What a CEO Can Learn From a NASCAR Driver

August 8, 2011

I have written many blogs about leadership in building great teams and establishing the right culture in expansion stage companies. This week I followed an unbelievable event that happened in NASCAR that I think epitomizes many typical values in great companies. Leadership, tenacity, adversity, and focus were just a few that were demonstrated — all by 27-year-old NASCAR driver Brad Keselowski.

 

Yes, I am a Managing Director of a venture capital firm that enjoys NASCAR. I go to as many races as I can with my father and we have a great time. Here is what I saw happen this week.

Brad Keselowski (driver of the #2 Miller Lite car) was testing on Wednesday for an upcoming race and had his accelerator stick sending him head on into a barrier at 100 mph.

 

He was left with a broken ankle and sore back. He said he felt lucky to be alive. The problem with his recovery was that he had a race on Sunday with practice and qualifying on Friday and Saturday… not a great deal of time to heal. His owner started immediately looking for a back up driver. Brad wasn’t going to let that happen. He called the owner and said, “No way in hell anyone else is going to get in my car … I can’t let my team down now, we are too close to a championship.”

So Brad got a brace for his ankle, taped up his back, and poured himself into the car for the weekend. It is a grueling track where shifting and braking are at a premium with continuous pressure being put on his ankle and back.

Guess what happened? HE WON THE RACE!!

The important part of the story was the interview after he pulled into victory lane.

Here is what I heard:

The reporter asked Brad, “What was the reason you won, your heart, will, what?” He answered “People”. He said it was the people on his team (crew, sponsors, owners, and people in the shop) that made it happen. He deflected the heroic win to thanking the 33 Navy personnel that lost their lives last week serving the United States. He later pulled himself up to his crutches and immediately hobbled to his team to shower them in champagne.

This was not about him and his ordeal; this was about his team and his company…. andeven his country.

I would not be surprised if he wins many more races this year after seeing the eyes and smiles of his organization. So learn from Brad and make everything about the success of your team, not yourself. Remember that you can’t do everything alone and appreciate your team.

They WILL rally behind you!!

SVP Marketing & Sales

<strong>Brian Zimmerman</strong> was a Partner at OpenView from 2006 until 2014. While at OpenView he worked with our portfolio executive teams to deliver the highest impact value-add consulting services, primarily focused on go-to-market strategies. Brian is currently the Senior Vice President of Sales and Marketing at <a href="http://www.5nine.com/">5Nine Software</a>.