How Can A 3-Word Question Improve Your Decisiveness And Team Performance?

In front of the goal, do you pass or shoot?

Although the question lacks context, you might have already unconsciously picked an answer. Some of our mental habits often rationalise this immediate decision with: “I’m more a team player” or “I’m a go-getter”.

Pass or shoot. How to choose?

At its core, football is a team sport, with 11 players banding together to defeat their opponents. Passing is, by definition, a team move and seems a prime choice, but if nobody tries to score, our team is unlikely to win.

What then?

Should we look at roles? The strikers shoot and the others pass? In this case, if a defender is in a position to score, should she still pass the ball to a striker because that’s their “job”? With this approach, you might end up being benched and spend the remainder of the season making lemonades.

“Pass or shoot?” is an exciting question and concept I work on with teams to elevate their performance. It encapsulates an often-overlooked skill: decisiveness.

You might be a world-class midfielder, capable, while your eyes closed, to land the ball with a millimetre precision; there will come a time when shooting is the best course of action. Passing then becomes…