BO ON MOTIVATION

"Motivation is the will to do something to the absolute best of one’s ability. A motivated man refuses to surrender even when there is nothing left to give. The enormity of the task does not matter. Neither do overwhelming odds against success. An effort may at times fall short of its goal, but a motivated team never allows itself to come up short of effort. Success isn’t a case of never making mistakes. It’s a case of never giving up after making mistakes. That’s motivation! Ordinary men make promises to achieve excellence. Motivated men are fearless. They take it one step further. They make commitments, and they never compromise. The late Bob Zuppke, who coached the University of Illinois football team for 29 years, once said, 'The difference between champions and near champions is the ability to play for something outside of self.' That’s motivation! No one can achieve lasting success without it."

-Bo Schembechler

THE PATH TO CREDIBILITY

To gain credibility, you must consistently demonstrate three things:

1. Initiative: You have to get up to go up.

2. Sacrifice: You have to give up to go up.

3. Maturity: You have to grow up to go up.

From, "Leadership Gold" by John Maxwell

OBLIGATION TO THE TEAM.

"When we do things as a team—go to a meal on the road, visit the Liberty Bell in Philadelphia on the day before a game, watch a UConn football game in the fall—we all do it together. Nobody is allowed to miss group activities unless he as a very good excuse. We meet together, we eat together, we play together. That’s not a negotiable point. It’s one of our standards. Every individual has obligations to the team. "

-Jim Calhoun

From "A Passion to Lead"

COACH MEYER DICTAPHONE NOTES #42

THE PIECES OF THINKING

From "How Successful People Think," by John Maxwell:

You need all the thinking “pieces” to become the kind of person who can achieve great things. Those pieces include the following eleven skills:

1. Seeing the wisdom of big-picture thinking.
2. Unleashing the potential of focused thinking.
3. Discovering the joy of creative thinking.
4. Recognizing the importance of realistic thinking.
5. Releasing the power of strategic thinking.
6. Feeling the energy of possibility thinking.
7. Embracing the lessons of reflective thinking.
8. Questioning the acceptance of popular thinking.
9. Encouraging the participation of shared thinking.
10. Experiencing the satisfaction of unselfish thinking.

NOT ABOUT THE TEAM ON PAPER

“It’s not about talent, it’s about how the team plays. That’s the litmus. Let’s see how we play. Let’s see how we coach. What the team looks like on paper doesn’t mean a thing.”

-Bill Belichick

LEADING TO THE MOUNTAIN TOP

With my latest subscription to Success Magazine, I also receive a monthly set of book notes and some motivational DVD's to listen to in the car while I'm sitting in traffic. Our form AD Skip Bertman really got me into listening to motivation in the car talking about how he always would get something that would help him or his team. Skip hasn't steered me wrong yet!

So while on the way home yesterday, I am listening to John Maxwell talk about the great mountain climber Jim Whittaker. Jim has scaled every mountain of significance in the world including Mount Everest more than any other climber. John is interested in mountain climbing and was ready to talk to him and throw some questions his way. One was what did he consider his biggest accomplishment. John thought it might be getting to the top of Mt. Everest more than any one but he got a surprising answer.

“I have helped more people get to the top of Mount Everest than any other person,” he replied. “Taking people to the top who could never get there without my assistance is my greatest accomplishment.”

Thus is the essence of leadership. It is not us getting to the top -- but helping others to travel with us!

THE WILL OF THE LEADER

Mental toughness is also the perfectly disciplined will. The strength of your group is in your will—in the will of the leader. The difference between a successful man and others is not in the lack of strength, nor in the lack of knowledge, but rather, in the lack of will. The real difference between men is the energy. It is in the strong will, the settled purpose, the invincible determination. But remember that the will is the character in action. If we would create something, we must be something. This is character. Character is higher than intellect. Character is the direct result of mental attitude. A man cannot dream himself into character; he must hammer and forge one for himself. He cannot copy someone else’s qualities; he must develop his own character qualities to fit his own personality.

-Vince Lombardi Jr.

From "What It Takes To Be #1"

MAKING EACH DAY A MASTERPIECE

WHEN RUSS SPEAKS

When I can find a few moments, I like to go to Coach Steve Finamore's "Play The Right Way" website at: http://playerdevelopment.wordpress.com/. Last night I came upon a posting he had on Bill Russell -- one of my favorites. Nice post Coach!

Yesterday while driving I was listening to the Jim Rome Show on the radio, hiis guest was Boston Celtics great, Bill Russell. Russ was talking about his new book, ‘Red and Me’, which details his relationship with the late Red Auerbach.

Towards the conclusion of the interview, Russell cut Rome off like he was blocking an opponent’s shot; “I apologize for interrupting you. Can you do me a favor?” Russell said.

Rome was like, “heck yeah, anything for you #6.”

“When you introduce me, can you please refer to me as the former captain of the Boston Celtics; That means way more to me then any Hall of Fame or other personal title. That was the most important thing for me.”

I couldn’t believe what I heard!

Then again, I should’ve expected something like that to come from the greatest winner in all of sports.