Football is referred to as “a game of inches” and often you will hear announcers describe scoring drives as getting “stalled”. Another artful cliche states that “a Super Bowl is won a play at a time”. So coaches implore  their players to “keep moving the ball down the field”. You gotta keep moving the ball down the field. Vary the plays. Keep your opponent off balance. Have your momentum carrying you forward. Do what ever it takes to keep moving the ball down the field.

Leadership on a daily basis looks exactly the same way; you have to keep moving the ball down the field. As the point person, that is your role. So how do you do that? Solve problems that can’t be solve. Encourage your team. Devise a strategy. Go with the forward momentum. Stay focus on one play or deliverable at a time. Enjoy the process along the way. You have the idea… Leadership often is play by play. One play at a time.

Master plans & 5 year strategic visions (do people do those anymore?) are useful and sometimes necessary — each long term component serves it purposes. But do you have your team moving forward OR are you in danger of letting your mission get stalled?