Detroit Lions: The Entrepreneur's Spirit Animal

I was laughed at when I predicted the Lions would win 13 games. They won 15.

It was June 22, 2024 (yes, I know the exact date because it’s still in my phone). My dad, my husband, and I were talking about our favorite subject—football.

We started making predictions.

Ever since a girls’ weekend in Detroit, I’ve loved the city and its team. But let’s be honest: the Lions weren’t much to talk about. Not until Dan Campbell walked into the building and created a culture of winning.

After a losing 2021 season, the Lions stacked winning seasons in ’22 and ’23. I was convinced 2024 would be even better. I predicted 13 regular season wins. My dad and husband laughed, even teased me.

But I believed.

And the Lions went 15-2. Even when they fell short of the Super Bowl, it was still a victory.

Now, a new season begins. And my belief is unshakable.

The Detroit Lions are more than a football team. They’re the mascots for entrepreneurs.

Like entrepreneurs, they were underdogs. Like entrepreneurs, they had to believe before there was proof. They built the foundation, put in the work, and kept strengthening their identity until the wins showed up.

That’s what it means to Win Your Way.

Here are my Top 3 Win Your Way Lessons from the Detroit Lions (future Super Bowl champions):

1. Identity Before Strategy

When Dan Campbell arrived, he declared the Lions would take on the identity of the city itself.

As team owner Sheila Ford Hamp said:

“Winning is the only mission. But the way Dan plans to go about it is perhaps the most important. His football philosophy is founded on the principles of competition, identity, toughness, and operating with one heartbeat.”

Before the victories came, he matched the team’s identity to his vision.

That’s the Win Your Way model—identity before strategy. Success doesn’t begin with grinding harder; it begins with growing truer to who you are and how you define winning.

2. Hold the Vision Before It’s Real

Campbell’s first season? 3-13-1. At one point, 0-10-1. Yet his players carried themselves like winners.

He held the vision, even when the scoreboard didn’t agree.

As entrepreneurs, that’s our role too—to believe in the future so deeply that we operate from it today.

3. Embrace the Underdog Mentality

Even after climbing to the top, Campbell said:

“We’re not hunted. We’re still on the hunt.”

That’s Detroit grit. That’s entrepreneurial grit. Going for it on 4th down. Making bold moves when others say “play it safe.” And when it doesn’t work? Campbell says, “It’s the price of doing business.” His conviction comes from being prepared and being detailed. It's the same in business. Preparation meets opportunity AND knowing then next few steps.

The Lions are living proof that transformation is possible. From decades of disappointment to a record-setting season. From overlooked to unstoppable.

Not by following the league’s playbook. By running their own.

Entrepreneurship is the same. Every day you’re proving you can create results your way—for your clients, your team, and yourself.

Win Your Way is the Rise of the Underdog—because success isn’t about grinding harder, it’s about growing truer.

As Dan Campbell says: “You were built for this.”