Believe to Achieve

I hope you have all had a restful and fun weekend; it's time to go to work! I spent last Friday with a group of students at Nike listening to a panel presentation on Brand Jordan. The panel MC was a man by the name of Howard White, Vice President of Brand Jordan. "H", as he is affectionately known by many, and his moving words inspired me to think of many things. Most notably, the teachers and mentors in my life that instilled so many life-long values in my heart and mind. In his book, Believe to Achieve, Mr. White writes of the mentors, lessons and values that he holds sacred. The following are a few quotes that struck a chord with me and that apply to both sport and life:

On Work - "No matter what happens to you, you are the one in control of how you prepare yourself...To become the best takes a lot of practice and hard work. But if you put a lot of practice and hard work into anything you do, you will become the best you can be. That is all anyone can ever ask of you--that you become the best that you can possibly be."

On Habit - "Any improvement that you decide to make needs your commitment to become a habit. You can't start something new, perform it twice a month, and expect it to become part of you. You must drill yourself constantly and diligently to make it a habit, and only then will it have an affect on your life. And you must constantly replace discouraging, negative messages with positive messages."

On Attitude - "You may not control what happens to you, but you are in control of how you live your life, and your attitude will determine the outcome...Have a great outlook on life--it doesn't cost anything...A positive attitude helps the world and the people in it. A negative attitude hurts the world and hurts you even more...You can control your attitude toward anything and everything that comes into your world."

This week in particular, we need to put in the work necessary to reach our desired outcome Friday night...a win over Southridge. Our pursuit of furthering good habits through embracing work with a positive attitude will be the difference. Focus on what you want, put in the work and go get it! See you tomorrow!