This book outlined a great framework for success based on 10 topics. Seven of the topics came to mind in relation to my coaching experience.
I stumbled upon this eBook in a contest from Essential Keystrokes.
At first glance, I thought it was just another book on success, a topic I’m very familiar with as I’ve read hundreds of books on this subject.
- Never Stop Learning!
This was probably the most valuable lesson I learned in my meeting with legendary coach John Smith. Coaches are teachers, and teachers make mistakes sometimes. You have to try new things. Experiment. See what works for one athlete, which may not work for another. Even after producing several world class athletes, John admits he is still learning.
- Surround Yourself with Those Who Can Help You.
Remember your support staff! That includes your massage therapist and physiotherapist. Even your Registrar who enters the athletes into the track meets. And of course, let us not forget our sponsors!
- Feed Your Friendlies
Get to know your teammates.. It’s track team, remember? At the very first basketball practice of the season, UCLA coach John Wooden would have all the athletes stand up in front of everyone and tell the entire team their story: where they are from, what their father did for a living, how many brother and sisters they had, etc. So the next time you passed a basketball to your teammate, you can say you know him!
- Dream Big Dreams, Do Big Things!
I’ve often said, if you’re going to dream, dream big! Having a big dream and not achieving it is not a crime. Having a modest dream and making it is.
- Recharge Your Batteries
The 4 Rs are very important in the off season. You want the athletes coming back fresh and hungry in the fall. 48 weeks of hard training is a long way to go.
- Go the Extra Mile
This is classic old fashioned wisdom. Run 101 meters in a 100m race, run 401 meters in a 400m race.
- Finish What You Start … and Just Get Started
In the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City, Tanzanian runner John Stephen Ahkwari was the last runner in the marathon. He came in about an hour and a half after the winner, practically carrying his leg, as it was so bloodied and bandaged.Film Director Bud Greenspan asked him, “Why did you keep going?” He said, “You don’t understand. My country did not send me 5,000 miles to start a race, they sent me to finish it.”
<a href=”http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/1419629980/ref=as_li_qf_sp_asin_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=1419629980&linkCode=am2&tag=wwwwebcommerceor”>10 Ways to Make It Great!</a><img src=”http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=wwwwebcommerceor&l=am2&o=1&a=1419629980″ width=”1″ height=”1″ border=”0″ alt=”” style=”border:none !important; margin:0px !important;” /> was written by Phil Gerbyshak. Get your copy through Amazon.com .
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Jimson – glad you enjoyed the book and found it useful. Thanks for featuring it at your site! If you have any questions about any part of the book, please contact me any time.
Phil, yes, I liked the fact the book is also a workbook, where you can write down your notes. Often, I buy 2 books… One to keep with all my scribbles and highlight markers, and the other one to lend out!
If I re-read it again in a few months with a different frame of mind, say business, I am sure I will come up with different examples.
You can get 2 books if you like. Heck, buy 50 :)
Seriously, I’m glad you shared this book with your readers. I appreciate it very much, and mean what I said when I said I’d love to help if I can.
I was fortunate to have won a copy of the book in one of Phil’s contests and love it as much as you do. Ya know what I really like about it? Phil allowed for a quick once-over, where you can get all the points, and then, the second time around, those points seem of offer so much more meat.