It's All About Attitude

“You can do everything wrong and still succeed, If you have The Right Mental Attitude.”

What’s up with that? How can that be? Everything wrong and still succeed?
Not possible you say? Consider this. Bill Gutman’s book, Parcells, chronicles the coach’s remarks concerning the AFC Championship Game against Jacksonville in 1997, “We played so hard, the mental errors we made did not show up. Even when we would do things wrong, we’d tackle the guy for a loss three of four times.”
There you have it, enough said, straight from the Big Tuna’s mouth. You see, when everyone has the same goal, and a burning whitehot desire to accomplish that goal, you may not dot all the Is and cross all your Ts properly, but the end result is still the achievement of the ultimate desired behavior.
Of course, the opposite is also true . . . “You can do everything right and still not succeed if you have the wrong mental attitude.” Years ago I coached a free safety who did everything right. He lined up properly, was always in position, always took the proper pursuit angle, knew who his man was, called the right coverage. He always ‘stayed deep, kept his feet, and kept everyone in front of him,’ too far in front of him. Thing was he rarely ever made a tackle. He was always ‘right there’ standing between the pile and the goal line ready to take that ball carrier down if he would happen to break the tackle of a teammate. He just never would initiate the tackle; everything right and still not succeed.
Being a History teacher I am reminded of Union General George B McClellan, the one Lincoln referred to as having a “case of the slows.” Civil War historian, Bruce Catton, describes it this way: “McClellan had nearly all of the gifts: youth, energy, charm, intelligence, sound professional training. But the fates who gave him these gifts left out the one that a general must have before all others---the hard, instinctive fondness for fighting.” His adversary, Robert E. Lee, had it. Lee was one of the most pugnacious soldiers in American History. Lee is the one who said, “ It is well that we know how terrible war really is, else we would grow too fond of it.” McClellan, an engineer, who had every advantage a general could have at the time, did everything right and by the book. And he was never able to win the decisive victory that Union needed to bring about an early end to the war. Instead he was a ‘Master of Retreat.’ What Lincoln needed was a general who would attack, much like Grant did at the end of the war. U. S. Grant. Unconditional Surrender Grant. Now there’s a piece of work. Talk about doing things wrong, did he ever. But he still succeeded. Why? Well, you get the picture by now, right?
“We played so hard . . .” that’s what it is all about. That’s desire.
And that will take you to victory more often than proper pursuit angles, blanket coverages, safety blitzes. The desire of people to rid the country of slavery brought a victory for the Union Army that ground its way to victory in Virginia.
Of course, what would happen if you, your team, would combine that intense, whitehot, burning desire, that right mental attitude with sound FUNdaMENTAL play? Better tackling, proper coverages, correct angles of pursuit, positioning, etc.?

Can you say CHAMPIONSHIP!
Remember, The Sky’s the Limit!

ON ATTITUDE

Change the Attitude in Order to Change the Performance
By CoachFree

John Maxwell opens his book The Winning Attitude with the following
story:

It was a beautiful day in San Diego, and my friend Paul wanted to take me for a ride in his airplane. Being new to Southern California, I decided to see our home territory from a different perspective. We sat in the cockpit as Paul completed his instrument checks. Everything was A-okay, so Paul revved the engines and we headed down the runway. As the plane lifted off, I noticed the nose was higher than the rest of the airplane. I also noticed that while the countryside was truly magnificent, Paul continually watched the instrument panel.
Since I am not a pilot, I decided to turn the pleasure ride into a learning experience. “All those gadgets,” I began, “what do they tell you?
I notice you keep looking at that one instrument more than the others. What is it?”
“That’s the attitude indicator,” he replied.
“How can a plane have an attitude?”
“In flying, the attitude of the airplane is what we call the position of the aircraft in relation to the horizon.”
By now my curiosity had been aroused, so I asked him to explain more. “When the airplane is climbing,” he said, “it has a nose-high attitude because the nose of the airplane is pointed above the horizon.” So, I jumped in, “when the aircraft is diving, you would call that a nose-down attitude.”
“That’s right,” My instructor continued. “Pilots are concerned about attitude of the airplane because that indicates its performance.”
“Now I understand why the attitude indicator is in such a prominent place on the panel,” I replied.
Paul sensing I was an eager student continued, “Since the performance of the airplane depends on its attitude, it is necessary to change the attitude in order to change the performance.”
He demonstrated this by bringing the aircraft into a nose-high attitude. Sure enough, the plane began to climb and speed decreased. He changed the attitude, and that changed the performance.

This story relates to point number four of our BFS Magic Formula for Winning: 1.) Decide exactly what you want; 2.) Plan, in detail, how you are going to get it; 3.) engage in massive action; 4.) Evaluate the feedback; 5.) Change your approach till you get what you want. Maxwell’s story focuses on the fact that if you change your attitude, you change the performance.

Everyone is involved in a performance everyday. All of us are totally successful all day, every day. Each of us has successfully lived each day all day, every day, every minute, every hour, successfully lived. We have always produced a set of behaviors that have gotten us through the each day, week, month, year till this moment in time.

Now all behavior has consequences. If the consequences of your behaviors are not what you want, planned or desired, why is that? You need to evaluate the feedback, i.e., to study the consequences of your behavior. If you are not getting desired results, then simply change your approach until you get what you want. And it all begins with attitude. When you change the attitude, you change the performance.
Let’s say that you have studied and prepared for a test. You take it and do not score near what you wanted. Let’s say it is the SAT or ACT test. Your score is low. What are you going to do?

To raise your score you would need to change your approach, take SAT prep classes, buy some SAT prep materials, hone your skills to better prepare yourself, take and retake the sample tests. Then, better prepared, you take the test again to post a better score.

Most people are unaware of the fact that the military academies each have a preparatory school that exists to elevate the scores of potential candidates so that they would be better prepared for the academia of the academies. Part of the program is to keep retaking the SAT test during the year to attain the required score for appointment to the regular academy. Change your approach till you get what you want.

Very often it all begins with attitude. When exercising the BFS Magic Formula for Winning perhaps the first feedback check should be on our attitude. If your change your attitude, you change your performance.

Motivationalist Zig Ziglar says the most debilitating illness is “Stink’in think’in” that leads to a hardening of the attitudes requiring a “checkup from the neck-up.” Keep in mind that if you keep on doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep getting what you’ve always got. Change your attitude and you’ll change your performance. You can do everything wrong and still succeed if you have the right mental attitude.

Very often people are not going where they truly want to go, not doing what they truly want to do, are not being what they want to be or have what they want to have. They get caught up in the current most happen’in thing.

They get caught up in the job trap:
“Coach, can’t go out for the team this year.”
“Why’s that?”
“Got a job.”
“Why did you get a job?”
“To pay for my car.”
“Why do you have a car?”
“So I can get to my job.”

Vicious cycle, snared, entrapped in behaviors they never intended. They have lost sight of their intended result. They take their eyes off the goal and suddenly see the obstacles. They forgot that the major reason for failure in life is giving up what you want most for what you want at the moment.

Is what you are doing taking you closer to or farther away from what you truly desire? Evaluate the results you are getting. If you do not have what you truly desire, change your approach to get what you want and that initial change usually deals with attitude.
Did I mention there is a shortcut to the formula? Simply copy the successful behaviors of those who have already achieved what you wish to achieve.

Do what they do. People do what people see. This is where BFS can really help. BFS has helped hundreds of programs achieve state championship performance levels. Thousands upon thousands of athletes have elevated their performance with the BFS Total Strength and Conditioning Program and the Be An 11 Seminars. The program is in place; the planning has been done. Get yourself to take action then follow through and perform at levels previously thought to be impossible. Astound those around you.

Like in the story of David and Goliath. With Goliath standing over nine feet tall, David’s friends, relatives and countrymen thought Goliath was too big to hit. He might become angrier and take it out on everyone. David’s attitude? Goliath was too big to miss! By the way, ever wonder why David picked up five stones? Goliath had four oversized brothers who might have come to Goliath’s aid. Now that’s going into the fray with the right mental attitude, one stone for each Philistine.

To get more of what you want use Power Axiom #4: Focus on the desired outcome and then change your approach, beginning with your attitude till you get what you want. Do not allow yourself to be anything less than you are truly capable of being.

In all that you do --- Be An 11!

Crusaders!

If you do not Crusade For your own success

Who will?

by CoachFreeb



Your own personal success should come first. It should be your top priority. Too often we get caught up in doing other things for other people that we forget to put ourselves first. And it must be a Crusade. The definition of a Crusade states: any vigorous concerted movement for a cause undertaken with zeal and enthusiasm. What better cause than your own personal success? Become a zealot while working on and for yourself.

Frosty Westerling, Pacific Lutheran University football coach, authored a great book, Make The Big Time Where You Are. Every one of us is involved in something, many things. Wherever you are; whatever you are doing; make the big time where you are. I am involved in education. Every year I witness students living their life in absentia. They have their priorities turned around. They forego the activities and programs that society has constructed for them to participate in while they are teenagers. Instead, they look for a job, so they can buy a car, so they can get to their job. What a crime it is for them to get caught on that tread mill at such a young age.

High School students should be involved in high school activities. How would a high school student make the big time? There are lots of ways to make the big time as a high school student: 4.0 GPA, 1500 SAT score, All American Athlete, National Merit Finalist, outstanding musician, writer, thespian. Take a look around you. What would it take to make the big time where you are, right now. Determine what specific characteristic, traits and behaviors would be exhibited by a “Big Timer” in your situation and go for it.

Crusade for it. Become a zealot for you own success.

A zealot is a fanatically committed person. It takes that kind of attitude to run a crusade. It’s your life. It’s your future. Who else is there that would be more committed to see you succeed than you (besides your mother who has always been your best crusader)? Making the big time where you are today will give you bigger more rewarding opportunities tomorrow.

It becomes an upward, hyperspiral of possibilities that become ava ilable to you because of what you do on a daily basis, where you are, and you should do that with zeal, enthusiasm, commitment.

Become your best Crusader!

What are you saying to your kids?