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.
“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.”
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:
"That’s the only thing 
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."
“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.’”
Not that Kobe Bryant never loses, but beat him at your own risk. Decline a rematch and . . . well, that's not an option. "If you scored on him in practice or did something to embarrass him, he would just keep on challenging you and challenging you until you stayed after and played him so he could put his will on you and dominate you," says Shaw, Bryant's teammate from 1999 to 2003. This included not allowing players to leave the court. Literally. "He'd stand in our way and say, 'Nah, nah, we're gonna play. I want you to do that [move] again,' " Shaw says. "And you might be tired and say, 'Nah, I did it in practice.' But he was just relentless and persistent until finally you'd go play, and he'd go at you."
Another personal attitude of success is the desire to be a competitor. Surprising as it may seem, many top-level players shy from the desire to be “the man” when the game is on the line. One of the ingredients of becoming a clutch performer is the ability to muster mental toughness in the most tense situations. Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter says, “When I come to bat in a pivotal spot, I want people to say, ‘Uh-oh, here he comes.’” Jeter wants that responsibility of being considered “the man.” In 1941, Ted Williams told Time magazine, “Naw, there ain’t no tension for me hitting in the clutch. I’d like to have the bases loaded every time I come up.” In contrast, Raul Mondesi with the Dodgers in 1999 did not want the challenge of hitting in the cleanup spot, projecting an attitude of “I can’t hit in the fourth spot.” The result was, he didn’t.
One of my most favorite inspirational examples about persistence is the story of an Asian Bamboo species that even after five years of watering, weeding, and fertilizing is barely visible. Then, in a span of about six weeks, it grows two and a half feet a day to 90 feet and higher. It grows so fast that you can literally “hear” it growing. The question to ask is did the bamboo grow 90 feet in six weeks or did it grow 90 feet in five years? Obviously it grew 90 feet in five years, for all the time when growth wasn’t visible it was developing a massive root system that would later support its magnificent growth.
"Confidence doesn't come out 
In this post, Brian Tracy talks about how we view ourselves and the utiliziation of that vision in striving for excellence:
There's a rodeo bull rider I know, a fellow named Tuff Hedeman. He's won three world championships in his sport, which is very difficult to do; he's the Joe Montana of bull riders. After he won his third one, Tuff didn't rest his bull rope to party or go to Disney World or hit the talk-show circuit. He just moved his gear on to Denver where the title hunt would start all over again...and as Tuff said:.jpg)
"Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with the extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even."