A Coach's Diary

From the time you were born, we’ve taught you values and character skills that we hope will help you become a great person, and we’ve spent time, money, and energy pouring into you. Then we send you off to high school, where our voice and message get challenged in ways we can’t imagine. That’s why I say, “High school can be a jungle.” It means high school can feel wild, unpredictable, and competitive—like a jungle where everyone’s trying to survive and find their place, and some people will try to bring you down or tear you down in the process. You are going to learn more about the world and the people in it than I would like sometimes, and you have to—get to—decide who you want to be. But remember, no matter who you share a classroom or locker room with, you always get to choose who you want to be. Every day before you leave the house, or before you walk through the school doors, think about that—think about who you want to be, and fight to be it. I say you have to fight for it...

“Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work gains success. Greatness will come.” - Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson Are you showing up with enough consistency to match the goals you say you want? Greatness isn’t something you chase directly—it’s something that shows up as a byproduct of what you do every day. Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson is one of the most recognizable entertainers and athletes in the world. He went from college athlete, to wrestling icon, to global movie star and entrepreneur—while building a reputation as one of the hardest-working and most inspiring figures in entertainment. The Rock once said, “Success isn’t always about greatness. It’s about consistency. Consistent hard work gains success. Greatness will come.” You don’t need to be the most talented, the smartest, or the best right away. What matters most is showing up, working hard, and sticking with it, even when it’s boring or difficult. Success is built brick by brick through stea...

“You have to fight to reach your dream. You have to sacrifice and work hard for it.”  - Lionel Messi What are you willing to sacrifice today so you can become who you want tomorrow? One thing all great athletes have in common is that they are willing to sacrifice what they need to be what they want to become. Success doesn’t come free—it asks for trade offs. The people we admire most have given up comfort for growth, free time for discipline, and approval for purpose. They’ve sacrificed late nights, weekends, even their own fears, because they believed in something bigger. Success is about making a choice: do you want what feels easy right now, or what matters most in the long run? Every sacrifice is really an investment in your future. Lionel Messi is one of the best soccer players of all time. He said, “You have to fight to reach your dream. You have to sacrifice and work hard for it.” He also said, “I start early and I stay late, day after day, year after year. It took me 17 yea...

“I’m not the most talented, I’m not the fastest, but I work the hardest.” - Jerry Rice Are you getting everything you can out of your natural talent? Everyone is born with a unique set of strengths, weaknesses and gifts. What are yours, and are you getting the most out of it? Jerry Rice is widely regarded as the greatest wide receiver in NFL history and one of the best football players of all time. He was known for his legendary working, conditioning, and discipline. Rice once said, “I’m not the most talented, I’m not the fastest, but I work the hardest.” He also said, “Today I will do what others won’t, so tomorrow I can accomplish what others can’t.” He was naturally talented, but he got more out of that natural talent than most because of how hard he worked and how hard pushed himself. Near his hometown in Mississippi, there was a steep, punishing hill. Rice ran it every day in the offseason, often leaving younger or even professional athletes gasping for air. He believed that ...

“I just kept saying, ‘Be brave.’ And, ‘Go for it.’ … I went after it, every single point. And if I missed it and I just didn’t execute, I could live with that. I didn’t want to have any sort of regret that I was passive and I missed.”  - Madison Keys Can you live with and move on from mistakes, or does the fear of failure leave you passive or paralyzed? Every coach and parent wants a confident, brave, courageous athlete who knows it’s not about being perfect but trying to be the best you can be. This requires being willing to try new things and make mistakes, fail, learn from it, and bounce back and try again. Madison Keys is a professional tennis player, known for having a powerful serve and a strong forehand. She once said, “I just kept saying, ‘Be brave.’ And, ‘Go for it.’ … I went after it, every single point. And if I missed it and I just didn’t execute, I could live with that. I didn’t want to have any sort of regret that I was passive and I missed.” If you want to be gr...

“The world never puts a price on you higher than the one you put on yourself.” - Sonja Henie Do you know how much you're worth? Everyone wants to feel valued. Sonja Henie was a Norwegian figure skater and film star who became one of the most famous athletes and entertainers of the 20th century. She once said, “The world never puts a price on you higher than the one you put on yourself.” You have the opportunity to set your own value first. Henie is saying that people around you will treat you based on how you treat yourself. If you carry yourself with confidence, discipline, and pride, others are more likely to respect you and see your worth too. If you undervalue yourself—whether in sports, career, or life—others won’t raise the bar for you. They’ll take the cue from the standard you’ve set. Instead of waiting for the world to recognize your talent or give you opportunities, you claim your value first, and then the world follows that lead. Know what your strengths are, invest in y...

“ All I kept saying to myself was: ‘Remove all doubt. Believe in yourself. You’ve got this.’ ” - Claressa Shields How do you push past the doubt? We all have doubts at times in our lives. The key is to remove and push past it. Professional boxer and former mixed martial artist Claressa Shields is a symbol of power and determination both inside and outside the ring. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist boxer, and she is the only boxer—male or female—to hold all four major belts (WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO) in three different weight divisions. When she was asked to reflect on her journey to becoming an Olympic champion, Claressa said, “All I kept saying to myself was: ‘Remove all doubt. Believe in yourself. You’ve got this.’” Her words are a reminder that doubt doesn’t disappear on its own—it has to be replaced with belief, action, and persistence. Shields didn’t wait to “feel” confident; she trained, prepared, and spoke confidence into existence until it became real.  The same is t...

"It’s natural to wrestle with insecurities and fears as you navigate your sports journey. But I want to challenge you to learn to love and seek out joy and connection as your biggest motivators.” - Maya Moore Are you motivated by fear or love and joy? Maya Moore is a former professional basketball player who is considered one of the greatest women’s basketball players of all time. She won multiple championships as in college at the University of Connecticut, multiple championships in the WNBA with the Minnesota Lynx, and multiple Olympic gold medals with our US women’s national team. Maya knows what championship teams look like, and she spoke on that in her Hall of Fame speech. In her speech, Moore said, “It’s natural to wrestle with insecurities and fears as you navigate your sports journey.” She later said, “But I want to challenge you to learn to love and seek out joy and connection as your biggest motivators.”  Moore said the best teams are the most connected teams, and when y...

"You are not your zip code. You are not your last name. You are not your setbacks. You are your vision. You are your work ethic. You are your will. You are the quiet whisper inside you that says, ‘I know there’s more for me in this life.’ Hold on to that voice—it will be tested.” - Carmelo Anthony Carmelo Anthony is one of the best basketball players of all time. He came from rough, humble beginnings to become one of the most iconic scorers and a hero for so many people who grew up like him. In his Hall of Fame speech, he said he didn’t grow up with any guarantees, only grit and dreams, and the lucky ones had someone telling them to not give up on them. He said there were a lot of people around him telling him what he couldn’t do and to not aim too high. He then said, “To every kid watching, I want you to hear me loud. You are not your zip code. You are not your last name. You are not your setbacks. You are your vision. You are your work ethic. You are your will. You are the qu...

“Life is often compared to a marathon, but I think it is more like being a sprinter; long stretches of hard work punctuated by brief moments in which we are given the opportunity to perform at our best.” - Michael Johnson Are you more of a sprinter or a marathoner? Michael Johnson is widely regarded as one of the greatest sprinters in track and field history. He won 4 Olympic gold medals, and at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, he became the first man in history to win both the 200m and 400m at the same Olympics. He once said, “Life is often compared to a marathon, but I think it is more like being a sprinter; long stretches of hard work punctuated by brief moments in which we are given the opportunity to perform at our best.” I try to work hard every day so that when it’s time to perform, I’m ready. But like a sprinter, it's hard to maintain peak performance over long periods of time, so when I’m not performing, I’m resting and building. I’m resting and recovering, but I’m also building...

“You have to remember that the hard days are what make you stronger. The bad days make you realize what a good day is. If you never had any bad days, you would never have that sense of accomplishment!"  - Aly Raisman How do you overcome or get over the hard days? Life is full of ups and downs, and the best handle the roller coaster better than others. The challenges you face — tough practices, mistakes, failures, and setbacks — build your toughness and resilience. You can’t have a testimony without a test, and without difficulty, you can’t grow. Former Olympic champion Aly Raisman is remembered not only as one of the best American gymnasts of her era, but also as a role model for courage and resilience.. Raisman began gymnastics at age 2, and by 14 was competing at the elite level, eventually becoming the US team captain in two consecutive Olympics.  In the 2012 London Olympics, she missed out on an all-around medal due to a tiebreaker — a heartbreaking moment — but came...

"It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, but because we do not dare things that are difficult. Courage over regret." - Jill Schulman How many opportunities have you avoided because of fear? The key to having a fulfilling, regret-free life isn’t avoiding discomfort—it’s leaning into it. This is what it means to be brave. Jill Schulman is a former U.S. Marine Corps officer turned leadership development expert who recently wrote a book on bravery. She says bravery is defined not as being fearless, but stepping forward and taking action in the presence of fear. She says, “It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, but because we do not dare things that are difficult. Courage over regret." Schulman teaches that bravery isn’t something you’re born with—it’s something you build . She calls courage a muscle that grows stronger with use. She breaks it down into three main areas: Mindset – Shift how you see fear. Instead of treating it as a s...

"Don't be afraid to stand out. Normal people don’t change the world." - Serena Williams Are you willing to speak up and challenge group think? Great teams don’t just need hard workers and role players — they need truth-tellers and difference-makers who are willing to speak up, hold people accountable, and raise their hands when everyone else stays quiet to question a plan that doesn’t feel right. But speaking up against the group can be hard. In the 1950s, Solomon Asch gathered groups of college students and told them they were doing a vision test. He showed them a line and asked which of three other lines matched its length. The answer was obvious, but when everyone else in the group (who were actors) gave the wrong answer out loud, many students went along with them instead of trusting their own eyes. It showed that people often follow the crowd to fit in, even when they know the truth. We are wired to conform, and this phenomenon has been called group-think bias. Our b...

" I've realized that me being whole off the field is gonna get the best version of me on the field. " - Mal Swanson How helpful or hurtful are your off-the-field or court habits? Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is a theory that explains what motivates people. It says we must first meet our basic needs, like food, water, and sleep, before moving on to other goals.  After that comes safety, friendships and belonging, and feeling good about ourselves. At the very top is self-actualization, which means becoming the best version of yourself. If you want to be the best you can be, you have to make sure your basic needs are met—you have to eat right, get enough rest, and feel safe. Then, you have to put in the work you need to put in, but you won’t have the mental, physical, and emotional energy you need if you don’t meet your basic needs Maybe that is what professional soccer player Mallory Swanson meant when she said, " I've realized that me being whole off the fiel...