Hard Work

MESSAGE #975 WHAT HARD WORK WILL GET YOU

Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Tom Jolly, sports editor of the New York Times. Happy Birthday to a true peak performer.

 

Many years ago on a rainy July morning in Washington Heights, New York, a 12 year-old boy was watching TV.

“Why don’t you call your friends and go out and play ball?” his dad asked.

“Dad, I’m watching TV and it’s raining out.”

Dad said, “Come over here, I want to show you something.”

From their fifth-floor apartment, they could see the local school yard.

There, in the rain, another 12 year-old boy was hitting a baseball off a makeshift batting tee.

After hitting the ball, he ran after it, teed it up, and hit it again.

This went on for over an hour.

“I guess it’s not raining on Manny,” his dad said.

“Manny” is now one of the greatest hitters of all time: Manny Ramirez!

 

What do you want to be – a great athlete? a great writer? a great student? a great salesperson?

What are you doing to make that happen?

Instead of “trying your best”…Do whatever it takes.

Here are the five words why most people fail:

I DON’T FEEL LIKE IT.

 

Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #948 FROM THE BEATLES

There’s nothing you can do that can’t be done.
Nothing you can sing that can’t be sung.
Nothing you can say but you can learn how to play the game. It’s easy.
Nothing you can make that can’t be made.
No one you can save that can’t be saved.
Nothing you can do but you can learn how to be you in time. It’s easy.
-THE BEATLES

The Beatles are no different from you and me.

“There’s nothing you can do that can’t be done.” It’s easy, just find successful people and do what they’re doing.

John, Paul, George and Ringo had a growth mindset, but they also knew the value of hard work.

In fact, in his book, Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell talks about how instead of playing one hour sets, once in a while in Liverpool, The Beatles went to Hamburg and played 7-8 hour sets seven days a week! Supposedly they were terrible on stage at first, but improved by putting in the time.

Everyone wants be an overnight success, but it takes ten years to become an overnight success…or 10,000 hours, according to Gladwell.

I know what you’re thinking, 10,000 hours is a long time!

I can help make it easier:

1. Instead of focusing on 10,000 hours, focus instead on one good hour…then do it 10,000 times.
2. Enjoy the process and those 10,000 hours will fly by.
3. Remember that hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.

Also from Outliers

“The emerging picture from such studies is that ten thousand hours of practice is required to achieve the level of mastery associated with being a world-class expert–in anything. In study after study, of composers, basketball players, fiction writers, ice skaters, concert pianists, chess players, master criminals, and what have you, this number comes up again and again. … No one has yet found a case in which true world-class expertise was accomplished in less time. It seems that it takes the brain this long to assimilate all that it needs to know to achieve true mastery.”

There’s no short-cut…now get to work.

What are you trying to master? Leave your comments below…

MESSAGE #799 LOOK INSIDE…AND ALL AROUND YOU

“All of the ability is already inside you.”
-Rob Gilbert, Ph.D., Professor of Sport Psychology, Montclair State University

Look inside.

Look all around you.

It’s never been easier to succeed. No longer is it about talent. It’s all about having the right strategy and putting in the work.

Look at all of the resources around you – books, DVDs, podcasts, workshops, the internet and more.

You can have your own private pitching coach. Your own private nutritionist. Your own private strength and conditioning coach.

But here’s the kicker…

You have to put in the work.

If you work hard, you will surpass those with talent that do not work hard.

I know what you’re thinking, that it’s not cool to try. But do you want to be cool or do you want to be great?

As you’re working hard, some people may call you a nerd or loser…

But later on, those same people are going to call you…

BOSS.



Thanks for reading.

Don’t forget…tomorrow, Sunday, October 4th at Yogaphoria in New Hope, PA, I will be giving a free workshop with the great Naime Jezzeny on Peak Performance for Athletes. 10am.

MESSAGE #722 FOOLS…

“Have success and there will always be fools to say that you have talent.”
-EDOUARD PAILLERON

WORK HARD.

MESSAGE #718 ASIANS ARE NOT SMART…

“There is no substitute for hard work.”
-THOMAS ALVA EDISON

Asians are known for being smart right?

First of all, what is being smart anyway?

For argument’s sake, let’s say that at many schools, Asian students are at the top of the class. They excel on the SATs. When I have an exceptionally good idea, I joke around and say it’s because I’m Asian.

But here’s the truth…

Asians are not smarter than everyone else.

They just work harder. Academics are their number one priority. They put more time into it. Many of my tennis students are taking math and english classes this summer.

They’re Asian.

And they tell me that everyone in their class is Asian.

I know what you’re thinking, “it’s in their genes.”

What happened to me?! I had only average grades in high school and I failed out of college, twice. Was I adopted?

No, I didn’t work hard in academics. I worked hard in sports. (That’s funny, I got pretty good at baseball and tennis).

It wasn’t until I started studying what I loved that my grades skyrocketed. And then I became Pro of the Year.

So the next time you see an Asian person, don’t think “There goes a smart person,” or “NERD alert!”

Don’t think “There goes someone smarter than me.”

Instead, think, “There goes someone that works harder than me…in academics.”
“And I can too.”

Put in the time, get the results. Bottom line.

Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #627 DAMN YANKEES…

“Unless you’re the lead dog, the view never changes.”
-sign outside the Yankees clubhouse at Legends Field in Tampa

So the Yankees lost their first ever game at the new stadium. It’s okay.

The Yankees are not about winning every single game; that has never been done, and never will be. But the Yankees have something called, pride, tradition, and history. The new Yankee Stadium was designed after the original and the field dimensions are the same. It is now the most amazing stadium in the world, a working museum. Everywhere you look, you will see the Yankee legacy, past, present, and future.

Derek Jeter knows this. Mr. Jeter also knows what it takes to become the winningest sports team in history – HARD WORK. Above are two photographs I took of Jeter at the old stadium.

Derek Jeter starts training in the middle of November in Tampa, regardless how far the team goes in the post-season. Most of the other major leaguers report around the middle of January.

Why does Jeter do this?

Because he knows that his career isn’t going to be that long, so he’s going all out, while he can. He says he can go on vacation after he retires. He knows the workouts he performs in November help him stay strong the following October.

It’s about constantly getting better. Jeter says, “It’s monotonous, but it’s important, too. Repetition breeds familiarity. Familiarity breeds comfort. Comfort breeds relaxation, and the best environment for achieving success is when you’re relaxed.”

“The motivation is to be the best player I can be, and if that means some people want to call me one of the best in baseball, that’s up to them. I don’t sit here every day and think about what I accomplished in the past and how I’ve got it made now. I’m always focusing on what I can do to improve in the future. What can I do to make myself better tomorrow? I know people don’t care what I did last year. Seriously, last year is over with. My teammates and my coaches want to see what I can do this year. More important, I want to see it.”
Hard work (smart work) = Success
Homework: Watch the Yankees @ 1:05pm EST today!

Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #613 A BLAST FROM THE PAST…

Today’s message is especially dedicated to all the great alumni, Professional Tennis Management students, staff and guests at Ferris State University this weekend for the Annual Banquet and Workshop Weekend.


I am sitting here in the Ferris State University Racquet and Fitness Center in Big Rapids, Michigan. I spent a good part of three years here in Ferris’ Professional Tennis Management Program and graduated in 1997. It is exciting to be back not only an alumni, but as a featured speaker. I look forward to seeing some familiar faces, meeting some new people and presenting to the program.

Christin Thurston, formerly Christin Schumann, USPTA tennis professional and USPTA Executive Director of Northern Division, was in the PTM program at the same time as me and is back for the weekend. Below is a brief interview with her.

ET: How has Ferris State prepared you for your current position in the tennis industry?

CT: This program is unique because it not only shows students how to teach the game, but it also provides a marketing and business , which is one of the challenges in the industry.

ET: How has sports/teaching helped you in other areas of life?
CT: It has helped me stay focused on the task at hand and be more mindful of different options in difficult situations.

ET: What tips can you give to someone who wants to get to the next level in their tennis game?
CT: Practice as often as you can, with whoever you can, it doesn’t matter what level they are.

ET: In your experience teaching, do you believe in the saying, “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard?” 
CT: I do agree and as I always say, “The harder you work, the luckier you get.” There is no substitute for hard work.

ET: Thank you for your time and enjoy the weekend…
CT: Thank you, it’s great to be back.

Wish me luck on my talk tomorrow.


Thanks for reading.

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