From Bullpen to Franchise CEO: Lessons from Professional Sports

Being persistent and prepared, repetitively perfecting one’s craft, working as a team, learning from failures and possessing confident leadership skills are all characteristics of a successful professional athlete. Those traits can also lead to prosperity in franchising.

By Lukas Krause

Many people may not immediately make a connection between sports and franchising. However, the habits developed while pursuing a lifelong dream of becoming a professional baseball player helped me succeed along the path to becoming the CEO of the largest residential property management organization in North America, Real Property Management. Here are a few key takeaways learned along the way:

Do not be afraid of failure. My journey to play for the New York Mets was not an easy one. In fact, I faced failure at almost every step of the way. There was no scholarship offer after a standout high school career. I was cut after a brief walk-on stint with the Indiana University baseball team. Scouts showed no interest after numerous professional try-outs. After each one of these failures, I dusted myself off and reflected on how to improve. I finally succeeded as an undrafted free agent with the New York Mets organization after I started a non-sports career. These experiences were invaluable in my development and improvement.

The same unwavering determination is crucial for franchise business owners. The journey in building your own business can be one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences. Along the way, franchisees will face a wide range of challenges — anything from the learning curve in the early stages to the loss of a key employee. The most successful franchisees show their resolve by working through the challenges and finding ways to improve and grow. 

Be a Confident Leader. Surprisingly, the common thread among athletes who thrive is not just talent, it is their radiating confidence and ability to remain focused.

The same can be said for a franchise business owner. Employees and customers who notice a positive, strong leader will respond in ways that support future successes. Being focused on the goals of your business, your team, and most importantly, yourself is critical to long-term success, and will encourage better results from your team and business.

Be Prepared. You cannot control whether you are the smartest or most talented person in the room, however, you can control how you prepare. It pays great dividends to be the most prepared. I was still pursuing my dream while in the workforce putting in 50-plus-hour weeks, but my workouts were always my first priority after a long day at the office. I allowed no excuses to miss a workout. Even if it was pitch black outside or the temperature was below zero in the Chicago winter, I worked out for at least two hours every evening. This relentless approach paid off in my baseball career and has also served me well in my professional career.

The rigorous training and time commitment of professional sports mirrors that required in franchising, especially for franchise owners. Franchisees who relentlessly prepare, work to understand the system and improve their business are those who excel. Many people tend to pay attention to the end product of their business’s success, but it is the approach to managing the day-to-day grind that really determines the level of success.

Work as a Team. Teamwork is an important lesson in sports and in business, because in both cases, you must understand the big picture while also knowing how individual performance contributes to overall success. In sports, every team member has a role and must contribute in order to win. This deep-seated understanding of cooperation and collaboration that makes good athletes can also result in good franchise business owners, since a similar vision exists in strong franchise systems.

In order to achieve their business goals, franchise owners must leverage the expertise of everyone in their organization, including the resources and support systems provided by the franchisor.

Although my professional baseball career was ultimately short-lived, the skills I developed as an athlete — such as perseverance, confidence and preparation — have been instrumental in my path to becoming CEO, and can also help franchise owners in their drive to succeed.

Lukas Krause is the CEO of Property Management Business Solutions, the franchisor of Real Property Management. In 2015, Krause was named among HousingWire Magazine’s Rising Stars under 40 for his accomplishments in the organization and the real estate industry.