I’m a sucker for this kind of movie — aside from being a baseball fan of sorts (I finally caught my first foul ball last Monday — i smiled from ear to ear), I knew I would like the way in which focus and innovation was brought to the forefront. It did not matter whether or not the story is true, what matters is that great results came about as a result of a leader who was focused, beyond a reasonable doubt, to stay the course in pursuit of success.
To be a leader like the GM in the movie, there was a strong need to somehow infect everyone with the same conviction as he had. Convince everyone, not just to ‘try it for a while’, but to put aside all of the conventions and prejudices that often hold back success. Maximize the effort put out. Once infected, all the team brain power (or all the physical skills) are focused in a common direction, which often provides an edge against the competition.
Baseball, or sports in general, are often perceived to have an advantage in that team spirit and other intangibles can play a factor in winning. But this is true in the business world as well — it’s called building team culture. A well motivated team can ‘rally’ itself to catch up to the leaders, can overcome obstacles that hurdle them over higher challenges — that place them in the elite of the industry they are in.
Moneyball is a great movie to watch, regardless of your interests, but it is a great example of how perseverance and focus can pay off (assuming it is all channeled in a well-chosen way).