“Remember that failure is an event, not a person.”

– Zig Ziglar

Yesterday the Irish rugby team came within seconds of achieving something they haven’t done in 105 years… beating the best team in the world, the New Zealand All-Blacks. Ronan O’Gara, one of Ireland’s greatest ever players, spoke before the game about mindset being the key factor here. And so it was.

The lessons are plentiful and so are the potential metaphors. For me, one of the biggest is to play full on until the final whistle sounds. Everyone thought Ireland had it as the clock went into over-time. But this is the All-Blacks, and you can never relax…

It was a magnificent performance from the Irish but it was also amazing to watch a Champions Mindset in action in the final seconds. They expect to beat everyone, and that is part of their mindset. Tough to take if you’re Irish, but inspiring all the same.