Does Your Team Have An End Zone Dance?
Touchdown!
The stadium erupts. Players celebrate. Fans roar. Cameras zoom in on choreographed dances that feel almost as intentional as the play that scored the points.
Celebration is universal in sports.
Soccer players slide across the grass. Baseball players pound their chests. Basketball players flex. Hockey players throw their hands in the air. And in American football, we get the full spectacle: elaborate, practiced end zone dances.
Celebration is part of the game. It signals success. It honors effort. It amplifies momentum.
So here’s the question: why does all of that stop when we step into the workplace?
Business Is a Team Sport—So Why Don’t We Celebrate Wins?
This is where I see a major disconnect.
Business is a team sport. Yet when business teams win—close a deal, ship a product, hit a milestone—I rarely see anything resembling celebration. Maybe a quiet “nice job.” Maybe a Slack emoji. Then it’s straight on to the next deliverable.
In sports, celebration is essential. It marks success. The word celebrate comes from the Latin celebrāre, meaning “to assemble in honor of.” That’s exactly what great teams do: they pause, gather, and honor what just happened.
In business, unwritten rules often get in the way:
“Don’t get too excited.”
“Just do your job.”
“There’s still more work to do.”
I’m dismissive of those norms—and I actively work to change them with my clients.
What NFL End Zone Dances Taught Me About Team Motivation
While watching an NFL game recently, I was struck by the choreography of the Minnesota Vikings’ end zone celebrations. These weren’t spontaneous moments of joy. They were clearly planned, practiced, and intentional.
Players didn’t just rehearse plays. They rehearsed what they would do after the win.
That’s the part most leaders miss.
These dances are self-fulfilling prophecies.
“We need to score—so we can do the dance.”
The anticipation of celebration becomes fuel. And in sports, that fuel matters because sport is entertainment. Players are performers, and fans feed off the energy.
Now imagine applying that same logic to your team at work.
What’s Your Team’s End Zone?
If business is a game, then every team has an end zone.
A closed deal
A shipped feature
A completed project
A quarterly target
A brutal week that didn’t break the team
The problem isn’t that teams don’t win.
The problem is that they don’t mark the win.
So what if your team created its own version of an end zone dance?
Here’s how to do it:
Define the win (what counts as a touchdown?)
Decide the celebration (what do we do when we score?)
Commit to doing it every single time
No improvising. No awkward hesitation. Just like the NFL—decide in advance and go all in.
Simple, Low-Pressure Ways Teams Can Celebrate Wins
You don’t need confetti cannons or budget approvals. You need intention.
1. The Signature Team Dance or Cheer
Create a short, repeatable routine—a group shimmy, synchronized high-fives, or a simple chant. Practice it once so it’s ready. Bonus points if you record it and keep a highlight reel.
2. Victory Bell (or Gong, or Ridiculous Noisemaker)
Ring it loudly when a milestone is hit. Let the person or team responsible do the honors. Instant energy. Zero explanation required.
Our Groovie Award
3. Traveling Trophy Hand-Off
Create a deliberately absurd trophy—a golden pineapple, bedazzled plunger, or “MVP Mug.” The winner keeps it for the week and passes it on at the next win.
4. Victory Lap or Office Parade
The winning team does a lap around the office (or the Zoom gallery) while everyone cheers or plays a victory song. Cheap props welcome.
5. Shout-Out Reel
Right after the win, have teammates record 5–10 second congratulatory clips. Compile and share them in Slack or at the next all-hands.
6. Theme Day Unlock
Hit the goal, unlock a dress theme: Hawaiian shirts, superhero day, throwback jerseys. One win creates days of positive energy.
End Zone Dances for Virtual Teams
Remote work doesn’t mean remote celebration.
Virtual Victory Dance Cam
Plan a simple on-camera move—fist pump, wave, or pose. Perform it together on the next call and record it.
Emoji Storm + GIF Party
Pre-select a victory emoji (🏆🎉💥). When the win lands, flood the channel—then escalate to a GIF battle.
Screen-Share Victory Song
The winner plays a 30-second hype song during a call. Cameras on. No excuses.
Digital Trophy or Slack Badge
Create a digital trophy or custom emoji. Add it to the winner’s Slack name for the week.
Zoom Background Takeover
Victory-themed backgrounds everyone switches to after the win—stadiums, confetti, or a custom “WE SCORED” graphic.
Applause, Applause, Applause
As Lady Gaga said, “I’m here for the applause!” A round of applause on Zoom or Teams may feel strange but it works great. Check out our post I Bet You Have Never Applauded on a Video Call
The Real Point
The lesson from NFL end zone dances isn’t about dancing.
It’s about intentional recognition.
Great teams don’t leave celebration to chance. They decide in advance how success will be honored—and then they actually do it.
When teams know a celebration is coming, motivation increases. Momentum builds. Wins feel shared. Culture gets reinforced.
So ask yourself:
What’s your team’s end zone?
And what happens when you cross into it?
If the answer is “nothing,” it might be time to choreograph your dance.
