ENTHUSIASM IS TO ATTITUDE WHAT BREATHING IS TO LIFE

• Enthusiasm gives you the power to get up early when you are not a morning person.

• Enthusiasm keeps you working on a project instead of quitting.

• Enthusiasm gives you the courage to take the risks needed for success.

• Enthusiasm fuels motivation to make things happen.

• Enthusiasm brightens your personality.

• Enthusiasm combats fear and worry.

• Enthusiasm distinguishes a championship team from an average team.

• Enthusiasm is in the fire in the belly that says, “Don’t wait!”

• Enthusiasm is the burning desire that communicated commitment, determination, and spirit. It shows everyone else that you are sold on what you are doing and that you are seriously motivated.

• Enthusiasm’s last four letters stand for I Am Seriously Motivated.

• Enthusiasm and a positive attitude are the winning ingredients for success.

From "Attitude is Everything" by Keith Harrell

GREAT THOUGHT FROM A GREAT PLAYER

“A truly great player makes the worst player on the team good.”

-Oscar Robertson

COMPETITORS ALWAYS COMPETE -- IN EVERYTHING

Michael Jordan still wanted and needed to win at everything. In those days, when they still traveled on commercial planes, they sometimes spent their idle time in airport game rooms playing Pac-Man. For a time, Dave Corzine, who always carried a large roll of quarters with him, was considered the Pac-Man champion. In time, however, Jordan bought a Pac-Man game for his home and practiced diligently, bringing his game up until he could beat Corzine.

Richard Dent, the star defensive lineman of the Chicago Bears, became a close friend, and of course Jordan had to compete with him. Dent liked to ride a bike, and Jordan heard him say casually one day that he had just ridden thirty miles. A few weeks later, when Jordan arrived in Hawaii after a trip to Japan, he got up after about two hours of sleep, called Howard White, and said he wanted to go bike riding. How far do you want to ride? asked White. Thirty miles, Jordan answered.

He did not just need to win, he had to win.

From "Playing for Keeps" by David Halberstam

WHAT IS KEVIN GARNETT LIKE?

From Boston Celtic assistant Kevin Eastman

...

1. Talented.
2. Passionate.
3. He works on his game every day.
4. He wants to know what you know that can make him better.
5. He is incredibly competitive in games.
6. He never makes excuses (in fact he blames himself).
7. He wants the truth.
8. He can respond and deal with failure.

KEEP SHOOTING

THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING A SELF-STARTER

“It’s the self-starter in each of us that’s really important. I don’t think you can count on somebody else to motivate you to do something. You have to want to do it personally, and you have to provide that energy. It’s unrealistic and unfair to expect someone else to push you in a positive direction. So you better pick out something you really like to do, because you will have to be your own driving force.”

-Bill Belichick

BE A CHAMPIONSHIP CALIBER PLAYER

“Other guys say they want to be a Pro Bowl caliber player… But I want to be considered a championship caliber player because that is what sports is all about, winning championships.”

-Tedy Bruschi

ARE YOU WILLING?!

“I am willing to put myself through anything;

temporary pain or discomfort means nothing

to me as long as I can see that experience

will take me to a new level.”

-Diana Nyad

THE EXCITEMENT OF GAME DAY

“I’ve always had a passion for the game, and the game has changed at every level from high school to college to the NFL, but I still have the same passion and I still get excited for games today, just like I did when I was playing in junior high. There’s something about when you wake up in the morning knowing you have a game that day.”

-Peyton Manning

WAITING VS. PREPARING

The following comes from Alan Stein's website: http://www.youtube.com/user/StrongerTeamDotCom

It asks the question of players "are you waiting for your next workout or are you preparing for your next workout?" A short video but well worth the time for each and every player (and coach for that matter).

Thanks to Rick Allison for bringing Alan's video to my attention.

JIM ROHN: THE MAJOR KEY TO YOUR BETTER FUTURE IS ----- YOU!

Here is an excellent column form the late, great Jim Rohn. As a player, when things don't go well, you have a tendency to blame everyone but the right person. It's a teammates fault -- it's the coaches fault -- the lighting in the gym is bad -- the officials screwed me! You have the absolutely power to control what you can control and that is enough to push forward towards you goals. Please read what Jim Rohn has to say on this:

Of all the things that can have an effect on your future, I believe personal growth is the greatest. We can talk about sales growth, profit growth, asset growth, but all of this probably will not happen without personal growth. It's really the open door to it all. In fact I'd like to have you memorize a most important phrase. Here it is:

"The major key to your better future is YOU."

Let me repeat that. "The major key to your better future is YOU." Put that someplace you can see it every day, in the bathroom, in the kitchen, at the office, anywhere you can see it every day. The major key to your better future is YOU. Try to remember that every day and think about it. The major key is YOU.

Now, there are many things that will help your better future. If you belong to a strong, dynamic, progressive company, that would help. If the company has good products, good services that you are proud of, that would certainly help. If there were good sales aids, that would help, good training would certainly help. If there is strong leadership, that will certainly help. All of these things will help, and, of course, if it doesn't storm, that will help. If your car doesn't break down, that will help. If the kids don't get sick, that will help. If the neighbors stay halfway civil, that will help. If your relatives don't bug you, that will help. If it isn't too cold, if it isn't too hot, all those things will help your better future. And if prices don't go much higher and if taxes don't get much heavier, that will help. And if the economy stays stable, those things will all help. We could go on and on with the list; but remember this, the list of things that I've just covered and many more—all put together—play a minor role in your better future.

The major key to your better future is you. Lock your mind onto that. This is a super important point to remember. The major key is you. A friend of mine has always answered when asked, "How do you develop an above-average income?" He says, "Simple. Become an above-average person. Work on you." My friend says, "Develop an above-average handshake." He says, "A lot of people want to be successful, and they don't even work on their handshake. As easy as that would be to start, they let it slide. They don't understand." My friend says, "Develop an above-average smile. Develop an above-average excitement. Develop an above-average dedication. Develop an above-average interest in other people." He says, "To have more, become more." Remember: work harder on yourself than you do on your job. For a long time in my life, I didn't have this figured out.

Strangely enough, with two different people in the same company, one may earn an extra $100 a month, and the other may earn $1,000. What could possibly be the difference? If the products were the same, if the training was the same, if they both had the same literature, the same tools. If they both had the same teacher, the same compensation plan, if they both attended the same meetings, why would one person earn the $100 per month and the other person earn the $1,000?

Remember: here is the difference... the difference is personal, inside, not outside, inside.

You see the real difference is inside you. In fact, the difference IS you. Someone once said, "The magic is not in the products. The magic is not in the literature. The magic is not in the film. There isn't a magic meeting, but the magic that makes things better is inside you, and personal growth makes this magic work for you."

The magic is in believing. The magic is in daring. The magic is in trying. The real magic is in persevering. The magic is in accepting. It's in working. The magic is in thinking. There is magic in a handshake. There is magic in a smile. There is magic in excitement and determination. There is real magic in compassion and caring and sharing. There is unusual magic in strong feeling, and you see, all that comes from inside, not outside.

So, the difference is inside you. The real difference is you. You are the major key to your better future.

THE TEAM DEFINES THE INDIVIDUAL

"That’s the only thing

that’s going to define individuals:

how the team does."

-RON ARTEST

WHO YOU ASSOCIATE WITH IS A BIG PART OF YOUR SUCCESS

If you want to be an outstanding player, associate with players that have what you want -- work ethic, dedication, enthusiasm. If you want to improve as a student, befreind good students. Learn their study habits and regiments for school work. Your assoications are an extremely important part of your growth and development. Here is what Darren Hardy of Success Magazine says about it in his book, "The Compound Effect."

....

Birds of a feather flock together. The people with whom you habitually associate are called your “reference group.” According to research by social psychologist Dr. David McClelland of Harvard, your “reference group” determined as much as 95 percent of your success or failure in life.

Who do you spend the most time with? Who are the people you most admire? Are those two groups of people exactly the same? If not, why not? Jim Rohn taught that we become the combined average of the five people we hang around the most. Rohn would say we could tell the quality of our health, attitude, and income by looking at the people around us. The people with whom we spend our time determine what conversations dominate our attention, and to which attitudes and opinions we are regularly exposed. Eventually, we start to eat what they eat, talk like they talk, read what they read, think like they think, watch what they watch, treat people how they treat them, even dress like they dress. The funny thing is, more often than not, we are completely unaware of the similarities between us and our circle of five.

How are we not aware? Because your associations don’t shove you in a direction; they nudge you ever so slightly over time. Their influence is so subtle that it’s like being on an inner tube out in the ocean, feeling like you’re floating in place, until you look up and realize the gentle current has pushed you a half mile down the shore.

If you haven’t already, jot down the names of those five people you hang around the most. Also write down their main characteristics, both positive and negative. It doesn’t matter who they are. It could be your spouse, your brother, your neighbor, or your assistant.

It’s time to reappraise and reprioritize the people you spend time with. These relationships can nurture you, starve you, or keep you stuck. Now that you’ve started to carefully consider with whom you spend your time, let’s go a little deeper.

I’m constantly weeding out of my life people who refuse to grow and live positively. Growing and changing your associations is a lifelong process.

IF YOU DON'T USE IT, YOU CAN'T SAVE IT

“What you do in practice is going to determine your level of success. I used to tell my players, ‘You have to give 100 percent every day. What you don’t give, you can’t make up for tomorrow. If you only give 75 percent today, you can’t give 125 percent tomorrow to make up for it.’”

-John Wooden