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MESSAGE #1366 THE 8 MOST POWERFUL WORDS
Today on Success Hotline, my friend and mentor, Dr. Rob Gilbert shared a great quote, the eight most powerful words…
“Do the thing and you’ll have the power.”
-RALPH WALDO EMERSON
Today, I also gave a workshop on mental toughness at Nick DiPillo’s basketball skills camp. Afterwards, I spent some time with Nick and Hamady Ndaiye, the 7′ 0″ center for the Washington Wizards (above).
Hamady Ndaiye, or “H” as I now call him, did the thing and now he has the power.
“H” only started playing basketball six years ago and now he’s in the NBA. He admits there are challenges and that he has negative thoughts, but in his mind, there are no limits regarding how far he can go.
According to DiPillo, nobody works harder than “H.” As a matter of fact, DiPillo said, “He’s had nothing handed to him. He’s worked for every minute of playing time, and every spot on every team he’s played on. His work ethic is unmatched, and his enthusiasm is infectious. He’s the epitome of a team player.”
That’s the “thing” and “H” is doing it. And he wasn’t even a starter for Rutgers University until the end of his senior year!
The other thing that impresses me about “H” is that he is determined.
Hamady Ndaiye does not strive to do his best…
Hamady Ndaiye strives to DO WHATEVER IT TAKES.
Everybody knows what to do, but very few people do what they know.
“Do the thing and you’ll have the power.”
MESSAGE #1363 SETBACKS
Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Hollie Holcombe.
Earlier today, I spoke to about 40 young basketball players at Nick DiPillo’s Spring Break Skills Camp. A key point I brought up was that failure was inevitable. Everyone fails. It’s part of the process.
Michael Jordan got cut from his basketball team in high school, but he didn’t give up.
Thomas Edison failed over 10,000 times when trying to invent the lightbulb.
Babe Ruth hit the most home runs, but he also had the most strikeouts. And each time The Babe failed, he said, “Every strike brings me closer to the next home run.”
How does this relate to you? Let me put it to you this way…
A SETBACK IS A SETUP FOR A COMEBACK.
Bounce back today!
MESSAGE #1362 ARE YOU A THERMOMETER?
Today’s message is especially dedicated to the great Nick DiPillo, former WNBA assistant coach of the New York Liberty.
I had a meeting of the minds today with Nick DiPillo. We were talking about mental toughness in basketball…and life.
I asked him what the biggest challenges were for basketball players.
One common challenge was that some players lacked focus. They were thinking about the wrong things at the wrong time.
Many young basketball think about homework, other sports or other external factors when practicing or competing.
The pro basketball players think about the commercial they need to shoot or other commitments they may need to tend to after practice or the game.
The specific distraction may be different for young and pro basketball players, but the challenge is the same—they have the wrong focus.
The average or below average players are thermometers—they focus on what’s happening on the outside, other than basketball.
The great basketball players are thermostats—they can change their internal temperature, re-focus and kick butt on the task at hand.
Mental Toughness Tip: Before practice or competition, make a list of specific issues that may be concerning you. Write them down. Keep them in your locker and forget about them until the end of your session. Stay focused on the present moment, that’s where the power is.