Harvard Business Publishing

"Instant success takes time" is one of my favorite sayings. New products, people, or ideas that appear to burst on the scene unheralded and soar to the top quickly have often been preceded by a long period of preparation, rehearsal, and trial-and-error experimentation.

One of the more mundane differences between perpetual winners and long-term losers among businesses, sports teams, and other organizations is that the winners simply work harder. As I learned from case studies and surveys for my book Confidence, winners are more likely to take the time to keep honing skills and testing ideas in preparation for change. That's not too dramatic or glamorous, but it's among the biggest differentiators.

In contrast, teams or organizations headed for losing streaks lurch from tactic to tactic without any apparent long-term direction. They lack discipline, do not always rely on facts before chasing fads, and panic under pressure. (Sounds a lot like the sudden turns in the U.S. auto industry or John McCain's presidential campaign.)

Those building winning streaks remain calm and professional. Winners learn and experiment in a disciplined manner with a commitment to enduring principles and a long-term purpose that help them be patient on what can be a long road to victory.

Eventual winners have invested in three underpinnings of confidence:

First is accountability. They have faced facts honestly and taken responsibility for their own actions (something noticeably missing in the Wall Street firms that went under).

Second is collaboration. They make allies and partners, not enemies (missing in U.S. actions in the Iraq War and in the global financial system alike).

Last but not least is initiative. They encourage constant small innovations rather than relying only on the occasional blockbuster hit (does that sound like Toyota, now the world's leading auto company?).

In short, winners are not necessarily flashy nor endowed with the hottest new thing; they are simply steady, disciplined, and prepared. They have some "instant successes" but even better, they have fewer outright failures. They bounce back faster from setbacks and can weather attacks because they stand on a firm foundation.

Barack Obama's apparent calm in the face of vitriolic attacks from his opponents came from the confidence of disciplined preparation. His sudden surge in the U.S. polls in early October after many months of running neck-and-neck with his opponent reflects not simply a lift from the dreadful global financial situation but his two years of groundwork that preceded it - the hard work of building a base and staying on a rather unvarying policy course. And as a result, he emerged as the winner.