Timing is Everything
I recently came across an article that compared various sports and ranked them according to their level of difficulty and athletic exertion. While I am sure fans of different sports will take issue, I was not surprised to read that boxing ranked the highest and as the most difficult of all sports. I am a fan of boxing and I try to get in multiple workouts each week at a local TITLE Boxing Club. It is a fantastic workout and has allowed me to trim down to my fighting weight and has aided me in my quest for excellent health and vitality.
As a fan of boxing I also like to read about the boxing greats of the past. One of my prized possessions is a photograph that hangs on my office wall autographed by Joe Frazier. It is a photo of the moment ‘Smoken’ Joe defeated Muhammad Ali in their first match at Madison Square Garden. It is an iconic photo of two of boxing’s greatest warriors locked in one of boxing’s greatest matches.
There is another perhaps even more iconic boxing photo of the most widely recognized Heavyweight Champion, Muhammad Ali. Anybody who has perused a sporting magazine or sports page has most likely come across the memorable picture of the young boxer as he stands towering powerfully over his fallen opponent, Sonny Liston during the first round of their championship fight on May 25th, 1965. Ali is seen in the prime of his athleticism, taunting, even seemingly demanding that Liston rise to his feet so that Muhammad could continue to show the world his boxing superiority. Sonny Liston did eventually groggily get up, but not until after the count and the fight was over.
This famous picture was snapped in black and white by AP sports photographer John Rooney. The shot so perfectly captured the moment that Mr. Rooney won the coveted World Press Photo Award for the best sports photo of 1965, and it remains one of the best even today. This one picture helped propel Rooney on to a successful career as a sports photographer.
As I studied the photo recently, I saw something that I had not seen before. Examine the ringside front row in the background of the photograph and notice all of the photographers in the background. Each of them was ready and poised to capture the “famous shot”. Only John Rooney was standing in the perfect position at the ready. All the others were only able to capture a b roll shot of Ali’s backside. No journalism awards here, no big payoffs, no notoriety.
Let this be our leadership lesson for the day. This situation pretty well captures what I will call the leadership principle of timing. Leaders understand that timing is everything. Rooney was at the right place at the right time, the others, not so much. A good idea interjected at the wrong time is a bad idea. A bold and decisive move that is not executed with great timing may never achieve the level of buy in or acceptance that it requires and deserves. There is probably more of an art than a science to this aspect of leadership, but the great ones get it and capitalize on it. I suppose it also supports the adage, “Sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good!” I’m not so sure about the luck part, but I do know that asking for people to buy into an idea and take on a new direction takes a good sense of timing on the leader’s part.
Do you have a significant initiative in the works? Are you ready to share a new vision or direction with those you are responsible to lead? If so, spend a few moments and consider the timing of what you are proposing. Are you riding a wave of momentum? That’s a good sign. Are you at a point where the newness and freshness of your direction will be appreciated and welcomed, good. Are you on the tail end of a devastating defeat, a hard fought period of time or just coming off of a messy situation? Perhaps it is better to wait a cooling off period. Either way, check your timing; it might just make the difference between success and failure.
Stay Strong,
Terry
