Blog
Read Blog Posts by Category:
Passion: Articles that deal with the inner drive that we all need to want to MOVE from where we currently are to where we dream to be.
Preparation: These posts reference articles, books, documentaries, speakers, quotes, and other inspirational and formative ideas that I have found that helped me and the people around me.
Practice: Articles in this category have a heavy sports and performance training lean.
Performance: These articles focus on how you go about your work. From networking to communications to finding a better way to do what you do.
Perseverance: Articles in this category speak to the mechanics that we go through both mentally and physically to stay on track and not get STUCK.
Suck It Up, Buttercup
When I played football, my mom had only one coaching point: “If you get hurt, don’t lie on the ground; get up and run off the field.” My father often told us, “You need to stop crying, or I’ll give you something to really cry about.” Our family dictionary didn’t have the word "Sympathy” in it. We weren’t abused in any way; we were just taught that we should push through the little things that life throws at us.
We were raised to be tough.
Toughness is often associated with physical strength, but true toughness goes beyond the surface. It's about resilience, perseverance, and the ability to overcome challenges. The earlier in life we are taught this, the better.
Dualism: Committed vs Involved
We often encounter situations where we can be committed or involved. While these terms may seem similar at first glance, a subtle yet significant difference between them can greatly impact our overall success. Let's delve into the differences between commitment and involvement to understand better how they can change the course of your career and your life.
Success: Focus on the Right, Not on the Easy
In a world where instant gratification and shortcuts are often glorified, it can be tempting to choose the easy path. However, I have seen true success and fulfillment come from focusing on what is right, not what is easy. This mindset shift requires dedication, perseverance, and a willingness to embrace the challenges that life throws at us.
Three Internal Battles That Shape Our Lives
We all face our own set of unique challenges and struggles during our lives.
From our first breath, we're thrust into a battle for survival. This fight continues, evolving as we do, until our last breath. Some of these battles are colossal, their end never in sight. Though they may seem significant at the time, others fade into insignificance over time.
All of these battles do one very important thing: they shape who we become.
How To Become an Elite Communicator: Part II: Speaking
Every day, you encounter situations in which communicating the right message in the right way is vital. It may be as simple as making sure someone is picking up food for dinner that night or as important as giving life-saving information to a person over the phone.
The key is to communicate well in every situation. Here are three ideas for becoming an Elite Communicator.
How To Become an Elite Communicator: Part I: Listening
Listening is often overlooked in a world filled with constant noise and distractions. We live in a society that values speaking and being heard, but what about the importance of genuinely listening? We were given two ears and one mouth for a reason – to listen twice as much as we speak.
Stacking Your Professional Deck
Like always, I transposed the topic of poker to having a successful life. In life, like in poker, the way the cards come out is random. In magic, you use a sleight of hand to manipulate the deck to get what you want. To control your success, you must control the factors that allow you to have all the success you want when you want it.
From Stuck to Significance
Young and old alike began to realize that life was not working out like they had imagined. They were quickly moving from stuck to stagnation. Stuck is when there is little movement. Stagnation occurs when all movement stops, and you begin to accept your plight.
Think Like a Champion
I spoke about how to train your mind to overcome the setbacks that come with baseball and life. While speaking to the baseball players, I was looking at the parents because the techniques I teach can be used between the lines and in life.
Think Differently
Today, I see people getting caught up in THOUGHT BOXES. A THOUGHT BOX is where one becomes so stuck in one way of thought that they can’t think differently. Because of their education, they have been taught by people who have never been “in the field” to see if what they are teaching actually stands up to real-life situations.
Building Your Team
During my coaching tenure, I devised a strategy to ensure I always had a diverse and talented group of coaches and advisors around me. The key to success is not just surrounding yourself with the best but also with those who bring unique perspectives and skills. It's about having the confidence to attract individuals who are smarter than you in specific areas.
Climbing Your Professional Mountain
Climbing your professional mountain is a journey that requires dedication, hard work, and strategic planning. In today's competitive business world, it's essential to have a roadmap to help you reach your career goals faster.
Embrace the Struggle
The table was set for a pity party. What a great way to start a Monday.
I looked around at the other gym occupants … and you know what? Nobody had noticed. They were doing their thing, living their own struggles.
That’s life. Nobody knows the struggles that you go through. And … spoiler alert … nobody really cares.
How did I deal with my struggle? I took a deep breath. And laughed at myself.
I had two choices. Let this ruin my day or attack the problem. I chose the latter.
Finding Your Space
I believe your environment is a huge part of finding your creativity.
When I am outdoors, my mind is open, and nothing is impossible. Of course, this has grown out of thirty-five years in coaching. Every time I could take my athletes outside to work, we were outside.
Because of this “space” that I had created, I could always think and see the possibilities that could happen. For some reason, I felt muted when I was in my office. I started to carry small notebooks in my pockets to write down the things that came to me while watching one of our workouts or practice.
Dualism: Compress and Expand
This concept, Compression and Expansion, when taken off the draftsman table and applied to life is what makes life exciting.
Always Prepare for the Possible
Too many, after receiving negative feedback or rejection: shutdown. They throw up their hands and quit.
Why?
Nothing is over until it is truly over.
We become so spun up in our feelings about what just happened that we don’t take the time to plan for what might happen in the future. If we live in the past, we can’t live in the present which will adversely affect our future.
Instead of giving up, give yourself a chance by being prepared for the possible.
Life Hack: Change Your Mindset
Derek Jeter once said, “The last thing you think is the first thing you will do.”
If you think you will fail, you will most likely fail.
Your mind will not just “play along”. It will go where you want to take it. When you set a positive mindset, you will succeed more times than not.
Set the Bar Higher
Did you hear that?
That collective sigh of relief.
That sound came from 99% of the population after hearing that “they only need to compete with themselves”. I can hear them, they’re saying, “Finally, I don’t have to try to be much better than I am right now.”
Leadership: Developing a Team Culture
Coach Tom Landry put it best when he said, “My job is to get men to do what they don’t want to do so they can become who they want to be.” That is coaching in a nutshell. Athletes are humans and all humans have basic weaknesses. For most it takes someone or something to make them push past their self-imposed barriers so that they can become all that they were meant to be.
Finding The Missing Piece to Your Puzzle
I am the king of stupid questions.
I wear that crown with pride. How did I earn it? Simply by being willing to “look stupid” by asking a question that I didn’t know the answer to.
What came out of this “stupidity” … I accomplished all my professional goals and dreams. It doesn’t seem like much of a cost when you look at it in that way does it? If I told you that you could be the best at whatever you wanted by asking questions, how many of you would raise your hand?
If you want to be the best, how hard is it to raise your hand and ask: “Why?” or “How?” or “Can you repeat that?” or “How does that cause this?”
When we were children, we went through the questioning everything phase. Then when we became young adults, we again questioned everything. Why is it then when we become adults, we stop asking questions?