What a game of ping pong taught me about business...

A Taylor Swift song blares in the background.

I’m in my friend’s basement, down 18-20.

Game point. The pressure is on.

My friend serves. I tap it back to him. He leaps across the table and winds his arm back to smash the ball.

I’m not supposed to be here, I think to myself. He plays all the time. He’s wayyy too advanced for me.

“Whack!”

The ball whips across the table to my right. I jump, barely reaching it in time, and tap it back to him.

He winds back again.

“Whack!”

This time the ball goes into the net.

19-20.

This pattern continues, with my friend throwing all sorts of spin and speed at me - and me tapping the ball back (getting the occasional lucky break).

Turns out? Just focusing on getting the ball across the net is a pretty sound strategy.

And business is the same. When you focus on the fundamentals and avoid self-made errors — you stay in the game long enough to catch a few lucky breaks.

So what does this mean for you? Three reminders…

1) Get the ball over the net

It’s never been easier to gain access to information.

It’s never been harder to filter through the noise.

If you don’t know what you’re optimizing for, everything looks like an opportunity.

Then, the next thing you know, you’re distracted with designing fancy logos and creating complex business plans.

The point is this.

There are no points for style.

Don’t let the flash distract you from the core goal: Getting the ball over the net.

What does ‘getting the ball over the net’ look like for your life and business?

2) Play infinite games

The goal isn’t to get fit, it’s to stay fit.

The goal isn’t to get a spouse, it’s to keep a spouse.

The goal isn’t to win business, it’s to keep doing business.

Sacrificing longevity for intensity is foolish.

3) Avoid self-made errors

Avoid debt. Jail. Addiction. Hanging with the wrong crowd.

Don’t take shortcuts. Don’t screw anyone over. Don’t play short-term games.

Bottom line: Don’t hit the ball into the net.

Focus on the fundamentals. Put the reps in. Avoid self-made errors.

And above all…

Stay in the game long enough to get lucky.

See you next Sunday,

Jay “Just get the ball across the net” Yang

PS — I ended up winning 26-24 😉

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