3.20 Owen Eastwood: What Type of Competitor Are You?

“Every team needs lions - competitors who are willing to step out first, take risks, and will their teams to victory.”

What kind of competitor are you?

Owen Eastwood says there are three types of competitors: Lions, wolves, and sheep.

Lions are teammates who will step up, lead, and do whatever it takes for their team to win. They are the ones who jump to the front of the line, who go first, and who you can trust to take the big shot or make the big play no matter how much pressure they are in.

Wolves are the teammates who are killers when things are going great, but won’t be the first to step up and won’t step up in crucial moments, but they’ll feast when the lions are leading the way.

The sheep are the ones who are just happy to be there, they just want to survive, and they just want to follow the lions and the wolves to safety.

Eastwood studied several World Cup champions and learned that each team needs at least 6 lions out of 11 to win it all. This helps coaches think about selection and how they develop players. We want loins, so we have to recruit, select, and develop them.

Athletes can go from sheep to wolves and from wolves to lions with practice and by being bold. Build your confidence with practice, then do the things lions do: Be in the front of the line, volunteer to go first, and take key risks in practice and games knowing you will make mistakes. 

Just keep going.

Questions of the Day: Are you a lion, a wolf, or a sheep?