Forgive me for indulging you in the conversation of basketball. But I think if you’ll read this closely, there may be a message for you.

Butler University is in the Final Four of the NCAA basketball tourney. And the beauty is they are also the host team (it’s played this year in Butler’s hometown of Indianapolis).

But the reason this is important to you is the light I want to shine on what’s called The Butler Way. And make the case that the Butler Way should be Your Way.

Teamwork. Preparation. Fun.

The statistic that you should care about is 10 of the 12 players on the team are homegrown…right in Butler’s home state of Indiana. They don’t need massive travel budgets…they aren’t looking for the most sought after kids. They look for kids with talent, integrity and a predisposition to team work. If they’re a little shorter, OK. If they play below the rim instead of above the rim, that’s OK too. Because the Butler Way isn’t about getting the best players. It’s about having the best team. A huge difference.

There’s a Lesson Here For Salespeople and Business Leaders

Get the fundamentals right. Get the thinking right. Get your mind right.

If you get those right, you don’t have the be the sharpest knife in the drawer. You don’t have to have the quickest wit in the room. You don’t have to say ‘everything right’ to close the sale or acquire a piece of business. You don’t have to wear the latest fashion so you impress your prospect…in fact you don’t even have to impress your prospect. And you definitely don’t have to have the best price—because it ain’t about price.

Butler Coach Brad Stevens

Because the Butler Way is not about impressing anyone. It’s about playing within yourself–playing your game, not the other guy’s game. Having a ball doing it. Never getting rattled. Being really, really smart on the floor. And it’s about  a player being OK with scoring 24 points one game and 4 the next…and not getting bent out of shape about it.

I don’t know whether Butler has a chance to win it all. I do know this: that the tide is changing in our world. It’s not about being the biggest and overpowering today (politicos will recognize this as “too big to fail”).

You don’t have to have the biggest marketing budget–or the biggest booth at the tradeshow to win business. In fact, I would suggest that you have an advantage if you AREN’T big. (I’m quite sure that schools like Butler use their size as a recruiting advantage.) Those are NOT the fundamentals of business.

Here are Six Fundamentals to get you started–and these should be Your Way:

• Listen to your prospect. They’ll tell you what they really want and what’s important to them. In other words, stop talking and pitching.
• Do what’s right in the process. If there is a wrinkle in your product or service, bring it up upfront. Don’t hide it hoping your customer never sees it. It’s not good for your Karma.
• Be of “integrity.” Meaning, if you’re thinking it on the inside, then say it on the outside. When you begin holding things back, you lose.
• Be who you are. Know what you’re really good at and don’t try to ‘make things fit’ just to make a buck. It always seems like a good idea at the time, but seldom is. I can’t tell you how many clients are looking to cut clients because the fit just isn’t right–and some of that business in unprofitable.
• Care. Doesn’t sound like a Harvard Business School strategy does it? But it will make massively more successful than some academic marketing concept.
• Finally, have some fun. How many times have you been called on by someone who just doesn’t seem like they’re having much fun? I have, often. Take a lesson from Butler, and have some fun. Laugh a little. Celebrate. Don’t get rattled. And do the fundamentals right—let the outcome take care of itself.