I am a fan of excellence, and so the following quotes by golfing great Tiger Woods recently caught my attention:
"I smile at obstacles."
"My will can move mountains."
"I will do it with all my heart."
This is a great approach to solving problems and facing challenges in life.
"I smile at obstacles."
Most of the time, we cringe, avoid and complain when a tough obstacle layes in front of us. Unfortunately, none of that solves a problem. Often, problems just get worse.
Smiling at obstacles means we know that we're bigger than the problems facing us, because we know we will learn and become stronger and wiser through solving them.
Instead of complaining about challenges, we can see them as gifts. Most every problem or challenge comes with a gift in its hands. The gift is what we will learn through solving the problems and facing the challenges.
Problems and challenges can either define you or refine you.
"My will can move mountains"
What this quote means, I believe, is that when we focus our energy on the problems before us, they are in trouble. The ability to understand where you are, look at where you exactly want to go, create a plan to get there, and then work the plan for all you are worth brings incredible rewards.
"I will do it with all my heart"
I believe most people sleepwalk through life. Just stand outside a large office building on a Monday morning. You'll see people in trances, sleepwalking through their day.
Yet when we bring all our heart to any activity, we come alive and actually have the opportunity to live the way we say we want to.
All of us know folks who brings their whole heart to what they do. Don't you love being around them?
Why not be one of those people yourself?
When we bring our whole heart to a problem or challenge, it is easier to solve, and we just might have fun along the way.
There is a saying that there is a time in the life of every problem or challenge when it is big enough to notice, and small enough to solve easily.
When you bring these three skills to the table, you will notice problems early, solve them easily and grow more than you ever thought you would.
8.09.2009
Coach K - Teaching Offense
“My emphasis is not on running an offense...it is on teaching my team offense. We want players who can play offense, not run an offense.”
-Mike Krzyzewski
-Mike Krzyzewski
8.04.2009
PAT SUMMITT
The following comes from Coach Pat Summitt in regards to goals for her team:
Before each of the 34 seasons that Summitt has been a head coach of some of the most accomplished teams of all time, she and her captains have committed a set of goals to writing.
“We always make sure,” Summitt says, “that our plans for the season can be achieved. Setting goals is incredibly important to success. But if you set a goal that seems impossible to achieve— if you go into a year saying your goal is to win the national championship—then you risk losing morale, self-discipline and chemistry if you falter early.
“Set a goal that stretches you, requires exceptional effort, but one that you can reach,” says Summit, the bearer of more championship jewelry than any coach in women’s basketball history.
“We might set a goal that we win 20 or so games, that we win a conference championship, that we make the NCAA tournament. If we do those things, the truth is we have a chance of winning the national championship. But I would never want that to be the only goal.”
The key to her on- and off-court success, Summitt is famous for saying, is remembering that “winners aren’t born, they are self-made.”
“And the only way to ensure you become a winner is to set goals every day, and hold yourself and your teammates accountable for reaching those goals,” she says. “Setting up a system that rewards you for meeting your goals and has penalties for failing to hit your target is just as important as putting your goals down on paper.”
Before each of the 34 seasons that Summitt has been a head coach of some of the most accomplished teams of all time, she and her captains have committed a set of goals to writing.
“We always make sure,” Summitt says, “that our plans for the season can be achieved. Setting goals is incredibly important to success. But if you set a goal that seems impossible to achieve— if you go into a year saying your goal is to win the national championship—then you risk losing morale, self-discipline and chemistry if you falter early.
“Set a goal that stretches you, requires exceptional effort, but one that you can reach,” says Summit, the bearer of more championship jewelry than any coach in women’s basketball history.
“We might set a goal that we win 20 or so games, that we win a conference championship, that we make the NCAA tournament. If we do those things, the truth is we have a chance of winning the national championship. But I would never want that to be the only goal.”
The key to her on- and off-court success, Summitt is famous for saying, is remembering that “winners aren’t born, they are self-made.”
“And the only way to ensure you become a winner is to set goals every day, and hold yourself and your teammates accountable for reaching those goals,” she says. “Setting up a system that rewards you for meeting your goals and has penalties for failing to hit your target is just as important as putting your goals down on paper.”
CHARACTER vs REPUTATION
Abraham Lincoln was very concerned with character, but he also was aware of the importance of having a good reputation. He explained the difference this way: your reputation is what people think of you, and your character is what you actually are.
In a world preoccupied with image, it’s easy to worry too much about our reputation and too little about our character. Building a reputation is largely a public relations project; building character requires us to focus on our values and actions. Noble rhetoric and good intentions aren’t enough.
What we’re looking for is moral strength based on ethical principles. Character is revealed by actions, not words — especially when there’s a gap between what we want to do and what we should do, and when doing the right thing costs more than we want to pay.
Our character is revealed by how we deal with pressures and temptations. But it’s also disclosed by everyday actions, including what we say and do when we think no one is looking and we assume we won’t get caught. The way we treat people we think can’t help or hurt us, like housekeepers, waiters, and secretaries, tells more about our character than how we treat people we think are important. People who are honest, kind, and fair only when there is something to gain shouldn’t be confused with people of real character who demonstrate these qualities habitually, under all circumstances.
In a world preoccupied with image, it’s easy to worry too much about our reputation and too little about our character. Building a reputation is largely a public relations project; building character requires us to focus on our values and actions. Noble rhetoric and good intentions aren’t enough.
What we’re looking for is moral strength based on ethical principles. Character is revealed by actions, not words — especially when there’s a gap between what we want to do and what we should do, and when doing the right thing costs more than we want to pay.
Our character is revealed by how we deal with pressures and temptations. But it’s also disclosed by everyday actions, including what we say and do when we think no one is looking and we assume we won’t get caught. The way we treat people we think can’t help or hurt us, like housekeepers, waiters, and secretaries, tells more about our character than how we treat people we think are important. People who are honest, kind, and fair only when there is something to gain shouldn’t be confused with people of real character who demonstrate these qualities habitually, under all circumstances.
STEPHEN CURRY
In June of 2007 I was hired by Nike to work their summer Skills Academies. The first academy I worked was the Kobe Bryant skills academy. Nike invited the top 20 high school shooting guards in the nation as well as the top seven or eight college shooting guards to serve as counselors. This was the cream of the crop.
There was one college player in particular who turned a lot of heads, especially on the coaching staff. This kid was special. His footwork was perfect. His shoting form was flawless. He moved without the basketball brilliantly, which in today's game is a lost art. His work ethic was tremendous. His focus was unshakable. He was there to improve, not there for free gear or to chill with his homies.
Everything about this kid was classy and professional. He never took plays off and every rep of every drill was done at game speed with utmost intensity. I remember rebounding for him a few times during warm-ups and he would easily knock down 15-20 threes in a row before missing one, and then a new streak would start. He paid attention and followed the warm-ups and agilities with precision. This kid was all business, but you could tell in his eye and his smile that he loved the game.
Who am I talking about?
Davidson's Stephen Curry. On the first day of camp we all wondered who he was. On the last day we all agreed he was going to be a big-time player.
Stephen's magical run through the first three rounds of the 2008 NCAA Tournament--he scored 34.3 points per game as Davidson beat three higher seeds--didn't surprise any of us who worked that camp. Even if he was lightly recruited out of high school, we saw first-hand behind closed doors what this kid could do. We were just waiting for him to do it.
The point is, Stephen Curry stepped up at the end of the season and played better basketball than any other player in the country. He hit big shots and led his team to big victories, none of which was a fluke. Nor was he simply "lucky."
Stephen Curry earned the success he had by dedicating himself the previous offseason to individual self-improvement and player development.
He shot thousands of jumpers every day in the offseason, at game speed with perfect footwork. When the lights came on in March, making shots was a habit. Not an accident.
There was one college player in particular who turned a lot of heads, especially on the coaching staff. This kid was special. His footwork was perfect. His shoting form was flawless. He moved without the basketball brilliantly, which in today's game is a lost art. His work ethic was tremendous. His focus was unshakable. He was there to improve, not there for free gear or to chill with his homies.
Everything about this kid was classy and professional. He never took plays off and every rep of every drill was done at game speed with utmost intensity. I remember rebounding for him a few times during warm-ups and he would easily knock down 15-20 threes in a row before missing one, and then a new streak would start. He paid attention and followed the warm-ups and agilities with precision. This kid was all business, but you could tell in his eye and his smile that he loved the game.
Who am I talking about?
Davidson's Stephen Curry. On the first day of camp we all wondered who he was. On the last day we all agreed he was going to be a big-time player.
Stephen's magical run through the first three rounds of the 2008 NCAA Tournament--he scored 34.3 points per game as Davidson beat three higher seeds--didn't surprise any of us who worked that camp. Even if he was lightly recruited out of high school, we saw first-hand behind closed doors what this kid could do. We were just waiting for him to do it.
The point is, Stephen Curry stepped up at the end of the season and played better basketball than any other player in the country. He hit big shots and led his team to big victories, none of which was a fluke. Nor was he simply "lucky."
Stephen Curry earned the success he had by dedicating himself the previous offseason to individual self-improvement and player development.
He shot thousands of jumpers every day in the offseason, at game speed with perfect footwork. When the lights came on in March, making shots was a habit. Not an accident.
8.01.2009
DO YOUR JOB - Nick Saban
"... When I worked with Bill Belichick, we only had one sign in the whole building, and that was: Do your job," Saban said. "And it was defined for everybody - from the janitor, to the secretary, to the strength coach, to the equipment man to the coaches, to the players. Everybody had an expectation of what their responsibility was to execute their job."
7.19.2009
CASSPI
At 6-foot-9, 225lbs, Casspi, is a work in progress. He is a capable shooter, rebounder and ball handler, but he does not excel in any one area and is not considered particularly athletic.
Jason Levien, the Kings’ assistant general manager, said the franchise was drawn to Casspi for his passion, toughness and tenacity. The word energy comes up often.
“That’s his specialty,” said David Thorpe, an analyst for ESPN, who watched Casspi during the summer league. “Energy in the N.B.A. is a real talent.”
Even with Maccabi Tel Aviv, Casspi’s value was never evident in the raw statistics but in the results.
“He’s fearless,” said Coach Shamir. “When he was on the floor, good things would happen for them.”
Jason Levien, the Kings’ assistant general manager, said the franchise was drawn to Casspi for his passion, toughness and tenacity. The word energy comes up often.
“That’s his specialty,” said David Thorpe, an analyst for ESPN, who watched Casspi during the summer league. “Energy in the N.B.A. is a real talent.”
Even with Maccabi Tel Aviv, Casspi’s value was never evident in the raw statistics but in the results.
“He’s fearless,” said Coach Shamir. “When he was on the floor, good things would happen for them.”
Hasselbeck - Off Season Training
Turning his thoughts to the upcoming season, Hasselbeck says so far he believes the team is putting in the work necessary to rebound from a 4-12 season.
"Everyone has really put in the effort this offseason. We report July 31st and everyone has been working real hard these six weeks on our own, wherever their hometown is or wherever they’ve been working out and they get to come back and show off what they’ve done."
"We’ve got a conditioning test on the 31st, we weigh in, we’ve got a body fat test, we have our first practice and you can send a message without saying a word, you can send it to your teammates, to the coaches, to everybody and say ‘I’ve really put the work in, how about you?’ and I think the feeling is that everybody’s really bought it and put the work in."
"Everyone has really put in the effort this offseason. We report July 31st and everyone has been working real hard these six weeks on our own, wherever their hometown is or wherever they’ve been working out and they get to come back and show off what they’ve done."
"We’ve got a conditioning test on the 31st, we weigh in, we’ve got a body fat test, we have our first practice and you can send a message without saying a word, you can send it to your teammates, to the coaches, to everybody and say ‘I’ve really put the work in, how about you?’ and I think the feeling is that everybody’s really bought it and put the work in."
7.02.2009
COMPETITIVENESS
"When talent is roughly equal, the competitive guys win. You have to have that in this league to win." Sacramento Kings coach Paul Westphal
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