The Two Regrets I Carry From High School

I was blessed to play college basketball at a great junior college where we finished in the top-10 in the country, and I was able to finish my college basketball career at a very competitive division 2 school. I had a great experience playing college basketball, but I do have two regrets. Those two regrets are my grades and work ethic.

I tell every high school freshman that the best advice I can give you going into high school is to make all A's on your first report card. Not being more focused on and serious about my grades as a freshman and a sophomore is one of my greatest regrets. When I was a senior in high school, I was getting recruited by a few different Ivy League schools because of my academic test scores, and I even went on a couple of official recruiting visits to Ivy League schools, but when they did a deep dive into my grades, they saw that my grades as a freshman and sophomore would keep me from getting admitted.

I could have gone to an Ivy League school to play sports if I would have taken my grades more serious my first two years of high school.

What I have learned as a teacher and a coach is that most freshmen and sophomores don't realize how important their grades are, and they get themselves in trouble before they even know it. Starting your high school career off right with getting all A's on your first report card will get you on track and set yourself up for success for when it really matters as a junior and senior when college coaches start calling you and when you start applying for schools. Plus, making an A on your first test and on your first report card makes your teacher look at you and treat you like an 'A student.' That perception of you will help you throughout the rest of the school year.

The second regret that I have is that I stopped working as hard and as consistently as I could during my last couple of years of high school ball. If I could do it all over again, I would have created a routine and stuck to it. It is easy to get distracted as you get older. Having a simple routine that you stick with throughout your high school career will help you reach the goals that you want. Something simple is saying, "I am going to dribble the ball for 20 minutes every day," or, "I am going to make 100-200 shots at least 5 days a week," or, "I am going to do 5-10 extra sprints after every practice," can help you stay focused and on the right track. Plus, there are videos all over YouTube that you can watch to see how hard kids just like you are working, what they are doing, and how consistent they are. The answers to the test are out there; you just have to want to go find them.

Grades and routine. Work ethic and commitment on and off the court. Those two easy, meaningful, and impactful things can literally change your life.

Below is a video of Azzi Fudd. Azzi is a freshman at UConn and is one of the best high school basketball players we have ever seen. Her mom said that they committed early to dribbling the ball 10 minutes a day, 6 days a week. You don't need to spend 4-5 hours a day to be great. You just need consistent effort over time:

Below is a video of Hailey Van Lith. Haily is a sophomore at the University of Louisville, and one of the best basketball players in the country. When she was in the 4th grade, her and her father made a commitment to spend time everyday in the gym. In high school, her and her father worked out everyday after practice:

Make a plan and stick to the script.

My Best Skill Was That I Was Coachable

Knowing what we know about Michael Jordan's competitiveness and work ethic, it is hard to believe that when he was growing up, his father said that Michael was mischievous and the laziest kid he had. Michael grew up the 4th out of 5 kids in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Jordan's mother said, "You had to discipline him. He would test you to the limit. Michael was always getting into things."

In The Last Dance, Michael said that when he was in the 9th grade, he got suspended three times in one year. He said that his father pulled him aside that summer and said, "You don't look like you are heading in the right direction. If you want to do all of this mischievous stuff, you can forget sports."

Michael said that was all he needed to hear, and from then on he had tunnel vision and never got in trouble in school again, and that his father was a friend and a voice of reason who always drove and challenged him.

We all need people in our lives like that. People who will be honest, tell us the truth about ourselves, and people who will challenge us. We need people who will tell us when we are doing wrong and what we need to do better.

We also need to be coachable and willing to listen and learn. Michael Jordan said, "My best skill was that I was coachable. I was a sponge and aggressive to learn."

Being coachable (and a huge growth spurt) helped Michael Jordan grow from a lazy, mischievous kid into one of the best athletes that we have ever seen. Coachable athletes are ready, willing, and humble enough to listen and to make the changes and adjustments needed to become the best that they can be.

1 - What is one way that you can be more coachable?

2 - What is one thing that your coaches have been trying to get you to do that you have been fighting against?

Week 35 Devotional | IMAGINATION

IMAGINATION is a God-given gift, but if it was fed dirt by the eye, it will be dirty.

- D.A. Carson

- Watch your thoughts because they become your words.
- Watch your words because they become your actions.
- Watch your actions because they become your habits.
- Watch your habits because you are what you do.
- What you do - everyday - becomes your destiny.

God has given us all a lot of great gifts, and our IMAGINATION is one of the greatest gifts that He has given us. The tricky thing about our IMAGINATION is that we can use it for good just as easily as we use it for bad.

Dr. Doug Gardner wrote, “One of the most overused clichés in sports is that 90% of performance is mental. The problem is that 90% of coaches and athletes spend 100% of their time working on the physical and fundamental aspects related to their sport. They often neglect and ignore the one area that ultimately separates successful athletes from those who do not reach their full potential.

In reality, sports are 100% mental. Our thoughts influence our actions and our actions influence our thoughts. This never-ending cycle often leads athletes and coaches to attribute poor performance in practice and competition to thinking too much.”

If we want to be the best that we can be, we have to learn how to manage our thoughts and our IMAGINATION.

The goal is to use our IMAGINATION for good, and the most effective way to do this is to use our IMAGINATION as a way to connect with God. In 2nd Corinthians 3:15-18, Paul wrote, "We all, with unveiled faces, are looking as in a mirror at the glory of the Lord and are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory; this is from the Lord who is the Spirit."

When we can see God with unveiled faces, we are able to see His power, His grace, and we are able to see His love, joy, and peace. When we seek God, we are able to become more and more like Him. Our IMAGINATION can help with this, and it starts with knowing that Jesus was sent to save us and to show us how to live. Use your IMAGINATION to see Jesus with you every day because He is with you every day. Use your IMAGINATION to find Jesus every day and in everything that you do. Jesus is always with you. He is leading you, guiding you, and protecting you. Using your IMAGINATION, see the life and the plans that God has for you. He has plans to prosper you and to give you hope and a future. The thief comes only in order to steal, kill, and destroy. Jesus came that we may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance, to the full, until it overflows.

Use your IMAGINATION to see and feel the life that God has for you. What does God have for you?

This Week:

1 - Find ways to spend more time with Jesus so that you can see and feel His presence in your life. When you wake up every morning, talk to God before you get out of bed. When you lay down at night, talk to God before you fall asleep.

2 - IMAGINE that Jesus is walking with you every day - because He is. Make every decision as if God is next to you, helping you, leading you, and guiding you.

Prayer: Our Father, show me my use for your purpose. Guide me towards that purpose. Help my thoughts and IMAGINATION align with yours so that I can live the life that I am meant to live.

For a Google docs version, click here: Week 35 IMAGINATION Devo

Who Are You As A Coach?

One of the most influential coaches that I had in my life was my select soccer coach. I played multiple sports growing up. Basketball was my favorite sport, but soccer was my first sport. When I was 10, I knew nothing about the select soccer world, and neither did my parents when my rec soccer coach told my parents that I needed to try out with his son for a select team. He said that I had the talent and potential to take my game to the next level, and select soccer was the next step for athletes like me.

The team held tryouts over the course of two weekends. After the first weekend, he had extended offers to about 75% of the athletes he wanted for his team. He told me that I had talent and potential but I was raw. I had never had any kind of skills training for soccer, so he was. I only played soccer because it was fun. I never saw professional soccer on TV, I didn't know anything about professional soccer, and I didn't know anything about select soccer. I thought soccer was a sport that everybody played for fun, so when he said that I lacked the skills and IQ that many of the other kids had, I had no idea what he was talking about; but I was excited for the challenge and the opportunity.

Coach told me that I had a good chance of making the team, but I needed to come back next week for the second tryout. He was very honest with me. He said if another kid with my athleticism but with a better skillset came along, I wouldn't make the team. This made me nervous and anxious because I had never been told I wasn't good enough, especially when it came to sports, but I had just made a name for myself among this new group of soccer players that I had never seen before, and I couldn't wait to prove myself again the next week to a new group that, in my mind, Coach was bringing in to take my spot.

I ended up making the team, and I ended up starting as a mid-fielder on a Classic League Team. But I hated it. This was the first team that I ever played on where I hated and feared going to practice. I liked being pushed, and I wanted to be great at sports, but the way that I was pushed caused me to hate and fear practice. Every mistake that I made was called out in a way that made me feel less of myself, and instead of inspiring me to be better, Coached pushed me away from the team and away from a sport that I was good at. Despite winning the MVP award at the end of the year as the best player on a Classic League team, that was my first and only year playing select soccer.

There were other reasons behind that year being my only year playing select as well. I wanted to play college basketball and in the NBA, and all the other kids had dreams of playing college soccer and playing soccer professionally overseas. While their free time was spent juggling a soccer ball and working on striking and finishing, my free time was spent at the basketball court perfecting my moves. Soccer wasn't going to be a long-term thing for me UNLESS I had a coach who wasn't perfect, but who would make me excited to come to practice and grow a love for the game. I was not a 'participation trophy' type of athlete. I was a competitor who wanted to compete to be the best. I wanted to beat you, and I would run through you to do so. I would run through a brick wall for a coach who believed in me, and I wanted to run away from this coach. I was fortunate to have that in basketball, and I went on to play basketball in college. All things work together, and things happen for a reason. If I really loved soccer, I am sure that I would have been able to overcome that type of coaching and I could have used it to push me to be better, but there is a saying that, "You have to catch the fish before you can clean it," and I hadn't caught the soccer bug yet.

Our actions come from our beliefs, and our beliefs are formed by our experiences. Who we are as coaches emerge from our experience as athletes. My soccer experience has shaped the type of coach that I am for my athletes. I never want my athletes to be afraid to make a mistake or to hate coming to practice. I never want my athletes to be soft, overly coddled, and entitled either. I firmly believe that we can coach hard, push our athletes beyond their comfort zone, and have high expectations for ourselves and others while making our athletes excited about coming to practice and helping them grow their love for the game. It doesn't have to be "either/or."

I have been blessed to have coached many different sports at many different levels. I have coached 2-year-olds just learning how to play soccer, and I have coached college and professional athletes. My purpose is to help kids thrive on and off the court and help them thrive mentally and physically. My hope is to never be a kid's last coach. My goal each season is that everyone wants to come back and play next season. My goal is to beat your team, but to do so in a way that each kid grows and develops; we don't sacrifice long-term success for a win today. I am not perfect, and I am sure that you can find many athletes and parents that will say that I didn't live out what I said is my purpose, my hope, and my goals. But I try.

Just know that you can do both. You can make it fun and still push them and be demanding. You can teach them life lessons through sports by coaching them tough, being demanding, letting them struggle and go through adversity in a healthy and inspiring way. It doesn't have to be an "either/or." Your athletes will remember you. Will they remember you for the good things you did, or will they remember you for the harm that you caused? Your voice will be their inner voice for the rest of their life. What is it going to say to them? Will your voice be their inner voice of encouragement, or will it be an inner voice of negativity?

I have three kids, and they all approach sports differently.

For my competitive kid, I make sure that she play for coaches who will push her as hard as she needs to be pushed, but I won't let her play for a coach who will beat her down and who will make her fear and hate practice. 

For my non-competitive kid, I make sure that she plays for coaches who will push her as hard as she needs to be pushed, but I won't let her play for a coach who will beat her down and who will make her fear and hate practice.

For my kid who is still figuring out how competitive she wants to be, I make sure that she plays for coaches who will push her as hard as she needs to be pushed, but I won't let her play for a coach who will beat her down and who will make her fear and hate practice.

The Leader Sets The Standard

Every player that Michael Jordan has ever played with talks about his competitiveness and his drive to be great, and they talk about how he pushes his teammates to be great as well.

In his book, Driven From Within, he said:

"A leader has to be willing to sacrifice to help everyone else get to where a team needs to go. No one could take days off with the Bulls because I never took a day off. The leader sets the standard, and everyone has to live up to that standard."

Michael Jordan said that he has taken that same approach at Brand Jordan. He said, "It all goes back to me, Tinker and Mark Smith. If we all agree to the standard, who is going to try to change that? We've built the standards. We're leading, not following. Whoever comes in has to live up to the same standard. They have to be as dedicated as I am. They have to put in the same effort. They have to have the same understanding of what we are about. If you don't have the same vision, then you're not going to be here long. You have to rise to our level. We're not going to drop down to yours."

Many athletes want to be the star, but they don't have star habits or a star work ethic. You are what you do, not what you want to be. Your standards, habits, and actions have to match what you want to be. If you want to be the best on your team, you have to work like it. If you want to be a star athlete, you have to work like a star athlete works. One thing that can be tricky is some athletes are more naturally gifted than others. Some are naturally bigger, stronger, and faster than others, so you might have to outwork them to make up for those gaps.

But the moral of this story is you have the opportunity, and responsibility, to set the standard for how you want to work, play, and live, and you have the opportunity, and responsibility, to hold yourself accountable to standards that you set.

1 - Would you follow your own lead?

2 - What is one standard that you have set for yourself that you live up to?

3 - What is one standard that you have set for yourself that you don't live up to?

4 - What is one standard that you need to set (or reset)?

Week 34 | HAPPINESS

Consider it pure joy whenever you face trials because you know that the testing of your faith produces perseverance. Let perseverance finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything.

- James 1:2-4

I have been the best player on some teams, and I have come off the bench on others. I have been the star on the court, and I have been the star towel-waver cheering on my teammates. I have been a great teammate, and I have been an excuse-making bad teammate. What I have learned in my many experiences is that every experience gives me a chance to learn something new, and that I can be happy and have joy in any situation.

When I was in college, I lost my starting spot and I was upset about it. I spent the next few practices pouting, but I learned some valuable lessons. First, I learned that nothing was given and that anything can be taken away. Second, I learned how important it is to work harder and compete harder than the person next to you. Finally, I learned how important it is to find HAPPINESS and joy in any situation by bringing value to the team by mastering my role.

While I never earned my starting spot back, I did make a major impact on my team, and I was on the court to finish a lot of games. More importantly, after I wasted time pouting and feeling sorry for myself, I found HAPPINESS and joy in my role by pushing the starters in practice, by supporting the starters in the game, and by bringing energy, scoring, and defense when I got in. I found ways to make my teammates and my team better.

I chose to be HAPPY. I chose to have joy. I chose to have energy and enthusiasm. The apostle Paul was one of the most important people in the history of Christianity. In Philippians 4:10-13. Paul the apostle wrote:

I rejoiced greatly in the Lord that at last you renewed your concern for me. Indeed, you were concerned, but you had no opportunity to show it. I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.

Our HAPPINESS does not have to come from what happens or doesn't happen to us, but from knowing that we are more than enough when we have a relationship with God. Life is full of trials and tribulations. It is full of wins and losses, but we can be HAPPY and content in the moment while we work hard to get what we want. Choose to be HAPPY. Choose to find joy in everything that you do. Choose love. Instead of only focusing on the destination, find ways to be HAPPY while you are on the journey.

If you struggle with anything, remember that we hear people say, "I can't," but we never hear them say, "God" and "I can't."

THIS WEEK

1 - Every morning this week, think about three things that you are excited and happy about for the day. Every night this week, think about three things that made you HAPPY and brought you joy.

2 - Love drives out fear. When you are afraid or upset about something, think about something that you love in the situation. Think about something HAPPY that is happening in life.

3 - How can you bring value and positive energy this week no matter what is going on around you?

PRAYER

Our Father, I know that all things are possible through you. May you fill me with happiness, joy, peace and hope. Please show me how to bring value and positive energy no matter what is going on around me. In Jesus's name, amen.

For a Google doc version of this devotional, click here: Week 34 Devotional

Love Drives Our Fear

Have you ever been so afraid of something that you don’t do it at all or you don’t do your best?

In a big game in the biggest tournament of the year, I was fouled with no time left, we were down by one point, and I had two free throws and the chance to win the game. It was my first time shooting free throws in a big moment like that, and I was very nervous. My heart was beating through my chest, and I could not stop my legs from shaking. I missed both shots, we lost, and I thought it was all my fault. I led my team in scoring, rebounding, and assists, but being in that moment was the scariest thing that I had been a part of, and I let that fear hold me back from being my best.

If I could do it all over again, I would not focus on the fear - I would focus on love. Writer and speaker Jon Gordon says fear can sabotage you and keep you from living the life you want, but love casts out fear. He says that if you love something, you won’t fear it. 

Athletes grow up dreaming about making game-winning shots, hitting game-winning home runs, and scoring game-winning touchdowns, but at that moment, I let my fear be greater than my love and I let the fear of failure weigh greater than the opportunity in front of me. If I could go back in that moment, I would tell myself to find the love, the joy, and the opportunity at that moment. We dream about making the game-winning shot and we have to fight the battle of the mind so that we see the opportunity of the moment and not fear.

Gordon said to be so devoted and in love with your craft that it drives you. Fear can be the number one thing that keeps you from your destiny, your goal, and what you want to create, but love is the most powerful force in the universe and it overrides fear. If you love something and if you love doing something, your love will drive away any fear you might feel.

One activity that you can do to overcome negative thoughts is to get a piece of paper and fold it in half. On one side of the paper, write down all of your negative thoughts. On the other side, write down a positive, encouraging thought that can help you overcome the negative thoughts.

Adversity and fear are a part of life, but remember that stars shine the brightest in the darkness, and positive people shine the most through adversity.

Being positive won’t guarantee that you will succeed, but being negative will almost guarantee that you won’t.

Pessimists don’t change the world - it’s the optimists that do, and we can’t change the world if we let fear rule our minds.

MJ Mondays | We All Want More

I can't count the number of conversations that I have had with players and their parents about their roles and playing time. Understandably, most people want more opportunities to play and contribute to their team's success. One of the first things you have to learn as a coach is you can't make everyone happy, and it is important to learn the same as a player and as a parent.

In an activity used to address playing time, my coach in college once asked us all to write on a notecard how many minutes we felt like we should play in a game. He then collected all of the notecards and added up the minutes. A college basketball game is only 40 minutes long. This means that there are 200 minutes to share on each team because you can only have 5 people on the court at a time. When he added the numbers that we all wrote down, it was well over 200 minutes. This was an eye-opening experience about how many minutes there are in a game, and how important it is to earn the trust of the coach by working hard, being consistent and mastering your role.

In the book Driven From Within, Michael Jordan wrote, "I focus on the little things. Little things add up to big things."

Tinker Hatfield is a shoe designer who designed most of Michael Jordan's shoes, including the Air Jordan 3 through the Air Jordan 15. He said, "Michael's technique on the floor was perfect. His shot, his follow-through, the way the ball rolled off his fingers - he was a meticulous player."

We all want more, but to get more, we have to earn the trust of our coach by focusing on and mastering the little things that we already have in front of us. Those little things will add up to big things.

What is something small that you can work on mastering right now?

Week 33 Devotional | PITS

The two parts about middle school and high school coaching that gives me the most anxiety are tryouts and playing time. I want everyone to play, and I want everyone to have success. It is hard on me when I have to cut someone, and it is hard on me when I don't play someone as much as they would like, especially when they are good people who work hard.

But spots on the team and playing time are earned, not given, and it is a coach's job to play the players that he/she feels are going to give the team the best chance to win.

One of my coaches used to say that the bench is like a PIT and it is our job to work ourselves out of the PIT and onto the court.

One of my favorite stories in the Bible is the story of Joseph. Joseph was one of Jacob's 12 sons, and his father loved him more than any of his other sons. When Joseph was 17 years old, he shared with his brothers two dreams that he had: in one dream, Joseph's brothers bowed to him, and in the second dream, the sun (father), the moon (mother), and eleven stars (his brothers) bowed to him. These dreams made his brothers upset and they plotted to kill him.

Instead of killing Joseph, they threw him into a PIT, but that is not where he ended up. Joseph was sold by his brother to a group of traveling merchants going to Egypt and his brothers told his dad that he was killed. When he got to Egypt, he was sold as a slave to Potiphar, the captain of Pharaoh's guards. While there, he was accused of doing something that he didn't do and he was thrown into another PIT, a jail in Egypt. When in jail, Joseph gained the favor and respect of the Pharaoh because he could interpret dreams and, and he was again pulled out of the PIT and he became one of the most important people in Egypt and helped control and manage their food supply.

A huge famine came, and all of the surrounding nations came to Egypt to buy food because Joseph had done such a good job managing their food supply that they had more than enough. Because of the famine, Joseph's brothers came to Egypt to buy food and found out that their brother, the one whom they threw into the PIT and then sold into slavery, was now one of the top people in all of Egypt.

Joseph went from the PIT to the palace where he was second in charge of a great nation. It started with a dream, but how did his dreams come true? We all have dreams, and we all have PITS that we have to climb out of; what made Joseph different? Joseph went from the PIT to the palace because he had a dream and he never quit. 

The people who refuse to quit, the people who won't give up, make it to the finish line.

The devil is real and he digs PITS for all of us to fall into, but it is our job, with the help of God to climb out of them. Whatever you go through, put your trust and confidence in God. He can take all of the bad stuff and use it for good. If Joseph's brother never threw him into the PIT and never sold him into slavery, Joseph wouldn't have saved Egypt during the famine and he wouldn't have been able to provide food for his brothers and his family.

Remember that in this world, you will fall into PITS and you will have trouble, but the beauty of the Bible is that it is filled with story after story of people just like you who have climbed out of many PITS with the help of God. God has plans for us all to prosper. He has plans to give us all hope and a future. When we call upon him and come and pray to Him, He will listen. When we seek Him with all our hearts, we will find Him. Be a prisoner of hope. If you are a prisoner of hope and if we build and maintain trust in God, He will always be there for us and deliver us from all evil and out of all PITS.

This Week

1 - What is one PIT that you are needing to climb out of?

2 - What is one thing that you can do to help you climb out of it?

3 - What is one thing that you can do for someone that can help them climb out of a PIT that they have fallen into?

Prayer
Our Father, I know that trials, troubles, and PITS are a part of life, but I also know that I don't have to be stuck in any PIT. I know that you can use the PITS that I fall in for good if I keep my hope, trust, and faith in you. Please show me how to climb out of the PITS in my life, and show me how I can love and serve others so that I can help them climb out of their own PITS.

For a Google Doc version of this devotional click here: Week 33 | PITS.

"I'm Excited To Try This Tomorrow"

"I'm excited to try this tomorrow with my students!"

I was reading a book called, Coaching for Equity, and the author said, "If we close conversations with an opportunity for the client to name what they've learned and how they feel at the end of the conversation and they say, "I'm excited to try this tomorrow with my students!" - then they bring a moment of awareness to the positive emotions that come up from learning, and they've increased their resilience.

I thought, "How cool would it be if our athletes were this excited at practice? How cool would it be if our athletes said, 'I'm excited to try this tomorrow,' or, 'I'm excited to try this in the game?'"

When I first started coaching, my head coach said something that has impacted the rest of my career. He said, "No one can get better if you think they suck, and no one will want to learn from you if they don't like you and if you don't like them."

In my first few practices, I complained about some of our athletes' work ethic and grit. My coach would say to me, "I hear you, but what are you going to do about it?" He said:

"Great practices start with you and how you show up. Your feelings, your attitude, and how you show up will have a major impact on practice. Your attitude - your way of being - makes the difference between how you impact practice."

From that day on, I made a commitment to bringing as much positive energy as possible to every practice, and I started to hear our athletes more and more say things like, "I can't wait to try this in the game." The change happened when I changed.

Coaching for Equity says that if we aspire to create sustainable, transformative change in the people we work with, we need to focus on The Three B's: Behaviors, Beliefs, and Ways of Being.

Behavior is what we do; it's our skill set. We have to behave like the person we want to become. If I wanted to be the best coach in the country, I had to behave like it.

Belief is what we think and believe, and it comes from what we know and from our experiences. We have to have a growth mindset - the belief that we can learn, grow, and get better with practice.

Ways of being are how who we are and how we show up. It comes out in our emotions, communication, and levels of resilience.

My first head coach helped me change my entire way of being a coach. He changed my belief in myself and my athletes, and that helped me change my behavior and my ability to teach, coach, and impact my athletes.

MJ Mondays | Bloody Hands

Growing up, I would hear stories about how hard Michael Jordan practiced. Teammates and coaches all talked about how competitive he was in practice and how much he pushed everybody on his team. They talked about how he hated to lose in everything, even in card games, and when he would lose, he would make you keep playing until he would not only beat you but destroy you.

The inspiring thing about Jordan to me was that he would challenge the best, people better at certain things than him, so that they could push him. He would challenge the best shooters to shooting competitions, card players to card games, and ping-pong players to ping-pong games. He wasn't afraid to lose. He knew that he had to lose to win.

One of his coaches said that when they would do shooting drills, Jordan would never want to be on the team with the best shooters. This forced him to shoot under pressure. His coach said that if his team lost, Jordan would yell, "Run it back, run it back." He never wanted an easy win in practice, and he never wanted to end on a loss.

Teammate B.J. Armstrong said that their famous card games would last forever because Michael never loses. Whatever he's doing, he's going to win because he's going to keep on playing.

At the peak of his career, Jordan famously retired from basketball to try to play major league baseball for the Chicago White Sox. The White Sox's batting coach Walter Hriniak said that he hated Jordan because he thought Jordan was playing baseball for publicity. Hriniak said that he wasn't going to work with him and he didn't want anything to do with him, but one day he told Jordan to meet him at 7:30 in the morning to workout, and Jordan came every day until his hands were bleeding. Walt grew to love Jordan and he loved that he would work until his hands were bleeding.

Billie Holiday was one of the most influential jazz singers of all time, and she is considered one of the best jazz vocalists ever. One of her famous quotes reminds me of Michael Jordan and his work ethic. She said, "The difficult I'll do right now. The impossible will take a while."

It is hard being great. That is why not a lot of people are great. You have to be willing to do the difficult things, and you have to be willing to take on the impossible. You have to know that you aren't the best at everything, but you have to be willing to do the work that it takes to get better so that you give yourself the chance to become the best.

This is also why I love coaching. Coaching is a structure that supports learning, and transformational coaching can take us from where we are now to where we want to go. Great coaches help athletes learn how to reflect on what they do and how they do it, they help their athletes understand themselves better, they help them grow their mindset, shift their beliefs, and build new habits. Great coaches can see who you are and what you do well, they find out who you want to be, and they help you become the athlete and person you want to be by shifting your mindset, growing your skills and building your resilience and ability to push through fatigue, stress, pain, and failure.

Michael Jordan knew he wanted to be the best. He wasn't afraid of failure, and he wasn't afraid of hard work. He knew that hard work and bloody hands were the only way, and he knew that failure was a part of the journey. He knew that it would hurt, he knew that he would lose, he knew that he would fail, and he did it anyway.

WEEK 32 DEVOTIONAL | BOUNCE BACK

Before every game, I say to my team, “We are going to do some great things out there. When we do, don’t get too high. Be consistent, and keep the momentum going by making the right, next play. We are also going to do some bad things out there. Don’t get too low. BOUNCE BACK by making the next right play.”

We can say the same thing about life. We have seasons where everything is going right and every decision we make seems like the right decision. We also have seasons where it feels like nothing is right and every decision we make is the wrong decision.

It is important to know that no matter what you have done, you can always BOUNCE BACK and get a fresh start. It can be a quick timeout in a game, or it can be a reset in life. Also know that God loves you and has a purpose for your life.

The Bible is full of comeback stories, and one of the most impactful is how Saul became Paul and one of the most important people in Christian history.

Saul was a Pharisee who persecuted the followers of Jesus. His goal was to get rid of believers of Jesus, and one day he went to Demascus to send all of the believers in the town to jail. While on the way, a light from heaven flashed around him. Saul fell to the ground and heard a voice say, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

Saul asked, “Who are you Lord?”

Jesus responded, “It is me, Jesus, who you are persecuting.”

Saul was blinded for 3 days, and his men led him to Demascus. Ananias, a disciple of Jesus, had a vision from Jesus to go to the house of Judas where he would restore Saul’s sight. Ananias was terrified because he knew that Saul was doing awful things to Jesus’s people, but Jesus reassured him that Saul was chosen to work for him.

Ananias was brave and trusted Jesus. He did as he was told, and Saul’s eye sight was restored. Saul thought he was doing the right thing, but Jesus stepped in and transformed him. Saul’s name became Paul and he went on to become a missionary for Jesus and one of the writers of our Bible.

The story of Paul’s reminds me that no matter what you have done, you can, BOUNCE BACK, have a comeback story, and overcome hurt and failure.

God is the chief of change. He is the king of fresh starts, new beginnings, and second starts. His mercy is new every morning.

If you want to go for it - if you want a great life, if you want a bigger role on your team, if you want to score more, do more, and be more, understand that you are going to get opposition from the devil. Plan for that and have a mindset for that. Paul wrote in 1st Corinthian 16:9, “A wide door has opened up to me, and many adversaries.” Jesus said, “The thief comes only to kill, steal, and destroy; I have come that they may have life and have it to the full.” He also said, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

No matter what happens today, in this practice, this game, or this season, God has a plan for you. He has plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. You can BOUNCE BACK from anything. God will lead you, guide you, and support you. Cast all your cares, anxieties, worries, and concerns, once and for all on Him, for He cares about you and watches over you very carefully.

Then get to work building the kind of season, career, and life you want!!!

This Week

1 - Think of one time that you overcame something difficult. What is one thing that you learned about yourself in that process?

2 - What is one thing that you are going through right now that is difficult? What is one thing that you can do this week that will help you BOUNCE BACK?

Prayer

Our Father; thank you for the many blessings that you have given me. I know that you have wonderful plans for me and my life, but I also know that there will be trials, trouble, and adversaries along the way. I pray for strength, for guidance, for love, for peace, and for joy. I pray that through it all, I am able to love, serve, and bring joy to others as I demonstrate your love. In Jesus’s name, I pray, amen.

For a Google Doc version of this devotional, click here: Week 32 Devo | Bounce Back

Jason Preston | Confidence and Mindset Will Take You a Long Way

Jason Preston was just drafted by the LA Clippers, but he wasn't a top recruit nor a star on his high school team. He only averaged 2 points per game in high school, and he was on the "C" team in prep school without any college offers. He made his own highlight tape and received an offer from Ohio University. Jason put himself on the national radar after scoring 31 points against Illinois, who was ranked #8 in the country, and now he is preparing for a career in the NBA.

Jason is not the prototypical draft pick, but he said he is not surprised that he has made it to the NBA. Jason said that he dreamed of this and he worked for this. Jon Gordon asked him, "What would you tell kids who have a dream but it isn't looking good right now?"

"Believe in yourself. You will have a lot of people tell you what they think you should do, but they can't live your life. You have to do what is best for you. That comes down to how you believe in yourself. You will be surprised what confidence can do for you and how far it can take you. One of my teammates at Ohio was struggling with his confidence, and I kept talking to him, making him watch film, and giving him positivity, and it is amazing what your mindset and confidence can do for you. A lot of people are skilled and talented, but always having a positive mind and being confident in yourself will take you a long way."

Jon Gordon then said, "Even in the middle of the NBA playoffs, you might see a player lose his confidence in the middle of the game. What do you do to maintain your confidence when your shots aren't going in?"

"You have to think about all of the time and work that you spent on your craft outside of the games. If you have put in the work and things don't work out, you can live with yourself at the end of the day because you did everything that you could. If you put yourself in a position to make the shots that you work on every day and they don't fall that day, then you have to live with the results. Just keep shooting. 

The talent and skill are there, but make sure that you have the mindset and confidence to keep going. The mindset and the belief that says, "I have what it takes and I am going for it, and I am going to keep doing it and playing my game," is important and the difference-maker."

Be excited to learn and discover new things. There are always things to learn and get better. Have fun every day doing what you love doing, and believe in yourself.

MJ Mondays | Michael Didn't Want Anybody to Have Nothing on Him

One of the teams that I was coaching this year had one a few tournaments in a row, and they started feeling good about themselves. They work hard and they are talented. But I feared that they would let their ego get in the way of getting better.

When I was re-watching (again) The Last Dance, I heard Coach Phil Jackson say, "You are only a success at the moment you perform a successful act. You have to do it again."

I thought that this might be a great message for my team. Enjoy the moment. Enjoy and celebrate success, but understand that you can't live in that moment forever. 

In 1992, Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls became only the 4th NBA franchise to win back-to-back championships.

Prior to the 1992 season, the team talked about the difficulties of repeating, but the 1992 team was even better than the championship team in 1991. 

BJ Armstrong said, 

"Starting with that season, I felt Michael Jordan never played basketball anymore. He just figured out how to win the game. He knew how to steer momentum. He knew how to get guys going. And not only was he that good on the offensive end, he was just as good on the defensive end. He was just playing a different game than the rest of us. He let us play, but he was there to win the game. And he knew that, and once he figured that out, you couldn't beat him."

The Bulls had to beat Clyde Drexler and the Portland Trail Blazers to repeat as champions. Clyde and Michael were considered to be two of the best players in the world at the time, and the world was looking forward to this matchup. Michael said that Clyde was a threat, but he took offense to people comparing him to Clyde. 

Magic Johnson, an NBA legend who MJ and the Bulls beat in 1991 to win their first NBA championship said, 

"The night before game one, we're at Michael's house playing cards, and he said, "You know what's going to happen tomorrow. I'm going to give it to this dude." 

Michael hit an NBA record 4 three-pointers in the first half and an NBA championship record 35 points at the half. Magic said, "Michael didn't want anybody to have nothing on him." Michael worked hard, he was successful, and he celebrated his success. But then he got back to work for the next season.

A good rivalry is healthy competition. It can push you to be better. Michael Jordan always found ways to keep himself motivated.

What motivates you? What keeps you working hard? What keeps you inspired?

Week 31 | Excellence

Everyday is a new day. Every day is a new opportunity to show up and be great.

Joyce Meyer says "Whatever you do, do it with excellence, be a person of integrity, and keep strife out of your life." 

Excellence is the quality of being outstanding or extremely good, but it is not perfection. Excellence means doing the best you can with whatever you have. You might want to have a bigger role on your team, like starting or scoring more points, but until that happens, master the role that you have right now. If you are going to do something, do it right. That means how you show up, how you work, how you listen. That also means how you act in the locker room, how you clean up the bench when the game is over, how you listen to and talk to your coaches, teammates, and referees.

Integrity is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles. The Bible says, "Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his way crooked will be found out (Proverbs 10:9)." It also says, "The integrity of the upright guides them, but the crookedness of the treacherous destroys them (Proverbs 11:3)." If you say you are going to do something, do it. Touch the line. Clean up after yourself. Don't cheat.

Strife is angry or bitter disagreements or conflict. The Bible says, "Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses." It also says, "A dishonest man spread strife, and a whisperer separates close friends (16:28). 2nd Timothy 2:23-25 says, "Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord's servant must be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth.

Be a great teammate. Don't talk bad about your coaches or your teammates, especially behind their back. When there are issues, find ways to correct and repair the relationship. Simon Sinek says, "A culture is strong when people work with each other and for each other. A culture is weak when people work against each other and for themselves."

A foundation of success is having strong, Godly character. Without a strong foundation, you won't be able to maintain or sustain success. The Bible says that you will know them by their fruit. A good tree doesn't give bad fruit. To produce good fruit, we have to do good work. Do what you say you are going to do, and do it to the best of your ability. Don't cheat yourself or the team by showing up late, leaving early, and not bringing energy and enthusiasm. Don't bring strife and conflict. Work to bring people together.

After spending a short amount of time with you, people should know that there is something different about you. Your energy should be different. Your honesty and your commitment to excellence should be different. If you are going to do something, do it right.

This Week

1 - Do everything you do with excellence. Do the best you can in whatever you are asked to do. If you do the best with what you have, consistently, you will be trusted to do more. What is one area that you can commit to being excellent in this week?

2 - Do everything you say you are going to do. What is one way that you can show your integrity this week?

3 - Don't talk negatively about anybody, and avoid unnecessary fights with the people around you. Bring people together. What is one way that you can avoid strife (unnecessary conflict), or what is one way you can help your team avoid strife?

For a Google Doc version, click here: Week 31 Devo