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MESSAGE #518 PROCRASTINATION…

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Ian Rubel.

What are you putting off doing?

Getting gas? Studying? Doing the dishes? Taking guitar lessons? Saving money?

“Oh, I’ll get to that tomorrow.”

We all talk a big game, but very few of us take action. The best ideas are often lost because of inaction.

Margaret Thatcher once said, look at some of your most satisfying days and you will see that they were not the ones that you sat around doing nothing but ones where you had so much to do and accomplished it all.

You may be putting something off because it may be a pain to do, but the truth is, if you postpone it, the pain will be even greater.

Here are some great quotes on the topic…

“Genius is the ability to put into effect what is in your mind.”
-F. SCOTT FITZGERALD

PROCRASTINATION CLUB MOTTO:
“We’re behind you all the way.”

“My parents told me I’d never amount to anything because I procrastinated too much. I told them, ‘Just you wait.’ “
-JUDY TENUTA, comedian

“A small amount of action is exponentially more powerful than the greatest idea.”
-ED TSENG

Think less, do more!


Thanks for reading.

MESSAGE #495 HERE’S THE SECRET…

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Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Ian Rubel.

Recently, I have spent quite a bit of time with Bob Ryland, the first black professional tennis player. In our conversations, we talk about playing and teaching tennis, the experiences he’s gone through, and life.

Mr. Ryland has seen it all. He lived through segregation before Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King and Malcolm X. He has coached some of the best players in the world. Earlier this week, Bob and I were sitting at his kitchen table in his apartment overlooking the New York City skyline when he told me the secret.

“You gotta work hard. If you want to become as good as the Williams sisters, you have to train like the Williams sisters. They are not more talented than everyone else, they just work harder. And don’t give up.”

So you have to put in the work. There is no substitute. Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. There’s plenty of talented people out there, but it’s the ones that work hard and keep going that succeed.

“Arthur Ashe wasn’t a great player. I wasn’t a great player. Ivan Lendl wasn’t a great player. We just worked hard,” said Mr. Ryland.

Pete Sampras said the accomplishment he is most proud of is finishing number one in the world, six years in a row. He said, “To me, greatness lies in going out there day after day and getting the job done.”

So work hard at practice, at work, at school, but remember something else that Bob Ryland said…

“Have fun!”


Thanks for reading.