How Chris Paul's team intelligence can inspire sales leaders

When Tom Brady talks about recruiting players and being recruited by others, he opens the door to a fascinating insight: On a surface level, ‘team building’ and ‘team recruitment’ appear to serve different purposes — one about strengthening what exists, the other about finding what’s missing. But when viewed through the lens of sports psychology, both center on the same principle: the ability to inspire belief in a shared mission. In sales, recruitment is persuasion — the ability to communicate a vision that others want to join. In sports, team-building is alignment — the ability to unify individuals behind that shared vision once they arrive. Both depend on emotional intelligence, trust, and purpose-driven leadership. Whether you’re running a company or a locker room, the fundamentals don’t change: • You recruit talent by selling belief. • You build teams by sustaining belief. Ultimately, the psychology of winning — in business or in sports — is about creating an environment where belief translates into performance. #SportsBusiness #SportsPsychology #Leadership #TeamBuilding #Recruitment #PerformanceCulture #SalesPsychology #HighPerformance #TomBrady #NFL #SportsXQ

“Can we count on you?” If you’ve ever played real team sports, you know the truth: You didn’t sprint harder just for the coach’s approval or a personal trophy— you did your job so the team could win.💥💪💡 That’s the corporate athlete mindset.❤️ And it’s the foundation of every true meritocracy. ⸻ 💡 How I run it: 1️⃣ First week of the quarter: we review last quarter’s performance. Everyone’s numbers are on the board—no hiding. We celebrate who over-performed, who’s close, and how the team result stacked up globally. No one’s number stands alone. 2️⃣ Last month of the quarter: we host the “Can We Count on You?” call. Each seller walks through their commits and upside. We discuss how to pull deals forward, who needs support, and what it’ll take to hit the team goal. Operations and marketing see the same picture. Transparency builds trust. 3️⃣ Always visible: The war room tracks regional and global progress in real time. If one region’s hot, they help cover another. If we hit the target—we celebrate. If we miss, we own it, learn fast, and tighten the plan. ⸻ Corporate athletes love this environment. They want accountability, visibility, and purpose. They want to be the reason the team crosses the line.💪⭐️ Those who only care about “their” number? They don’t last long in a meritocracy.👎 ⸻ Ask yourself: ✅ Does every rep know how their performance fuels the team win? ✅ Do you connect personal success to company impact? ✅ Does your all-hands call feel like a locker room before the championship game? If not—start there. Build a culture where the scoreboard tells the whole story.💥🥷🏴☠️ #Leadership #SalesCulture #Meritocracy #CorporateAthlete #TeamPerformance #HunterX #HalfMonkHalfHitman #ResponsibilityPsychology

If 2025 has taught us anything, it’s this — having a great business isn’t enough to win anymore. People don’t just buy from companies; they buy from leaders they trust. If you’re not building your personal brand, you’re already falling behind. But here’s the twist — most founders don’t realize all the benefits that actually happen you build one. Let’s break it down 👇 🚀 Why Building a Personal Brand in 2025 Changes Everything 1. Inbound Leads Without Ads Your content attracts clients before you even pitch. 2. Authority That Commands Premium Pricing You stop competing on price — people pay for you. 3. Trust That Retains Clients Effortlessly Clients stay longer because they believe in your leadership. 4. Visibility That Unlocks Partnerships & Press When you’re seen, doors open automatically. 5. Freedom to Choose Who You Work With A strong brand lets you attract aligned clients and decline the rest. 6. Opportunities Beyond Geography Your reputation works for you globally, even when you’re offline. 7. Confidence That Compounds You evolve from hidden operator to recognized authority. That’s the part most people miss. A personal brand doesn’t just grow your business — it transforms who you are as a leader. You gain clarity, credibility, and control. You stop chasing opportunities — they start chasing you. So here’s the question: In 2026, will you be visible — or invisible? #PersonalBranding #BuildYourBrand #BrandYou #PersonalBrand #BrandAuthority #VisibleLeader #BrandIdentity #PersonalBrandingTips #ThoughtLeader #CEOLife

The Cost of Hero Ball What is the true cost of hero-driven operating models in business? The most valuable statistic might just be the one that proves selflessness is the winning formula. In basketball, teams can win with an individual star who individually can score against anyone (low Assisted Field Goal Percentage). In pick-up, we would call this “hero ball”. Championship teams, the ones that last, win with flow. AST% measures the percentage of made baskets that came directly from a pass. A high AST% team is a mature, synergistic organization. They demonstrate belief in the system: players know the right decision isn't to take a difficult, contested shot, but to pass to a teammate for a better, open one. The metric doesn't just measure passing; it measures trust. In business, playing “hero ball” is the equivalent of a low AST% offense: the lone employee who works through the weekend to fix a bug without teamwork, the star salesperson who bypasses the win-plan and CRM to land a massive deal, or the visionary who makes an impulsive strategic decision. We celebrate these wins because they feel dramatic. But a high AST% organization measures the success of the system. Their wins are quieter, more predictable, and more scalable because they come from collaboration, documentation, and shared accountability. The problem with the hero is that they are irreplaceable, unscalable, and often burn out. The low AST% organization is perpetually fragile, relying on the exceptional rather than the efficient. The mature organization builds processes—plays—that guarantee the shot always comes from the most effective person in the best position. It shifts the burden of winning from the individual's talent to the team's structure. I’ve spent these past few posts dissecting the scoreboard - from accountability to execution. But great organizations don't just measure the past; they invest in the future. For our next chapter, these posts will move from the scoreboard/KPIs to explore Player Development: How do you identify the "undrafted gem" and build a system designed to grow people? Are we doing everything we can to ensure our “players” are properly prepared of the game? #Collaboration #Teamwork #AssistedFieldGoals #ASTpercent #TheCostOfHeroism #BusinessAndBasketball #Leadership

You Can’t Win Every Game — But You Must Know Which Game You Can Win. Once, during a board meeting, an executive asked me: “What’s our strategy this year to win in every market?” I simply replied — “There’s no such thing as a strategy that wins everywhere.” The best strategies don’t start with ‘What should we do?’ They begin with ‘Which game should we not play?’ Many businesses fall into the trap of wanting to win every battle, but few pause to ask which battle is worth fighting. A winning strategy is not about expansion — it’s about precision. The markets where you truly have an advantage often share three traits: • Easy to access • Economically worthwhile • Repeatable and scalable Before you design your next move, ask yourself three questions: 1️⃣ Who is your real customer? 2️⃣ Who is willing to pay you? 3️⃣ What exactly are they paying for? The art of strategy is not about doing more — it’s about choosing what not to do. So, take a step back and ask: Are you playing the game you can truly win, or just trying to win in someone else’s game? #StrategicThinking #Leadership #BusinessStrategy #FocusAndWin #TheInsightRoom

The Next Ball Mindset: Winning Beyond Failure! In cricket, failure is part of the game. A batter gets out, a bowler is hit for six, or a team loses a final. What separates champions from the rest is not their ability to avoid mistakes, but how quickly they reset for the next ball, the next over, or the next match. Business is no different. We all face missed targets, lost clients, or failed product launches. The danger isn’t the failure itself — it’s letting one poor result spill into the next, creating a cycle of self-doubt and hesitation. Why We Get Stuck? In both sport and business, the human tendency is to carry baggage. A missed shot lingers in the mind, just as a lost deal lingers in the boardroom. This mental load clouds judgment, limits creativity, and reduces confidence. Over time, it can create a culture of fear where people play safe instead of aiming high. The Reset Formula Just as athletes train to move on quickly, leaders and teams can apply a simple reset: 🔹Acknowledge the miss – Call it as it is. (“We missed the quarter’s sales by 15%.”) 🔹Narrow the focus – Pick one or two controllable levers to adjust. (“Our onboarding flow needs simplification.”) 🔹Return to basics – In sport, it’s watching the ball; in business, it’s listening to the customer. 🔹Debrief without blame – Separate fact from identity. Learn, but don’t label the team as “failures.” 🔹Shift perspective – Treat every failure as data. The next ball, the next client, the next quarter is still unwritten. Why It Matters In sport, one ball doesn’t decide a career. In business, one quarter doesn’t define a company. What matters is resilience, the ability to reset, refocus, and play the “next ball” with full intent. The Winning Edge! The best athletes don’t avoid failure; they master recovery. For leaders and teams, the real competitive advantage lies in doing the same, acknowledging the stumble, learning fast, and stepping up with a clear head for the next opportunity. That’s how both great sportsmen and great businesses win, not by never falling, but by always getting unstuck. #NextBallMindset #PlayTheNextBall #WinningEdge #ResetAndRise

You don’t perform on the pitch, unless… You perform in the mind. Before a player can control the ball, they have to learn to control their thoughts. Before a team wins the league, each individual must unlock their full potential. That’s real performance. Coaches and teams think it’s drills, data, or tactics. It’s not. It’s discipline. It’s belief. It’s purpose. That’s where real performance begins. Full potential never lives in a single element. A consistency of effort across every pillar that matters. It demands a plan. A strategy: Fitness: showing up at your peak, physically ready to endure, compete, and win. Health: how you sleep, what you eat, how you recover, how you live when you’re off the pitch. Faith: The foundation, the principles you live by. Mental: The mental strength, your self image, your personal set of standards and conversations you have with yourself. When a player commits to all of these and when a team unites around them then trophies are the natural result. Too many teams chase drills. Too many players chase tactics. But the real game? That one, the one that wins championships: it’s internal. Master that first. Everything else will follow. #Mindset #Performance #Football #Leadership #PravusPerformance

A job is not loyal to you — it’s loyal to results, performance, and outcomes. That’s why it’s crucial to stay loyal to yourself, your brand, and your value proposition. In today’s market, job security doesn’t come from a title — it comes from how well you understand your worth and how effectively you communicate it. Invest in your growth, protect your brand, and make sure your loyalty aligns with your long-term vision — not temporary positions. #CareerGrowth #PersonalBrand #Leadership #ValueProposition #Mindset #ProfessionalDevelopment #CareerAdvice #FutureOfWork #SelfWorth #Success

𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡 𝐈𝐬 𝐒𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐜; 𝐍𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬 𝐁𝐲 𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭 Something I’ve come to realize about growth is that it’s never random; 𝐢𝐭’𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐚 𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬. You know, in sales, people often assume growth is about closing more deals or going after larger numbers, but that’s really just the surface, I promise. The actual growth moments I’ve seen, have come from the unexpected places: • The client who said no but left with insights that fuelled my next big win. • The teammate who simply needed encouragement, and would go on to smash their targets. • The business strategy that looked too simple, but ended up reaching beyond expectations. For me, leadership isn’t quite about 𝐭𝐢𝐭𝐥𝐞𝐬 or even 𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐬; it's about 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞. When you focus on 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭, the numbers always follow. Works like magic. So having said all of that, here’s my Thursday reminder: 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐰𝐭𝐡, 𝐛𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐫. 𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐧𝐮𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐭, 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐲, 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐠𝐲, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐲. ✨ What’s one lesson leadership or sales has taught you about growth? #Sales #Leadership #Growth #Mindset #BusinessGrowth #Development

Do you ever feel like you've hit a ceiling in your business or career? You're successful, you've got a great team, but there's a nagging feeling that you're capable of more—if only you could get unstuck. Our guest to day understands that feeling better than anyone. He's the founder of Advanced Business Abilities, a coaching company built specifically for established business owners and professionals who are ready to b reak through to that next level of growth without sacrificing their health or their values.   With over two decades of leadership experience—from launching his first business at 21 to managing a national sales force of over 300—he knows the entrepreneurial journey from the ground up. He's ditched the generic, one-size-fits-all approach to coaching in favor of something deeply personal and effective and he brings a refreshingly honest and grounded voice to the conversation, and he's here to help us do the work that actually works. Please join me for my conversation with the founder of Advanced Business Abilities, Mike Irving. #becomingpreferred #michaelvickers #salesskills #transformationalcoaching (See full episode link in comments)