在當年我還是個職業足球運動員的時候，如果你問我，我是否能預見到有一天我會成為一個西裝革履的企業高管，我肯定會說：“不可能”。當時，足球就是我的工作、事業和激情。現在我已經全身心投入了商界，我清楚地知道，第一份工作為我帶來的經驗和教訓，今后仍將繼續幫助我獲得成功。

我從孩提時代開始就特別喜歡團體運動。當年足球在美國還遠沒有今天這樣火爆，但那時我已經對這項運動十分癡迷。我曾經在西雅圖太平洋大學的校隊踢球，后來先后在克里夫蘭、亞特蘭大、密爾沃基和波特蘭效力于幾支職業球隊。

等到我在波特蘭踢職業生涯的最后一個賽季時，我已經結婚，并且在麥考蜂窩通信公司謀得了一份銷售工作，就此進入商界（由于領導支持，我在全職工作的時候仍能繼續踢球），而且我的第一個孩子剛剛出生。現在，我開始進入競爭激烈的銷售領域，對獲勝的渴望一點也不亞于綠茵場上的我。而且我確實取得了一定的成績，蜂窩通信行業也像足球一樣吸引著我。

我喜歡這項技術和這些很酷的設備，喜歡這種快節奏、競爭環境和團隊精神，喜歡一切都在不停變化的感覺。我很快意識到，我對無線通信行業可以產生像對足球一樣的激情。而且，無論對我的家庭還是對我自己而言，這個行業都具有更好的長期職業前景。

簡而言之，我愛上了無線通信行業。

實際上，我第一個月銷售無線電話的收入，就超過了我前一個賽季作為球員的全部收入。當然，那個年代最新式的翻蓋手機售價高達2000美元，一個板磚大小的“大哥大”也要賣900美元。別忘了當時的無線通話費還相當昂貴，夜間和周末也沒有免費時段。

經常有人問我，脫下球衣換上西裝有多難？當然是很艱難的，但你知道嗎，我從來沒有停止過踢球。足球是我生命的一部分，現在我的兩個孩子都在大學里踢足球，每到周末，只要時間允許，我都會溜出去踢一會兒球。但我最看重的是那些讓我愛上足球的因素，它們在商海中也都找得到——團伙合作、“基友”情深、競爭精神、追求一個共同目標的喜悅、團隊精誠合作解決問題，以及最重要的——作為一個團隊去取得勝利。

科技正在以極快的速度發展，尤其是在電信和移動領域。一家企業或機構想單槍匹馬地搞出突破性創新幾乎是不可能的。在今天要想取得突破，必須依靠你所信賴的關系和合作伙伴。

這也正是我們在AT&T所做的事。我們每天都要與設備制造商、軟件開發商、應用開發者和其他大量的行業參與者協作（其中有些合作伙伴不僅來自我們所在的行業生態系統，也來自其他行業生態系統），以保證企業的運營，并尋找下一個“了不起的東西”。

這種跨企業、跨行業的協作，要求我們必須建立起來自不同企業、不同背景甚至可能相互存在利益競爭的內部和外部人才團隊，他們要通力協作，完成一個明確的共同目標——正同在足球場上一樣。

簡而言之，我的人生準則就是所謂的“3P”，即人才（People）、目標（Purpose）、激情（Passion）。不管是從事體育運動，在商界打拼，還是從事其他任何有競爭性的事業，要想獲得勝利，你都需要擁有一支真心關注員工利益、理解團隊目標，并且激情四射的團隊。

在我們追求一些龐大且大膽的業務目標的過程中，在我們做著前人從未做過的事情時，我都曾親眼見證“3P”準則發揮的作用——比如成功執行了與蘋果公司的合同，發布了第一款iPhone；建立了一家全新的智能聯網設備公司，最終推動了智能聯網生活和物聯網的發展。

說到底，如果一支團隊的所有人都懷著堅定的目標，把團隊利益放在首位，全部朝著一個方向奔跑，那就沒有什么能阻止他們前進的步伐。（財富中文網）

本文作者Glenn Lurie是AT&T Mobility公司的董事長兼CEO。

譯者：樸成奎

審校：任文科

If you had asked me when I was a professional soccer player if I could ever see myself in a suit and tie as a button-down business executive, I would have said, “No way.” Soccer was my job, my career and my passion. But now that I’m in the business world full time, I can see how the lessons this first job taught me are still helping me win.

I was drawn to team sports ever since I was a kid. Soccer clicked for me even when it wasn’t as popular in the U.S. as it is today. I played college soccer at Seattle Pacific University, and later went on to play for professional teams in Cleveland, Atlanta, Milwaukee and Portland.

By the time I played my final season in Portland, I was married, had started my business career in sales with McCaw Cellular Communications (my leadership supported me playing while working full time) and had just had my first child. Now, here I was, a competitive guy working in sales, and just as determined to win as I was on the soccer field. And I did. The cellular industry just clicked for me.

I loved the technology, the cool devices, the fast pace, the competitive environment, the teamwork, and how quickly everything was changing all the time. I quickly realized that I could be as passionate about the wireless industry as I had been with soccer — if not more — but with better long-term career prospects for my family and for myself.

In short, I fell in love with the wireless business.

In fact, I made more money during my first month of selling wireless phones than I did playing soccer the entire prior season. Of course, this was back when people paid as much as $2,000 for the latest flip phone or $900 for a standard phone the size of a brick. And don’t forget that wireless service was a buck for a minute of airtime, with no free mobile-to-mobile calls during nights or weekends.

People always ask me how hard it was to trade in the cleats for a business suit. Sure, it was hard. But guess what? I’ve never stopped playing. Soccer is in my life. Both of my kids play soccer in college and I still sneak out to play on the weekends when I can. But what’s most important is that the same things that made me love team sports — the teamwork, the camaraderie, the competitive spirit, the excitement of chasing a common goal, the need to solve problems as a team on the fly, and best of all, winning as a team — are all in business.

Technology is moving extremely fast, especially in the telecommunications and mobility area. It’s becoming nearly impossible for a breakthrough innovation to come out of a single company or organization working alone. Today, breakthroughs require collaboration within trusted relationships and partnerships.

That’s how we go about it at AT&T T 0.12% . We collaborate day to day with equipment manufacturers, software developers, app developers, and a myriad of other players — not just in our ecosystem, but also in others — to run the business and find the next big thing.

That kind of collaboration across companies and industries requires building internal and external teams of people from different organizations, different backgrounds and even competing interests, who work together to reach a clear and common goal — just like on the soccer field.

In essence, I live by what I call the three Ps: people, purpose and passion. Whether in sports, business, or any competitive endeavor, winning requires a team of people who truly care about their fellow employees, who understand their individual purpose with that team, and who have the passion to achieve it.

I have seen it work as we chased huge, audacious goals, doing things that have never been done, beginning with executing the contract with Apple AAPL 0.44% that launched the first iPhone, to building a new startup business with connected devices, and ultimately helping usher in the connected life and the Internet of Things.

After all, nothing can stop a team of committed individuals who put the team first and all row in the same direction.