Like many people over the past few weeks, I’ve found myself catching snippets of the recent FIFA World Cup. While I wouldn’t describe myself as a football fan, one thing struck me.
You don’t have to understand football to notice something interesting about successful teams.
The temptation to copy the team at the top
Business owners are surrounded by advice.
Sometimes it feels as though every week there’s a new “must-have” piece of software or a different way of running your business.
“I’ve been told I need…”
🔸ClickUp
🔸Monday
🔸Asana
🔸AI
🔸a CRM
🔸SOPs
🔸Zapier
🔸an OBM
🔸a VA
🔸Notion
The list goes on.
It’s a bit like watching a football team win with a 4-3-3 formation and deciding that’s exactly how your own team should play.
After all, if it’s working for them…
But football doesn’t work like that.
Neither does business.
Success doesn’t come from copying another team’s tactics
Every successful team has different players.
Different strengths.
Different budgets.
Different managers.
Different opponents.
Different ambitions.
So why would they all play exactly the same way?
Success doesn’t come from copying another team’s tactics. It comes from understanding your own strengths.
Yet, at times, it can feel as though small business owners are encouraged to do exactly the opposite.
We hear stories about businesses doubling their turnover using a particular platform, automating everything with AI or completely transforming the way they work.
Before long, we’re wondering whether we should be doing exactly the same.
Looking behind the headlines
Over the past few months, I’ve deliberately spent time building relationships with business owners whose services either complement mine or have a strong synergy with what I do.
One of the things I’ve enjoyed most is having honest conversations about how we actually run our businesses.
Not the polished LinkedIn version.
The real version.
The conversations have rarely started with, “What software do you use?”
Instead they’ve been about questions like:
🔸Has that platform genuinely saved you time?
🔸Does your team actually use it?
🔸Was it worth the investment?
🔸What did you stop using?
🔸What do your clients prefer?
One thing that made me smile was how often the humble Excel spreadsheet cropped up.
Despite all the new platforms available, it was still quietly doing exactly what was needed.
Not because it’s exciting.
Because it works.
It reinforced something I’ve believed for a long time.
The best solution isn’t always the newest one.
Sometimes it’s simply the one that’s right for the job.
That’s why I rarely start with the software
When someone asks whether they should introduce a new platform or change the way they work, I’m unlikely to answer immediately.
Not because I don’t know the technology.
Because I don’t yet know the business.
I don’t know how your business operates.
I don’t know where the friction is.
I don’t know what’s already working brilliantly.
And I certainly don’t know whether the latest software everyone is talking about is the right fit for you, your clients or your team.
Technology can absolutely be transformational.
But it should fit your business, not the other way around.
Sometimes the right answer is introducing something new.
Sometimes it’s making better use of what you already have.
Sometimes it’s removing a platform altogether.
The answer is different every time because every business has different people, different priorities and different ways of working.
And when I say “team”, I don’t just mean people.
Today’s team might include AI, automation and software alongside the humans.
The important thing is making sure they all work well together.
Play to your own strengths
The businesses that thrive aren’t always the ones with the newest software or the longest list of tools.
More often, they’re the ones that understand how their business works best.
They know their strengths.
They build around them.
They choose technology, processes and support that fit their business rather than copying someone else’s.
Perhaps that’s the biggest lesson we can take from elite sport.
The best teams don’t all play the same formation.
They simply understand what gives their team the best chance of success.
The same is true in business.
So perhaps the next time someone tells you what you “need”… pause for a moment and then start by asking yourself one simple question:
“Do I?”
