I hope your summer has been filled with fun, laughter and excitement. As our kids return to classes and our business schedules return to normal, hopefully your scrapbook is filled with great memories of this year’s summer vacation.

Mine ended with a bang. I had the opportunity to take my 17 year old son on a 4100 mile driving trip to visit 6 major league baseball stadiums including the NY Yankees, Boston Red Sox, Philadelphia Phillies, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cleveland Indians and Chicago White Sox.

As you might imagine, each team (and city) had its own unique culture – much like each of your businesses. There were rituals and norms that were different at each ball park. It was fascinating to experience them one after another to really see the contrast and uniqueness.

Are you running your business like a big-league Baseball team?

But as you know by now, it is difficult for me to get out of business mode – even when I am on vacation. So the entire time we were enjoying our trip, I was also thinking about the lessons that could be applied to business – and there were many.

One that hit me hard and clear was centered around CELEBRATIONS. While many of the rituals for each major league baseball team were unique, the one that was universally common was the ritual of celebrating each and every success – no matter how small.

When someone hit a sacrifice fly to score a run, everyone on the team congratulated the batter. When someone stole second base, everyone in the dugout cheered and fist-pumped their teammates. When a nice bunt was laid down to move a runner into scoring position, everyone met the batter as they returned to the dugout with a high-five. When a fielder made a great catch, everyone on the team acknowledged and praised them.

The interesting part was that these minor celebrations were not about hitting home runs or winning the game. They were the fundamentals – the blocking and tackling of their business!

And, of course, when the home run was hit or the game was won, it was time for a BIG celebration – including fireworks.

So what about in your business? Are you taking the time to celebrate the well-done blocking and tackling in your business? Are your team members looking for opportunities to high-five a team mate, or are they looking to find them doing something wrong so they can get them in trouble with the boss?

In business, we often times get too serious. You hear the term “having your game face on” and you think it means to be serious and stern. But in baseball, having your game face on is all about cheering your teammates, getting excited for each small win, celebrating the fundamentals.

Perhaps is is time to start running your business like it is a major league baseball team – and start high-fiving, fist-pumping, back-slapping and setting off some fireworks!

Try it and you’ll find your team will enjoy being a part of a WINNING TEAM!

Ride Hard,