“Our values determine the metrics by which we measure ourselves and everyone else”
Mark Manson
Song: Chemical by Post Malone
Article: Significant work is a vote by Seth Godin
Thought: It’s almost football season again, which got me thinking about passing yards. Here’s a list of things that happen to make a completed pass:
- A General Manager and advisors assemble a team
- The Owner, lawyers and agents negotiate the contracts
- Trainers and staff get players stronger and faster
- Medical staff keep players on the field with treatment
- Coaches create, teach and practice the play repeatedly
- Everyone makes it to the stadium that day
- The Head Coach calls the play and communicates it to the QB
- The Offensive Line puts the ball in motion and blocks effectively
- The WR runs the correct route and the other WRs run their routes
- The QB throws to the correct spot where the WR will be with the correct weight and accuracy
- The WR makes the catch and holds onto the ball as tackled
- No one on the team commits a penalty
- No one on the defensive disrupts the play
I’m sure I missed a few steps but you get the point. The only two people who get credit for the pass are the QB and WR in the form of “yards”. It’s basically the last people who touch the ball who end up with all the measurable metrics. This analogy is why I don’t believe in measuring individual’s metrics because even something as simple as a pass takes a tremendous amount of team effort. All this happens while 11 players (and hundreds of supporting cast) are trying to prevent it on the other side.
You want a more accurate metric – measure the team, not the individual and reward the team accordingly. Measure the effort to get to the outcome and not just the outcome.