Crushed by the competition …

Watching someone like Ben Ainslie at work at the helm of a fast yacht might not provide much inspiration for business.

But there IS a big lesson in there.

But before we start – who is he?

Firstly, he’s the most successful sailor in Olympic history.

Secondly, alongside Sir Alex Ferguson he’s one of my all-time sporting heroes.

And thirdly, he’s mentally as tough as nails and would routinely crush the competition before getting anywhere near the water.

It’s not a sport I follow but what’s so fascinating about sailing is that whilst the first across the finishing line is the winner, competitors can’t just travel in a straight line from start to finish.

To use the wind effectively they must tack to-and-fro as tightly as possible in the knowledge that it genuinely is the fastest way from start to finish.

Many business projects are the same and why so many give up because they think zigging and zagging is the fast road to nowhere.

Without proper thought, it can be.

But these constant course directions are highly valuable pointers to tell us if we’re going in the wrong direction or, whether we need to tack a little to get back on track.

Having just put the finishing touches to a new premium product line I was beginning to think that that we’d carried out too many course directions for my liking.

In the end, it was all the better for it and I feel like it’ll be one of our best project launches. EVER!

So could yours be, too.

And don’t let the big boys out there with mega budgets get the better of you …

If you want a sounding board or just want to bend my ear, I’m on hand for a chat about anything to do with Print or Web Design.

Stay safe.

Alec