With football season well underway, chances are you’re either cheering on (or complaining about) your favorite teams. If you’re especially dedicated, you might even be obsessing over your office’s fantasy football league by now. But by now, you’re probably wondering why we’re bringing this up. “What could the NFL possibly have in common with my plumbing?” you ask.
You’d be surprised. Let’s look at a few lessons the NFL can teach about taking care of your plumbing system.
Conditioning and Training Matter
NFL players do a lot more than just play football for a few hours once a week. To keep up on the field for those few hours, they spend hours a day training and working out to keep their bodies conditioned, both for skill and for stamina. The same holds true (in a way) with your plumbing. The “conditioning” in this case is not exercise, but proper preventative maintenance to make sure all the parts of your plumbing are clean, clear and functioning at their best.
Defense Is Just as Important as Offense (Sometimes More So)
How many times have we heard that defense wins championships? The key to winning is that you have to keep the other team from scoring as many points as you—and that’s where your defensive line comes in. With your plumbing, a good defense means dealing with small problems before they become big ones, and practicing proactive coverage to prevent problems from starting. (For example, fixing small leaks quickly and not flushing the wrong things down the toilet.) Keep your defensive line tight so not even the smallest intruder can cross.
Teamwork
Ever wonder why we refer to a great football team as a “well oiled machine?” Because that’s what it looks and feels like when every player is pulling his own weight and doing his job. Teamwork is key to a great team, and no team is stronger than its weakest link. Obviously, the same holds true with your plumbing—all the parts need to be functioning at their best for the system to work. If a part fails from fatigue and you don’t send in a replacement, the entire system can cascade into failure. A good plumbing system is all about teamwork.
