyton Manning was early in his career, but he was already known for putting on clinics. Watching him up close was mind blowing. His precision, accuracy, and mechanics seemed robotic, nearly perfect. How Peyton Manning conducted himself taught me something about beating the competition.
The myth that was destroyed is the long standing belief that the consumption of knowledge and technological advancement were the only ways to gain a competitive advantage over the competition. The way many people win is to simply be better than your competition at the basic mechanics of your business.
Most people want to progress past the basics of what they do. It feels redundant, boring, even rudimentary. Yet people who are incredibly proficient at basic processes that produce results become incredibly successful, take Peyton Manning for example.
When he was still in the NFL, he was known for excellent “mechanics.” That is the four step drop in the pocket, reading three receivers, and throwing a football into a two-foot window. If you can do that in less than four seconds, under duress, you can play quarterback in the NFL. Peyton proved to be one of the best of all times because he was better than most at the basic mechanics of his work.
What is fascinating about this is most quarterbacks in high school are practicing the same mechanics. In fact, those who are the best in high school at executing these mechanics have the opportunity to play in college, and the select few who are precise in their execution of the basics at the college level have the privilege to play in the NFL.
It is the same in sales, or in management, with creating a great product, in accounting, or leadership. Being proficient at the basic core elements within the process will make you more successful. If you want to beat your competition, simply become more proficient at executing the basic mechanics of the processes that drive your business and the results will take care of themselves.