Travis Kelce Just Taught a Lesson in How to Inspire People in 1 Sentence

The Kansas City Chiefs have 10 wins and 1 loss so far this season. Fans were disappointed to see the Buffalo Bills end the Chiefs’ nine-game winning streak 12 days ago. But last week’s 30-27 win against the Carolina Panthers means the Chiefs’ place in the AFC playoffs is virtually assured, whether they win or lose today’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders. That, of course, matters more than their undefeated streak, which was bound to end at some point. The team has a bigger goal: Being the first team in NFL history to win three Super Bowls in a row.

Now that the Chiefs are no longer undefeated, what are their chances of reaching that elusive “three-peat”? Superstar tight end Travis Kelce, who’s also known for his romantic relationship with Taylor Swift, thinks the team’s chances are pretty good. In last week’s episode of New Heights, the podcast he co-hosts with his brother, former Philadelphia Eagles center Jason Kelce, 

Travis Kelce gave an insightful analysis of why. He also demonstrated how great leaders can inspire their teams to do their best work. It’s something every entrepreneur and business leader can learn from. 

“I think we’re very confident that we’ll get things fixed,” he said about the Chiefs’ loss to Buffalo. “We have all the talent that we need to go and win another Super Bowl. I’ve been on Super Bowl winning teams. We have enough talent to…make a run at this thing. And I think everybody knows that all we gotta do is just be at our best.”

All we gotta do is just be at our best. Kelce is a Super Bowl veteran, having helped the Chiefs win three Super Bowls in the past five years. So when he says he knows what it takes to win football’s biggest game, the newer players on the Chiefs have every reason to believe him. Consider how inspiring a message like that can be when coming from a more experienced leader. I have done this before. I know what it takes, and I know this team has what it takes. All we have to do is our best. What better possible way to inspire younger team members, partners, and employees to put in their best effort toward an ambitious goal?

It’s great to have big goals. And making sure the people who work with you understand those goals is an essential tool to motivate them and get everyone pulling together. But it’s just as important to let them know that they have all the ability and all the tools they need to make even the biggest goal a reality. And that if they bring their full participation to the task, that’s all that’s required of them. All we gotta do is just be at our best.

Next time you and your team are facing a daunting challenge, tell them the goal, why it’s important, and the steps they’ll need to take to get there. But don’t forget to also tell them why they’re the right people to do it. Letting them know they have all the talent they need to get there? That just  might just make all the difference.