I was recently watching the Heat-Bulls playoff series and was amazed by the leadership Tom Thibodeaux (Thibs) of the Chicago Bulls showed during the series.

As full disclosure, and as many of you know, I grew up in Chicago, and even though I haven’t lived there for almost 30 years, you grow up a Chicago fan—always a Chicago fan.

To set context, the Chicago Bulls were playing without their MVP star guard Derrick Rose, who has been out the entire season due to a torn ACL. They also were missing their All-Star forward, Luol Deng, and their starting point guard. Additionally, their All-Star center, Joakim Noah, was struggling with Plantar Fasciitis and obviously in serious pain.

After winning a game 7 on the road to advance to play the Heat, considering all of their injuries, most experts predicted they would go down easy and fast against the Heat. But here’s where the leadership of Coach Thibs amazed me. Instead of focusing on all of the things he couldn’t control (the injuries to his top players) he kept stating a phrase that captured the imagination of his team and the city of Chicago. “We have enough to win.” He said it so many times that his team rallied around the phrase and played to the best of their abilities, so much so, that they defeated the Heat the first game in Miami, much to the basketball world’s amazement.

This series of events reminded me of Captain Abrashoff’s experience aboard USS Benfold. Challenged with taking over one of the worst performing ships in the Pacific fleet, instead of focusing on what he couldn’t control (he didn’t get to choose his crew or his budget) he accomplished one of the greatest turnarounds, culminating with USS Benfold being award the Spokane trophy 12 months later as the top performing ship in the Pacific fleet. He focused on what he could control, the talent of his team and creating a culture where everyone on the ship believed that they were the “Best Damn Ship in the Navy” even before they were.

You’ve heard it before and you know it, and the two experiences above are great reminders for all of us. Things move fast these days, and change moves even faster. There are countless things we can’t control … all giving us a feeling that we can’t succeed. Don’t believe it. Focus on what you can control, it will be enough to overcome the things you can’t control. Believe in your team and then they’ll believe in themselves. Don’t deny yourself the win—go for it. Create the phrase that best captures your moment and lead your team new heights.