Blocking and tackling

I first heard the term 'blocking and tackling' when I was in banking. In that context, it was usually senior executives talking about how they just needed to do the day-to-day things right in order to grow the business. In banking, this means meeting client expectations, winning pitches for new business, helping clients grow so they can take out more loans, deposit more cash etc.

Originally 'blocking and tackling' comes from football, where the basics of the game are blocking other players so you can run down the field. (if you are on offense) Or tackling the player with the ball to keep him from advancing. (if you are on defense) So when you say you are focusing on 'blocking and tackling', it means you are making sure that you are doing the fundamental things right.

I'm starting to hear this a bit more when it comes to startups. For a long time, startups got ahead of themselves and were focused on big ideas and transformational technology that were really high risk and high reward. But lately, I'm seeing talk about more back-to-basics start-ups. Think more traditional small businesses rather than Silicon Valley. One voice that expresses this is Nick Huber who has a podcast called the Sweaty Startup. He talks about 'blocking and tackling' as a keep it simple approach to creating a successful business. All you need to do is out-execute the other businesses in your area or field. You don't need to have some radical, world-changing idea.

I've come to a similar conclusion with my business. If I can just keep 'blocking and tackling', creating new marketing content and shipping new and improved data connectors, my business will continue to grow. Startups don't need to be so complicated, often you should just focus on the fundamentals.