Understanding the concept of Smart Work through Football Session

The Misconception

"Work smarter not harder". This idea isn't anything new. Most of us are aware of it. It's just that we do not know how to implement it. We have a certain way of dealing with things and we always prefer to stick to that. We have grown up with the thought that things done in a harder way will bear fruitful result. While hard work is important, there is no point in working hard if it is not headed in the right direction, and when a certain work can be completed with less effort there is no point in putting maximum effort to get that work done. It is a complete waste of energy and time. 

The Wrong Approach

Let's see how a football session makes an individual aware of how smart work can be implemented. This session comes in handy for the defenders as they get to learn about football defence tricks. A defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposing team players from scoring goals.

In the above video, you can see that the defender makes an all-out effort to defend the opposing team player but in vain. The defender runs towards the opposing player at a high speed, but that's exactly what the player wants the defender to do and as the defender approaches closer, he uses his dribbling skill to move the ball away from him and either takes it forward or passes it to his team player. The amount of effort exerted by the defender proved to be futile, and that's because there is a much better and smarter way of defending.

The Smart Approach

In the above video, the defender does not run all the way up to the opposing player. He covers lesser distance and stops. He tries to manipulate the player and move accordingly but still maintains the distance and doesn't try to go near him. The opposing player expected him to come closer and get the ball but the unexpected defence tactic confused him and he tries to do something different which was not planned. Now when he tries to take the ball forward, it becomes easier for the defender to defend and get the ball from him.

In this case, the defender didn't run all the way up to the opposing player, instead, he stopped a few steps before the opposing player. Since he covered lesser distance, he saved a certain amount of his energy. And with this change in the strategy he made the opposing player take a step which he was not prepared for, a step which he was not sure about and when he took the ball forward half-minded, it became easier for the defender to get the ball from him. And this time around he made the opposing player come towards him, unlike the previous occasion where he had to run all the way up to the opposing player.

                                     

The above video displays another classic example of smart work. The defender knows that his teammate is standing behind him to his left. So, he takes a step forward on to his right as a result of which the opposing player automatically dribbles the ball to the defender's left and moves towards the other defender who manages to get the ball from him.

The simple learning from this session is that there will be an easier and smarter way of doing things with less effort most of the time which would provide a better result when compared to the usual methods that we prefer implementing. We just need to open up our mind for different ideas.

Know when to hold back

Let's look at another session. We have 2 teams, one in orange and the other in green. The orange team is leading by a goal and there is another 1 minute for the match to end. If you see the video carefully you will notice that the orange team players are just passing the ball amongst themselves and are not making an attempt to score a goal. This is yet another example of smart work. With just 1-minute left all that orange team needs to make sure is that the green team doesn't get the ball till the end time. Sometimes in an effort to score a goal which is not required at this stage, the opposing team might manage to get the ball and it could prove costly. The Orange team have the potential and skills to score a goal but depending on the situation they decide to hold back and play smartly. 

An individual may have the talent and right skills to achieve success but at times depending on the situation and time he may have to hold back and think smartly. For example, in a 5000-meter race, a good runner will always run slowly in the initial laps, increase his speed gradually with each lap and finally runs in full speed in the final lap. This way the runner makes sure that he is not exhausted by the time the final lap starts. Running slowly in the initial laps help to build endurance which is needed to run long distances. The runner's success includes both hard work and smart work.

The Right Balance

Hard work is the amount of effort the person has taken to prepare himself for the race by training hard for months or years. And then he also exhibited smart work during the race by running slowly in the initial lap. Both hard work and smart work are equally important. We just need to analyze the situation and exhibit one of these accordingly. Even the video that we saw previously, they were just passing the ball around because they were leading and only a few minutes were left for the match to end. The same cannot be implemented at the other stages of the match where the focus should be on scoring goals. 

For your own safety and good

These examples of smart work are not just meant for your professional life to achieve success, but these also come in handy for an individual's self-awareness. You may have sufficient strength to break a door but the smarter and easier thing to do is to use a key. You may have the potential of riding a cycle at a high speed which can be implemented in race tracks or open grounds. But when it comes to public places or traffic areas, it is important to slow down for your own good and others around.

AUTHOR NAME - Vinod Balan [Member of Play2Discover NGO]
AUTHOR MAIL - vinod.balan883@gmail.com