THE GREATS ARE CONTINUAL LEARNERS

I loved this story from "The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth" by John Maxwell:

I recently read an anecdote about a meeting between Ted Williams and Boston Celtics coach Red Auerbach in the 1950s.  As the two greats discussed their sports, Williams asked, "What do your guys eat on the day of a game?"

"What do you want to know for?" Auerbach replied.  "You seem to be doing all right with what you're doing."

"I'm always looking for new ways to improve what I do."

Auerbach said of Williams, "He thought of the little things, what's important to being great.  When you're great and you excel, some athletes would coast on that...Here's the best hitter in baseball, and he's trying to get another little percentage point."

THE ART OF TEAM WORK -- THE SPURS WAY

WORK HARD, WORK SMART, WORK CONSISTENTLY

Here's a great video from Alan Stein at http://www.strongerteam.com/. This website is an absolute must for all coach and players.

YOUR CIRCLE OF INFLUENCE

I was reading "Go For The Gold" by John Maxwell last night and came across his Law of the Inner Circle. He states:

When we see any incredibly gifted person, it's always tempting to believe that talent along made him successful. To think that is to buy in to a lie. Nobody does anything great along.

To practice the Law of the Inner Circle, you must be intentional in your relationship building. As you consider whether individuals should be in your inner circle, ask yourself the following questions:

1. Do they have high influences with others?

2. Do they possess strengths in my areas of weakness?

3. Do they add value to me and my organizations?

4. Do they positively impact other inner circle members?

This has been a big topic for me this spring with our student-athletes. We have been talking to them about the art of successful people hang around successful people and this union helps both sides to fuel each other.

Several decades ago I took a basketball coaching class from the late Stu Aberdeen at Marshall University. One of his primary teachings was that to be successful, you should hunt out the best of what you want to be and learn from them. If you want to be a lawyer, search one out, befriend him and ask him to mentor you. He gave several examples but it hit me hard that if I wanted to be a coach that I should search some out to teach me how to best become one. As an 18-year old college freshman, I hooked up with some of the best high schools coaches I could find in Doug McElwain and Ron Chambers at Winfield High School and my former junior high coach Allen Osborne. I told them of my desire to be a coach and asked them to teach me -- and that's exactly what they did. Over 30 years ago they are still an influence in my teaching and coaching and I still talk them often about major decisions.

As I got into college coaching I zeroed in on Don Meyer who for some reason took me under his wing and taught me a great deal and allowed me to elevate myself as a coach.

I would add to Coach Aberdeen's philosophy of "if you want to be a coach, search one out, befriend him and ask them to teach you." Be more specific. "I want to be an outstanding girls high school basketball coach." Or, "I want to be a high school coach that plays great man to man defense." Be specific about your vision to find the best mentor.

We are talking to our team a great deal about this subject. We are working to get them to understand that to be the best student possible, go study with a good student -- not a buddy. If you are going to war are you going to pick friends alone or are you going to select the best possible warriors.

By selection who you associate with, you are actually "selecting your own team." You should find somebody that will work with your and push you and help you achieve more than you would by yourself or with others that are equal or less to you in terms of talent and commitment.

At LSU, we occasionally use men to come in and play with our women's team. We might utilize them in some drills and or in scrimmage situations. The men are better -- a little taller, a little quicker, a little stronger. We do that to stretch our team -- to encourage them play a little above what they would play when playing against weaker competition. And we want them to do that in all facets of their lives.

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In shooting, we have our women shoot from the men's 3-point line. On certain days, we may work from the NBA 3-point line. All in effort to "stretch our range."

As a student-athlete, what are you doing on a daily basis to "stretch your range." Who are you associating with on a regular basis to improve in areas that are important to your growth?

The answer will usually show a direct correlation in your commitment (or lack thereof) to be the best you can be.

JIM ROHN'S NINE THINGS MORE IMPORTANT THAN CAPITAL

The following comes from my Jim Rohn email newsletter. From the standpoint of basketball it could easily be translated as "Nine Things More Important Than Talent."

When starting any enterprise or business, whether it is full-time or part-time, we all know the value of having plenty of capital (money). But I bet we both know or at least have heard of people who started with no capital who went on to make fortunes. How? You may ask.

Well, I believe there are actually some things that are more valuable than capital that can lead to your entrepreneurial success. Let me give you the list.

1. Time
Time is more valuable than capital. The time you set aside not to be wasted, not to be given away. Time you set aside to be invested in an enterprise that brings value to the marketplace with the hope of making a profit. Now we have capital time.
How valuable is time? Time properly invested is worth a fortune. Time wasted can be devastation. Time invested can perform miracles, so you invest your time.

2. Desperation
I have a friend, Lydia, whose first major investment in her new enterprise was desperation. She said, "My kids are hungry, I’ve gotta make this work. If this doesn't work, what will I do?" So she invested $1 in her enterprise selling a product she believed in. The $1 was to buy a few flyers so she could make a sale at retail, collect the money and then buy the product wholesale to deliver back to the customer.

My friend Bill Bailey went to Chicago as a teenager after he got out of high school. And the first job he got was as a night janitor. Someone said, "Bill, why would you settle for night janitor?" He said, "Malnutrition." You work at whatever you can possibly get when you get hungry. You go to work somewhere—night janitor, it doesn't matter where it is. Years later now, Bill is a recipient of the Horatio Alger award, rich and powerful and one of the great examples of lifestyle that I know. But, his first job—night janitor. Desperation can be a powerful incentive. When you say, “I must.”

3. Determination
Determination says I will. First Lydia said, "I must find a customer." Desperation. Second, she said, "I will find someone before this first day is over." Sure enough, she found someone. She said, "If it works once, it will work again." But then the next person said, "No." Now what must you invest?

4. Courage
Courage is more valuable than capital. If you've only got $1 and a lot of courage, I'm telling you, you've got a good future ahead of you. Courage in spite of the circumstances. Humans can do the most incredible things no matter what happens. Haven't we heard the stories? There are some recent ones from Kosovo that are some of the most classic, unbelievable stories of being in the depths of hell and finally making it out. It's humans. You can't sell humans short. Courage in spite of, not because of, but in spite of. Now once Lydia has made 3 or 4 sales and gotten going, here's what now takes over.

5. Ambition
"Wow! If I can sell 3, I can sell 33. If I can sell 33, I can sell 103." Wow. Lydia is now dazzled by her own dreams of the future.

6. Faith
Now she begins to believe she's got a good product. This is probably a good company. And she then starts to believe in herself. Lydia, single mother, 2 kids, no job. "My gosh, I'm going to pull it off!" Her self-esteem starts to soar. These are investments that are unmatched. Money can't touch it. What if you had a million dollars and no faith? You'd be poor. You wouldn't be rich. Now here is the next one, the reason why she's a millionaire today.

7. Ingenuity
Putting your brains to work. Probably up until now, you've put about 1/10 of your brainpower to work. What if you employed the other 9/10? You can't believe what can happen. Humans can come up with the most intriguing things to do. Ingenuity. What's ingenuity worth? A fortune. It is more valuable than money. All you need is a $1 and plenty of ingenuity. Figuring out a way to make it work, make it work, make it work.

8. Heart and Soul
What is a substitute for heart and soul? It's not money. Money can't buy heart and soul. Heart and soul is more valuable than a million dollars. A million dollars without heart and soul, you have no life. You are ineffective. But, heart and soul is like the unseen magic that moves people, moves people to buy, moves people to make decisions, moves people to act, moves people to respond.

9. Personality
You've just got to spruce up and sharpen up your own personality. You've got plenty of personality. Just get it developed to where it is effective every day, effective no matter who you talk to, whether it is a child or whether it is a business person, whether it is a rich person or a poor person. A unique personality that is at home anywhere. One of my mentors, Bill Bailey, taught me, "You've got to learn to be just as comfortable, Mr. Rohn, whether it is in a little shack in Kentucky having a beer and watching the fights with Winfred, my old friend or in a Georgian mansion in Washington, DC as the Senator's guest." Move with ease whether it is with the rich or whether it is with the poor. And it makes no difference to you who is rich or who is poor. A chance to have a unique relationship with whomever. The kind of personality that's comfortable. The kind of personality that's not bent out of shape.

And lastly, let's not forget charisma and sophistication. Charisma with a touch of humility. This entire list is more valuable than money. With one dollar and the list I just gave you, the world is yours. It belongs to you, whatever piece of it you desire whatever development you wish for your life. I've given you the secret. Capital. The kind of capital that is more valuable than money and that can secure your future and fortune. Remember that you lack not the resources.

WORKERS

WORKERS get the most out of themselves; when a body has limited talent, it has to muster all its resources of character to overcome this shortcoming.

If you think you are working hard, you can work harder. If you think you are doing enough, there is more that you can do. No one really ever exhausts his full potential.

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Winning takes character and intelligence. It is the most important thing you can do because it’s a reaffirmation of your character.

-Pete Carril-