6 BUSINESS LESSONS
FROM MORE THAN 8 YEARS OF
F A N T A S Y
F O O T B A L L
ROSS SIMMONDS | WWW.ROSSSIMMONDS.COM

Have you ever thought about how our
hobbies can serve as teaching tools for
the skills we apply to our every day and
professional lives?

Consider a ballerina, for example,
who learns discipline and hard work
through hours of practice and
rehearsal before a live performance.

Or a gamer, who is taught how to gather
information and solve problems while trying
to reach the next level in a video game.
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For years now, I’ve had a big passion for football.
In fact, that’s exactly where my obsession with
social media and technology all started.

I first got involved with Fantasy Football
during University when I ran a profitable
blog that ultimately led me on a path to
entrepreneurship and technology.
$ $
I’ve been a Fantasy Football junkie ever since.

It’s estimated that...
19 million people
compete in
Fantasy Football
every year.

Studies show that $1.1
Billion is lost in productivity
every week of the 17 week
NFL Season because of
Fantasy Football.

I believe that while productivity might
take a hit, there are some quality business
lessons that can be taken from
Fantasy Football.

BUSINESS LESSONS IN
FANTASY FOOTBALL
Know When to Hold’em,
Know When to Fold’em
Never Bench Your Studs
Remove All Personal Bias
Identify Potential Issues
Before They Arise
Every Week is a New Week
Be Willing To Take Risks

KNOW WHEN TO HOLD’EM,
KNOW WHEN TO FOLD’EM
In fantasy football, you take part in a draft before the season
to build your team. If, as the season progresses, one of your
players isn’t living up to expectations or gets injured, you
must decide to wait and let them shake the rust, or
trade/drop them before the damage is done.

KNOW WHEN TO HOLD’EM,
KNOW WHEN TO FOLD’EM
While in Fantasy it’s often easier to just keep the player, in
business the stakes are a lot higher and, thus, waiting on
something, or even someone, that might not pan out could
result in the loss of dollars and/or your business.

KNOW WHEN TO HOLD’EM,
KNOW WHEN TO FOLD’EM
The idea of “hire slow, fire fast” has become a mainstream mantra
for many entrepreneurs, consultants and professionals. It’s a great
philosophy to live by and one that you should embrace but have
the processes in place to know when you can invest in someone
or something and when you need to walk away.

NEVER BENCH
YOUR STUDS
When you’re looking for a win in Fantasy Football, it’s much better to
play a future hall of famer who hasn’t played well the last two weeks
than it is to play a no name on a hot streak.
Likewise in business, you must do whatever it takes to keep your top
talent passionate, engaged and motivated to achieve success.

NEVER BENCH
YOUR STUDS
A star will perform best when he/she is:
1. challenged
2. given freedom, and
3. surrounded by intelligent people
You never bench them. The studs on your team need to be
celebrated, invested in and rewarded.

REMOVE ALL
PERSONAL BIAS
In Fantasy Football, you come up against an internal battle,
especially on weeks when your starting quarterback is up against
your favourite NFL team.
Business is a place where relationships must be put on the
backburner in the name of good business and success.

REMOVE ALL
PERSONAL BIAS
Internal conflicts will arise in the workplace and, to get
through it, personal feelings must be removed and
candidness must be embraced.

IDENTIFY POTENTIAL ISSUES
BEFORE THEY ARISE
In Fantasy Football, when difficult situations arise, like
all of your players having overlapping weeks off, or
horrible playing conditions during playoffs, you need to
be able to make trades and moves that put you in a
good position for the rest of your season.

IDENTIFY POTENTIAL ISSUES
BEFORE THEY ARISE
Far too many businesses focus on right now rather
than next week. They don’t plan ahead and are
resultantly caught by surprise when they don’t get
the results they hoped for.

IDENTIFY POTENTIAL ISSUES
BEFORE THEY ARISE
It’s important to always be thinking 10 steps ahead to ensure you
have your bases covered. Don’t get caught red-faced with a
problem that could have easily been avoided.

Week
10
EVERY WEEK
IS A NEW WEEK
While it’s important to plan ahead, you most certainly need to
focus on each week and never take your opponent for granted.
As soon as you feel relaxed with your Fantasy Football team,
you need to start to panic.

Week
10
EVERY WEEK
IS A NEW WEEK
Likewise in business, the moment you become content with
your own skills is the moment you will start to settle.
Every week is a new week with the same chance at winning and
making your team better. And every day is a new opportunity
to be better than the person you were yesterday.
Take advantage of it!

The last yet most important lesson from Fantasy
Football is the importance of taking risks.
Sometimes you need to ignore the status quo
and do something that is against the norm.

RULESRULES
You need be willing to break rules and be
comfortable with the fact that some people
are going to call you nuts.

You might fail.
You might succeed.
You’ll only know if you try.
SUCCESS
FAILURE

Instead of sitting on the sidelines,
take a leap and build your wings
on the way down.

And who knows…Maybe it will lead
to a championship.

@TheCoolestCool
www.rosssimmonds.com