Love of the Game
Despite a late flight back from our family holiday trip last week, I woke up the following morning genuinely excited to come to work. I feel very fortunate that I often feel that way. The first line of our mission statement at Footers is “Love What You Do,” because when you enjoy your work, you tend to be more successful and it makes the journey a lot more fun along the way.
My friend and owner of Love Catering in Los Angeles, Jonathan Darr, recently sent me an article about Michael Jordan. He was one of my idols growing up and is widely considered one of the greatest basketball players of all time. In his contract with the Chicago Bulls, Jordan had what was called a “love of the game” clause. It allowed him to play basketball anywhere, anytime, and still be guaranteed his contract if he got hurt.
Anthony proudly sporting his Michael Jordan commemorative jacket
In a recent interview, Jordan talked about how constant practice is what made him great. By playing the game as much as possible, he didn’t burn out, he actually deepened his passion for it. The more he played, the more he loved it. And the more he loved it, the more he wanted to practice and improve.
We may not love every part of our jobs, and that’s okay. But when we spend time leaning into the aspects of our work that energize us, we unlock a different level of performance. We become more engaged, more creative, and more resilient. Work starts to fuel us instead of drain us.
As leaders, this matters even more. When people love what they do, they show up differently. They care more deeply, push themselves further, and bring better energy to the people around them. Part of our responsibility is helping our teams find and spend more time doing work that plays to their strengths and reconnects them to why they started in the first place.
Thank you for allowing me to do what I love; teaching, inspiring, and speaking about culture and leadership. I don’t take that for granted and I couldn't be more excited for the MIBE Summit in just under three weeks!
So this week, take a moment to reflect:
What do you love most about your job?
And how can you create more opportunities for yourself and your team to stay connected to the love of the game?
Keep MIBE-ing!
Anthony Lambatos
Founder, MIBE Hospitality Leadership Development
Owner, Footers Catering
P.S. Get excited about your leadership journey! Join us at our MIBE Summit January 25th - 27th.
