That was the rallying cry of the Cincinnati Bengals last year. 

(Bear with me if you’re not a sports person! I’m not either.)

My husband and our co-founder Josh grew up in Cincinnati and has been a fan of the Bengals since he was in middle school. 

And in all those years, the team had never won a single playoff game — not one — let alone had a shot at the Super Bowl.

So when tight end C.J. Uzomah was asked if the team could win the Super Bowl in 2022, it seemed delusional to many (including me) when he answered: 

“Why not us?”

He explained, “We’ve got the pieces. We have [insert indecipherable football jargon here]. We just gotta go out there and do what we need to do.”

That idea was embraced by the team. And by the fans.

And for the first time since 1990, the team won a playoff game. Then they went on to win all their playoff games to arrive at the Super Bowl.

Why not them, indeed!

In fact, during their improbable run (my husband assures me this is the proper sports jargon I should use), they changed their mantra. From “Why not us?” it shifted to “It is us.”

There’s a bit of wisdom there for business owners. 

It’s easy to limit yourself. To get in the way of your own success. To see what others have achieved and wonder how you — little old you — could possibly get there.

If you catch your mind spiraling in that direction, remind yourself: 

Why not you? 

You just gotta go out there and do what you need to do.