A special thanks to my friend Sefu Bernard for passing this article on to us via his the LLaBB facebook page. It is an outstanding blog post by Daniel Coyle, the author of "The Talent Code." It's a great post for your team because it deals with the concept of "putting time in" to improve when the process needs to be about what you "put into the time." Here is what Coyle has to say about it:
Okay, it’s happened: 10,000 hours is officially in the mainstream. Athletes, musicians, students, businesspeople are counting away, waiting for their practice odometer to tick over and — presto! — they’ll be world-class experts.
Sorry, but that ain’t how it works.
Why? Because when you count the hours, it’s easy to lose track of the real goal: finding ways to constantly reach past the edge of your current ability.
The real lesson of 10K is not about quantity; it’s about quality. It’s about getting the maximum possible gain in the shortest amount of time — and to get that, you don’t focus on the time, but on the gain. You put your focus on improving the practice, which happens two ways: through better methods or increased intensity.
To be clear:
1. Certain kinds of learning — deep, or deliberate practice — are transformative.
2. That transformation is a construction process.
3. That construction process depends on your intensive reaching and repeating in the sweet spot on the edge of your ability.
You are what you count. If you count hours, you’ll get hours. But if you find a good way of measuring your intensity, or measuring your improvement, that’s what you’ll get.
Thanks to J.P. Clark of the men's staff here at UCF for pointing out this article on Buzz Williams, his Marquette team and their commitment to strength and conditioning. The article comes from the Washington Post and was written by Eric Prisbell. Here are some excerpts:
“We have a football mentality,” said guard Todd Mayo, the younger brother of NBA player O.J. Mayo. “That’s just how we are bred. That’s what Buzz (Williams) teaches; he wants a physical team.”
It is a makeup now rooted in his Marquette basketball players, who Murray State Coach Steve Prohm said look like a parade of linebackers or defensive backs without shoulder pads and helmets. After watching Marquette before a second-round NCAA tournament matchup, Prohm joked to his team that the Golden Eagles look like they all should be in spring practice at Alabama or Louisiana State.
“Those guys, those bodies are awesome,” Prohm said. “They are some physical, physical guys. They look like they should be top-10 draft picks in football.”
After Marquette muscled its way past sixth-seeded Murray State, 62-53, the Golden Eagles sat in a locker room — some wearing ice packs, others wearing knee pads — as if halfway through a two-a-day football session in August training camp. And Todd Smith, the man most responsible for instilling gridiron attributes, stood with arms folded and his back to the wall.
“What is unique about all these guys is that they keep coming back every day for the same torture we put them through,” said Smith, Marquette’s strength and conditioning coach, whose offseason program includes “anything and everything.”
Players pull 250-pound sleds. They climb rope until fingers blister. They slip their fists into boxing gloves and pound a body bag. And they use a real football and play a variety of football-related games, rotating quarterbacks in the two-hand touch matchups to keep things fair.
At first, Smith said, players want to quit. Some throw up. But the team’s weight room is not nicknamed “The Confidence Room” for nothing. Perhaps no Marquette player has made bigger strides in conditioning and confidence than junior point guard Junior Cadougan, who ruptured his Achilles’ tendon as a freshman.
“It is just a crazy, radical situation,” Cadougan said. “It’s torture, but it’s from the heart, it’s love. He is not doing it to torture our bodies, but to prepare us for situations like this” in the NCAA tournament.
A big reason Williams already has had conversations with several NFL teams about Crowder potentially trying out is because of the skills the sculpted 235-pound senior honed in Smith’s offseason program. “He just kills you,” said Crowder, the Big East player of the year.
After players survive the summer program, they prepare for two more phases before traditional basketball practice begins in mid-October. There’s individual work with Williams, and there’s the early October “Boot Camp,” 12 sessions that include various forms of two activities: running fast and running faster.
Players said the offseason work has steeled them mentally and physically for the NCAA tournament. Wilson said he saw Murray State’s big men fatigue in the final minutes of the round-of-32 game.
Following a victory over rugged Florida State on Sunday, Cincinnati’s Yancy Gates called the Seminoles physical, but certainly no more so than some Big East teams, namely Marquette. What the Golden Eagles lack in Florida State-like size, they make up for in strength and power.
“We’re small,” Wilson said. “But we take a lot of pride in being physical and stronger than everybody.”
Read the entire article here: http://wapo.st/GDAtoK
Excuse me, if you don't mind me drifting from the beaten path this morning, but thought I would take a little different direction on my blog with some commentary about a special group of young ladies -- the 2012 Senior Class of the LSU Lady Tigers. Last night LaSondra Barrett, Swayze Black, Destini Hughes, Courtney Jones and Taylor Turnbow battled one last time together, as Lady Tigers. The result was a hard-fought 90-80 loss to #11th ranked Penn State.
You could frame the accomplishments of these five special ladies by looking at their record on the court and come away being impressed. They posted an overall 82-45 record, averaging over 20 wins a season, playing in the tough SEC along with competing against the nation's best in non-conference play. They averaged over 9 SEC wins a year. Their SEC total over 4 years sits at 37 wins, topped only by Tennessee with 52 and Vanderbilt with 38.Without question, LSU's SID Bill Martin could real off a lot of team and individual accomplishments. But those outstanding numbers don't begin to weave the proper story of their achievements.
I had the privilege of coaching this group for three years at LSU and one of our constant themes throughout the years was "Leaving a Legacy." It was a concept that started with our Final Four runs through the work of Felicia Hall Allen who came to work with our teams. She did an amazing job because the players grabbed that concept -- it meant a lot to them in terms of how each group of seniors left the program for the next season.
Boogie, Swayze, Destini, Courtney and Taylor came to LSU in a great time of turmoil. Our program was climbing out of a scandal and we were looking for talented basketball players and quality people to help rebuild. We had a new staff and were graduating nine seniors. We weren't looking for a few recruits -- we were looking for an entire team -- the new future of Lady Tiger Basketball.
They weren't the only five we signed that year -- but they are the ones who stayed and cemented their legacy.
What makes these young ladies special is that they took a chance on LSU...they said that despite the adversity and challenges they "wanted to be Lady Tigers!" And for that, I -- and a lot of other LSU alumni and fans -- will be forever grateful.
And they hit the ground running! Their first game wearing the LSU uniform we played nationally ranked Notre Dame with two of them starting and all five playing significant minutes. Other non-conference games their freshman year included nationally ranked Xavier, Florida State and Nebraska. And then there was a trip to Connecticut on national television -- a close game until the final minutes before losing by 13.
There was a five-game winning streak to close out the SEC portion of play including a victory over Tennessee. A first-round NCAA win over Wisconsin-Green Bay was followed by a close loss to eventual Final Four team Louisville.
It was an amazing season for a group of freshman!
But again, that's only part of the story. They have all gone through personal adversity on and off the court. They are separately unique individuals. Boogie is an amazingly competitive person with a great basketball IQ. Swayze is an amazing athlete but an incredible teammate that might be the most admired among the group. Courtney has a charming personality and enthusiasm on and off the court that can be contagious. Destini is a very spiritual person that cares deeply about people (and animals). Taylor is a unique young lady that cares more about playing defense than being a scorer. A common denominator? They all came from great families -- that makes a difference!
Together you have five outstanding students. Some graduated early -- the rest will graduate this spring. No discipline problems. They care about each other. They have a great appreciation for the alumni whom steps they have followed in. They were wonderful in community service. They respected and loved the great fans of LSU.
They are now alums! When you look to the rafters of the PMAC, this class will not have hung a Final Four banner but I guarantee that the next time it does happen, I hope that someone mentions the role of these five seniors. They will have been the glue in a tumultuous time. Just as Katrina Hibbert, Latasha Dorsey, Marie Ferdinand, Elaine Powell, Keia Howell, Cornelia Gayden, and many more never hung a a Final Four banner -- they created a culture of excellence and started the legacy that lead to the Final Fours.
I am very proud of all five -- not just as basketball players -- but as young women! Your legacy will live forever!
I am also thankful for the current LSU staff who came in and blended them in such a way that they could finish out their careers with a very successful season.
One of the things that we've always tried to impress with any team we've coached is that down the road you won't recall the scores of games or the total of victories you acquired, but you will remember the life lessons learned and the relationships you developed. I thought I'd close with a few words from Boogie at last night's post-game press conference:
"I am extremely proud of our team to battle all the adversity that has been sent our way and for pulling through. To me it is a lot bigger than basketball, it is more personal with these girls because of the relationship we have and knowing that everyone's heart is in it. I don't look at my senior season being defined by a Penn State loss, I look at all of the other stuff whether it was us having to battle after Destini's (Hughes) injury or me having to play point guard or all the other personal stuff we had to go through. Those things are what I look at and those are what I will remember as highlights in my future."
-LaSonrda "Boogie" Barrett
The following is a major concept from Stephen Covey that speaks toward the importance of having a vision -- an imagination -- the ability to see the invisible. For a coach, it is critical in seeing the potential of a player, a team and a program. Here is how Covey explains it:
All things are created twice. All things. vision is the first creation. For a house it's called the blueprint. For a life it's called a mission. For a day it's called a goal and a plan. For a parent it's called a belief in the unseen potential of a child. For all, it is the mental creation which always precedes the physical, or second, creation.
Here are some more thoughts on vision:
“Determine that the thing can and shall be cone and then we shall find the way.”
-Abraham Lincoln
“Dreams are extremely important. You can’t do it unless you can imagine it.”
-George Lucas
“Peak performers want more than merely to win the next game. They see all the way to the championship. They have a long-range goal that inspires commitment and action.”
-Charles A. Garfield
Character begins with the ittle things in life. I must show that I can be trusted with each and every thing, no matter how trivial it may seem. By the time I was a teenager, my dad let me stay out pretty late playing basketball with my friends. It didn’t happen right away — I couldn’t be out at midnight when I was thirteen. But gradually, my parents gave me a little more freedom — and usually with someone they knew would keep an eye on me. By the time I was sixteen or seventeen, they knew that if I said I was playing ball with my buddies in East Lansing or Ann Arbor, that’s exactly what I was doing and I wasn’t involved in anything that could get me in trouble. They had watched me grow and had given me enough opportunities to test my character that, by then, they knew they could trust me.
“Character may be manifested in the great moments, but it is made in the small ones,” wrote Phillips Brooks. Over time, we create ourselves and build our character through the little we do.
When it comes to character, the game of football can be a real test for our players. During any given season, they will have many moments when their character will be challenged. Will they decide to do the right thing, even when they know doing so will be difficult?
Character can also be revealed at those same crossroads: what are the values that guide the decisions these players make in their day-to-day lives? Training camp reveals them early. A person’s reaction to winning, success, fame, recognition, and acceptance reveals character. Would you rather be described as successful and famous or as honest, forgiving, faithful, trustworthy, understanding of others, reasonable, thoughtful, and personally accountable?
Character is tested, revealed, and further developed by the decisions we make in the most challenging times. We have to know what is right, and we have to choose to do it. That is how character is developed — by facing those decisions and choosing the right way over and over until it becomes second nature. It’s just how you do things.
Outwardly, character reflects an inner life committed to honor and uncompromising integrity. If we haven’t allowed our players, subordinates, or children to grow into those values and learn to be accountable for themselves, then we have done them a disservice.
Albert Camus once said, “Integrity has no need of rules.” I tend to agree. I don’t have very many team rules for our players. They know where I stand on things, and they know that there are consequences for breaking the rules that we do have. I try to apply one set of rules uniformly for our team, while keeping in mind that players are individuals and come from different life experiences. Really, it’s not any different from what I do with my children.
Ultimately, character and its growth don’t come from rules but from the small actions of responsibility that occur day after day. That’s why I believe it’s important to give our players a certain amount of freedom — and the responsibility that goes with it — to allow growth to take place. In the end, character is a blend of inner courage, wisdom, and a sense of duty to yourself, to others, and to something greater than you.
In a common world, becoming an uncommon man begins by cultivating uncommon character.
One of the important things I do on a daily basis is start out by reading my daily passage from "The Maxwell Daily Reader" by John Maxwell. Each day comes with a passage on a topic that either inspires me, educates me -- or as often the case, both. I have had my Maxwell Daily Reader for over five years. As are most of the great books I've read, it is marked up with read pen, underlining key thoughts or making important notes. Obviously after one year, I have read all the daily passages. Still I keep it on my desk because I love (and need) the annual repeitition of the messages. Here is the passage from yesterday, March 18:
We all admire people who display high competence, whether they are precision craftsmen, world-class athletes, or successful business leaders. If you want to cultivate that quality, here's what you need to do.
1. Show Up Every Day
Responsible people show up when they're expected. But highly competent people take it a step farther. They come ready to play every day -- not matter how they feel, what kind of circumstances they face, or how difficult they expect the game to be.
2. Keep Improving
All highly competent people continually search for ways to keep learning, growing, and improving. They do that by asking why. After, the person who knows how will always have a job, but the person who knows why will always be the boss.
3. Follow Through with Excellence
I've never met a person I considered competent who didn't follow through. As leaders, we expect our people to follow through when we hand them the ball. They expect that and a whole lot more from us as their leaders.
4. Accomplish More than Expected
Highly competent people always go the extra mile. for them, good enough is never good enough. leaders cannot afford to just make it through the day. They need to do the job, and then some, day in and day out.
5. Inspire Others
Highly competent leaders do more than perform at a high level. They inspire and motivate their people to do the same. While some people rely on relational skills alone to survive, effective leaders combine these skills with high competence to take their organization to new levels of excellence and influence.
There is an interesting article on ESPN.com by Beckley Mason of HoopIdea about how teams in the NBA are much less effective scoring late in the game after timeouts.
As Beckley wrote:
Henry Abbott noted that late-game offense tends to be horrible, and wondered if those timeouts were not, as advertised, helping teams score baskets ... but might instead be very effective at strengthening the defense. Subbing in the best defenders, settling on the team's plan to handle different likely plays ... maybe that's what matters most about timeouts.
In a follow-up, I presented a further wrinkle: that as useful as timeouts can be, there are plenty of times when a timeout hurts the offense. As much as anything, they give coaches, many with insecure jobs, the chance to put their imprint on the final moments and fulfill the perhaps ill-placed expectations of their profession. But do they do that at the expense of spontaneous play, which can lead to easy buckets?
The article in lengthy and chalked full of statistical data to support these threories. It is worth reading at: http://es.pn/A1JUQW
Mason also went on to garner an opinion from Shane Battier who fell back into the successful strategies of his college coach, Mike Krzyzewski:
So why do offenses appear to shoot worse coming out of timeouts?
Miami Heat forward Shane Battier cites lessons learned from Mike Krzyzewski at Duke, telling Heat Index’s Tom Haberstroh: “I was born and raised in the Coach K school of ‘in closing situations, not taking a timeout,’” Battier says. "Defenses aren’t as prepared after a late bucket to tie or take the lead because emotionally teams aren’t as prepared to get that stop. If you call timeout you allow a team to set their defense, focus in. Everyone knows exactly what everyone runs anyway.”
Battier does like to use the time afforded by a timeout to check out the opponent’s personnel, which helps him anticipate the play they are likely to run. But in his mind, you can forfeit the emotional and strategic advantages that timeouts are meant to provide by calling one.
I argued that coaches can fall into the trap of "Hero Coaching" because there is social and psychological pressure to do something, anything, to tangibly impact the end of the game. Battier was more blunt: “Coaches want to show that they're worth the millions that they're getting paid, which is fair. And the public would say, "He drew up a great play, he’s earning his money."
While coaches like Gregg Popovich and Erik Spoelstra are famous for calling elegant plays out of timeouts, many NBA timeouts result in dead simple plays, like a high pick-and-roll or an isolation where most of the players watch the ball-handler.
Battier would prefer to “take it in, rush it up and get it to your best attacker going to the hoop,” he says. "I'm surprised at how many times coaches call a timeout to draw up an ISO. It's like, ‘Really? You took a timeout to draw up an ISO?’ That's my pet peeve as a player watching the game."
Worst of all, it doesn't seem to work.
One of the responsibilities I feel as a coach in women's collegiate basketball is that of "growing our sport." By this, I mean making it as attractive to fans as possible. I am constantly asking myself, "what can we do to grow our fan base."
Later in the month I will dedicate an entire blog to some thoughts and ideas to this concept but in the mean time I thought I'd pass along this story I got from Stephen Covey's book "Everyday Greatness."
The Boston Bruins were playing the new York Rangers, and I was in charge of the penalty box. Directly behind me on a special ramped section, I spotted a boy of four or five seated in a wheelchair, frantically waving a Bruin banner.
After the pre-game warm-ups, Ranger Phil Esposito caught sight of the boy and stopped to chat. "If you're still here at the end of the game, you've got my stick," I heard him say.
I could see how excited the boy was, and he stayed that way throughout the game. I hoped that the pro would remember.
The final buzzer sounded, and in seconds Esposito was up at the ramp, handing the lad his stick and offering words of encouragement.
That night the Rangers lost the game, but Phil Esposito won two lifetime fans.
-John Holllingsworth
So what leads to Everyday Greatness?
#1 THE CHOICE TO ACT
The first choice we make each and every day is, Will we act upon life or will we merely be acted upon?
#2 THE CHOICE OF PURPOSE
But plenty of us have made the choice to act, only to find that we made poor choices – choices that turned out to be of no value to ourselves or to others, some perhaps even harmful. So, alone, the choice to act is not sufficient.
And so the second choice we make each and every day is of great significance: To what ends, or purpose, will our daily choices lead?
We each want to be of value – to know our life matters.
#3 THE CHOICE OF PRINCIPLES
But, of course, none of this happens by magic or luck. While I believe in the power of positive thought, I do not believe that you or I can simply psyche ourselves into success or peace of mind. Raterh, enjoying a life of rich in meaning and progress – a life of Everyday Greatness – comes only as we live in harmony with timeless, universal principles.
And so the third choice we make each and every day is, Will we live our lives in accordance with proven principles, or will we suffer the consequences of not doing so?
Principles are immovable; they are timeless and universal. They do not change. They are no respecters of age, race, creed, gender, or status – everyone is equally subject to them.
Principles such as vision, innovation, humility, quality, empathy, magnanimity, perseverance, and balance. All are principles that can mobilize us toward greater personal effectiveness and increased life satisfaction.
From "Everyday Greatness" by Stephen Covey
The following is a great list from Brian Tracy:
Principle 1 Time management enables you to increase the value of your contribution.
Principle 2 Your rewards, both tangible and intangible will always be equal to the value of your service to other people.
Principle 3 Good time management requires that you see yourself as a “factory.”
Principle 5 Time is the scarcest resource of accomplishment.
Principle 6 The practice of time management skills allows you to develop judgment, foresight, self-reliance, and self-discipline.
Principle 7 A focus on time management forces you to be intensely results- oriented.
Principle 8 Time management enables you to work smarter, not just harder.
Principle 9 Good time management is a source of energy, enthusiasm, and a positive mental attitude.
Principle 10 You grow as a person in direct proportion to the demands that you place on yourself.
Principle 11 Lasting motivation only comes from a feeling of achievement and accomplishment.
Principle 12 Now, this minute is all the time you have.
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