The Relationship Between Preparation and Performance

I am blessed with the opportunity to work with hundreds of athletes, teams, and organizations, ranging from young boys and girls to elite professional athletes.

Obviously, the work I do with athletes is primarily performance training – Strength & Conditioning, Speed & Agility, etc.  Other areas of performance training, such as sport-specific skill development (e.g., basketball ball-handling and shooting), are equally important.

In addition to training these athletes, I try to get out and watch them (as many as I can) compete.  Watching them play provides me with invaluable insight into two key areas:

• The impact our training has on their performance, and
• Areas of improvement where we can enhance/modify our training to further improve performance

But there’s also something else I’ve learned from watching these athletes in a competitive setting: The attitude, effort, and work ethic they bring to our training sessions is directly reflected in their performance.

Recently, I had the opportunity watch several, high-level club volleyball teams play, all of whom participate in our organizational team training.  These opportunities are rare, since most of these teams travel considerable distances to compete – regionally and nationally, and don’t participate in many local tournaments.

As far as I’m concerned, there were no surprises, regarding the level of their performance.  The teams that routinely bring a high level of effort and work ethic – and a positive attitude – to our training sessions played well, even against top competition.  The teams that bring a less-than-desirable attitude and effort to our training sessions did not fare as well.

Work ethic is not a “sometimes” thing.  You can’t work hard some of the time and say you have a strong work ethic.  It would be like studying only some of the time, but claiming to have good study habits.  It simply doesn’t work that way.

You can’t go through the motions and half-a** your way through your performance training sessions and expect a high level of success when it’s game time.  My observation of hundreds of athletes and teams, over time, has corroborated that.

Don’t get me wrong, there’s no guarantee of success, even for those athletes who do consistently demonstrate a high level of effort and strong work ethic.  But I sure like the odds, and so should you.

STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

30 Life Lessons Learned in Business

Recently, my son shared with me a book in which Dan Gilbert (Quicken Loans founder and chairman, Cleveland Cavaliers majority owner) listed 30 Things I Learned in 30 Years of Business.  It’s worth sharing.

1. When you love what you do, there is no such thing as “work.”
2. Nothing clarifies like clarity.
3. If you believe tomorrow will be even more exciting than today, you have discovered what passion really means.
4. Some people WILL NEVER get it.  Get them out of your team, club, house, life, etc., and both of you will be happier.
5. There is always a way to turn a problem into an opportunity.  Find it.
6. Thinking (going deep) about problems, challenges, new ways of doing things and creativity is one of THE hardest things you will ever do.  It also will bring you the finest results.
7. I never learned anything by talking.
8. You can’t prioritize until you have visibility.
9. Appreciate everything.
10. Nothing great and long-lasting is built overnight, but you MUST take the first step NOW.
11. Any ounce of energy you spend regretting mistakes you made in the past is taking away energy you need to do things right in the present.
12. Be curious.
13. Try to please everyone all of the time, and you will end up pleasing no one most of the time.
14. Think big, huge, large, enormous, immense, jumbo, walloping, gigantic, king sized mammoth, massive, thundering.  You have to think anyway… so why not?
15. The little things DO matter.  Especially to people.
16. People who are constantly negative, pessimistic and cynical are not spewing their venom toward you or your ideas.  They are talking about themselves.  Never forget that.
17. Working longer hours does not automatically make you more successful.  Working smarter does.
18. There is no better joy than helping people around you go to levels higher than they ever thought they could.
19. It’s not so frickin’ funny when it’s you, is it?
20. Winning on the hard stuff does not make the easy stuff easy.
21. The more you give, the more you get.  It’s as simple as that.
22. Spreadsheets are for measuring things, but just because you cannot measure something, doesn’t mean it is not valuable.  Some of the most valuable things in the world cannot be measured.
23. Not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted.  (Thanks, Albert E.!)
24. The price of knowing is often way too high.
25. The one who tells you there is food on your face is your friend.
26. Building anything great is messy.
27. Don’t get distracted by people who want you to review the receipts for the paint brushes.  Your job is to paint.
28. “Sent” is NOT “received.”
29. The packaging of communication is just as important as the information itself.
30. Love your team members.  Love your clients and customers.  Just do those two things and your business will be successful.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

Do the Work

The people who work hard and work smart are usually the ones who are most successful.

There’s really no way to cheat the system.  You either do the work and reap the benefits, or you take shortcuts and hope for the best.

Although the path to success may look different for any two people, once thing is certain:  You’ve got to put in the time and do the work.

Believe in you.  Believe that you can.

Get started and keep going — keep working toward your goal.

Embrace the challenge.  Chase your dream.

Practice, practice, practice until you can’t miss.  Then practice some more.

Be disciplined, enthusiastic, and passionate about your work.

Your success already exists in potential.  Work to find it.

Commit yourself to action, and don’t stop.

The time is going to pass regardless of how you spend it, so make it productive.

Begin now.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

How Will You Know If You Never Try?

“If you never try, you’ll never know what you are capable of.” – John Barrow

I asked you these questions a few months ago:

• What to you want to do?
• Where do you want to go?
• Who do you want to be?

How will you do it, see it, or be it, if you don’t try?

In order to accomplish anything, you’ve got to expect success.

You’ve got to work hard, work smart, and believe in yourself.

But the most important step is TRYING.

Try and succeed.  Try and fail.  Try again.  Just don’t let lack of effort be the reason you don’t succeed.

NO regrets — NO “could’ve,” NO “should’ve,” NO “would’ve.”

“Most people fail not because they lack ability, intelligence, or opportunity, but they fail because they don’t give it all they’ve got.” – Dr. Norman Vincent Peale

Invest your time, effort, and energy — chase your dream.  Extreme dedication almost always leads to success.

Don’t let worry, wonder, or doubt cloud your vision of success.

Don’t hold anything back.  Give it your best effort.  Whatever that looks like — on any given day — give it.

You may be pleasantly surprised at the results.

Give it a shot.

Take a chance

Push yourself.

Challenge yourself.

Step outside your comfort zone.

You’ll never know if you don’t try.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

Attributes of Winners

Professional Triathlete, Andy Drobeck

There are lots of attributes that can be associated with winners and successful people.

In his article, Release Your Inner Elite, Professional Triathlete, Andy Drobeck, lists ten attributes that he believes elite athletes share.

I think Andy’s article is terrific, and I also think his “attributes” apply more broadly than just to elite athletes.  I think these attributes are central to the success of positive thinkers and winners.

Here is Andy’s list:

1. Strong motivation and work ethic: This is pretty obvious, right? It takes an attitude of doing the work and not cutting corners.
2. Goal oriented: This is where a plan of action combines with work ethic. Setting a goal, sticking to it, and seeing that goal through.
3. Fearless: Nobody is completely fearless. But you can’t be afraid to fail and learn from adversity, not dwell on it.
4. Positive: Focus on what’s going well. Focus on the benefits of what you’re doing. Be happy.
5. Focused: Stay the course. Don’t be too broad in your goals. Think about 1 day or one workout at a time.
6. Patient: Things don’t happen overnight. It can take years to develop.
7. Confident: Knowing you can do what you set out to do. Believe in yourself. Shape confidence through practice and experience.
8. Non-emotional: Keep the drama low. Anxiety low. Control your emotions and be cool like a cucumber. Freaking out and getting over emotional generally results in poor performance.
9. Rehearsed: Be prepared for workouts or events by mentally rehearsing them in your head and visualizing successes.
10. Willingness to sacrifice: This is the hardest of them all because there is a line between sacrifice and obsessiveness (of which I’m sometimes accused). Missing beers on the boat to go for a long ride might be necessary; missing the birth of your first son… you might want to skip the workout. The line is different for everybody but there has to be some willingness to sacrifice some other activities that you may want to do.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

Skill is Good, Will is Better

Ability is awesome.  Skill is splendid.  Talent is terrific.

But without the will to succeed — the will to win — talent, alone, will only take you so far.

The world is littered with talented (but complacent) people who have never realized their potential because they lack something else.

That “something else” is a long list of intangible qualities that successful people have, that includes (but is not limited to):

• Ambition
• Dedication
• Desire
• Determination
• Energy
• Enthusiasm
• Hustle
• Passion
• Perseverance
• Persistence
• Work ethic

The will to succeed can compensate for shortcomings in talent and skill; but talent and skill won’t overcome a lack of ambition and desire.

I’ll take the person with less talent, who wants to — and works to — maximize his or her own potential, over the talented but complacent, unmotivated individual, any and every day.

What are you going to do to be your best today?

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

Accept Your Role (but keep working)

What’s your role on your team?

Are you a starter, or do you come off the bench?

Do you play lots of minutes, or just a few?

Now the important question, especially if your role is not aligned with your aspirations:  How do you handle it?

How is your attitude and body language?  What are you projecting to your teammates and coaches?

Your role on your team — and your contribution — may not be exactly what you’ve envisioned, but it’s important to accept your role.

That doesn’t mean you have to be happy about it or satisfied with it; nor does it mean you should resign yourself to believing there’s nothing you can do to change it.

It does mean, however, that you must do your best to avoid negativity — negative thoughts, words, and actions — that can disrupt and erode team chemistry.

That being said, if you have loftier goals than your current situation enables, don’t be complacent — keep working toward your dream.

Work hard at practice and push the teammate(s) playing in front of you.  Your efforts at practice can help make the whole team better, in addition to improving you.

Away from practice, continue to work hard — on your own — strengthening your individual skills.

Not everyone can (or will) be their team’s star player or MVP, but you do have the ability to be better tomorrow than you are today.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

Don’t Let Lack of Effort Be the Reason You Don’t Succeed

Make It Happen

What’s your dream?  What to you want to do?  Where do you want to go?  Who do you want to be?

Now the really important question:  What are you willing to do to accomplish/achieve your goal?

First of all, in order to be successful, you’ve got to expect success.

You’ve got to work hard, work smart, and believe in yourself.

Try and succeed.  Try and fail.  Try again.  Just don’t let lack of effort be the reason you don’t succeed.

NO regrets — NO “could’ve,” NO “should’ve,” NO “would’ve.”

“Most people fail not because they lack ability, intelligence, or opportunity, but they fail because they don’t give it all they’ve got.” – Dr. Norman Vincent Peale

Invest your time, effort, and energy — chase your dream.  Extreme dedication almost always leads to success.

Don’t let worry, wonder, or doubt cloud your vision of success.

Don’t hold anything back.  Give it your best effort.  Whatever that looks like — on any given day — give it.

You may be pleasantly surprised at the results.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

Don’t Be “A” Anything; Be “THE” Something

My Mom used to tell us, “If you’re going to do it, do it well and do it right; do it to the best of your ability.”

Her point was this:  It’s all about your effort and intentions.  Are you working to be the best you can be?  Is your goal to be the best you can be?  Or are you just going through the motions?

No one is at the “top of their game” every day, but that doesn’t mean they go out there trying to be less than the best.  Some days the shots fall, and some days they don’t.  Michael Jordan didn’t make every shot that left his hands, but I guarantee that was his intention.

Don’t settle for being “just another” anything.  Work hard (and smart) to distinguish yourself as “the” something.

If you’re an athlete, don’t settle for being “a” point guard on your basketball team; put in the work necessary to be “the” point guard on your team.

If you’re a coach (teacher, trainer, etc.), don’t just go through the motions; work hard to be the best teacher, motivator, and developer of people of which you are capable.

If you’re a student, don’t aspire to be “just another” member of your graduating class; push yourself to excel in a class or area about which you are passionate.

If you’re a business professional, don’t be satisfied being “a” salesperson, manager, or director; commit yourself to being “the” salesperson, manager, or director.

Find your passion.  Chase your dream.  Make it happen.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?

There Are No Secrets to Success

“Don’t look for secrets when studying the best. Look at the basics. Look at what they do every day. Success often lies there.” – Buzz Williams

What we often see, when observing excellence in athletic performance (or any other endeavor), is just the result — the “tip of the iceberg.”  What we don’t see are the days, months, and years of hard work, dedication, commitment, and sacrifice that contributed to the success.

Success is the result of consistency.  It lies in the mundane, not the magical.

Success requires getting the basics right.  It’s foundation is sound and solid.

Success is built on not only action, but attitude.  It is fed by passion, enthusiasm, and desire.

The path to success is not devoid of obstacles; but the realization that each setback is a learning opportunity that brings us one step closer to success.

Success is planning your work, and working you plan, every day.

There are no secrets.  Be your best and strive to improve you, TODAY.  Then do it again tomorrow.

Get STRONGER, Get FASTER!

Your thoughts?