Varsity vs Rec League

Growing up playing baseball in little league, it was just part of the game that some of the kids on the team couldn't catch, throw or hit.  We were kinda used to it.  When the ball went that way, you knew it wouldn't be an out.  You just hoped it wouldn't be an in the park home run that started out as a ground ball to second base...  I enjoyed the game starting out.

A very distinct memory I have is that when I made the high school baseball team, I started to experience baseball very differently.  It didn't matter where the ball was hit.  Every position was capable of making the play.  We no longer had to put the fastest guy in a position to always back up the guy that never caught the ball.  Each player could truly focus on their role and trust the entire team.  Baseball got so much more enjoyable to play when you could trust your teammates.  All of them.

When we put together a team we need to be very intentional about whether we are a rec team just giving people a chance to try something or are we a Varsity level team that is committed to playing with excellence?

We also must consider who we want to attract.  The best ball players want to play with other good ball players.  A star athlete isn't likely to stick around on a rec team very long when they can't trust their teammates on routine plays.

As coaches, we get to decide who plays and when they play.  Do we want to attract the star Varsity player?  Or, the kid that doesn't know which side of the plate to stand on when its time to hit?

Be the coach that will attract those players.

Build the team that will attract other great players.

That's where championships are built.                 

... disaster is imminent

"When the rate of external change exceeds the rate of internal change, disaster is imminent."  Dan Cathy shared this years ago.

It's March 2019.  March is normally a fairly busy month at CFAROX.  In February we were looking forward to March and planning for some steady growth given the trends at the time.  Then March hit.  And it hit fast!  The week of March 1 was our busiest week ever.  Every day has been the level normally only seen on Fridays.  As I type this we are up 22%.  It's possible that we could beat our previous best month by 10%.  And that is with 5 Sundays, one less business day.  We could be up in one month what used to be a solid annual increase.

The rate of change is mind-bending.  So, what should we do...?  Hit the gym!

We can't sustain this level of performance unless we are hitting the leadership and personal growth gym.

Physical fitness - It can be exhausting to have 20% growth.  We've got to be healthy and have endurance.

Relational fitness - We've got to have supporters inside and outside the business.

Mental fitness - We've got to continue learning.  The problems that come with this level of business are opportunities to learn and discover new, smarter ways to do what we do.

And, of course, it begins with spiritual fitness.  Proverbs 4:23  "Above all else, guard your heart for everything you do flows from it."
           

Prepare for the Unknown

Back in 2007 I was lying on a hospital bed hooked up to some monitors and an IV.  Probably sounds like a dramatic story coming, huh?  Sorry.  Just a routine hernia surgery.  In and out in no time.  Running again within a few weeks.

In 2006 I had run a marathon and I had continued my fitness into 2007 so I was in pretty good shape.  Not world class.  My marathon time wasn't exactly remarkable but I did complete it.

As I was lying there, the doctor asked if I exercised because my heart rate was pretty low.  My resting heart rate when I'm in good cardio shape is in the 40s, often the low 40s.  That's only OK if you are exercising.  It's a concern if this is normal without exercise.  So, all good.  Then he makes a comment that has stuck with me.  "Tony, your fitness is making my job easier AND your recovery will be quicker."  That's good news when a surgeon is telling you this.  I certainly hadn't planned on having that surgery but my preparation sure helped out.

Pro athletes, Navy Seals, actors...  They all train hard and they train for the unknown.  It's too late if you find yourself in a jam that you haven't prepared for.  Reminds me of the movie Captain Philips.  3 Navy Seal snipers take out 3 pirates with 3 shots (one shot each) simultaneously.  Precision was an absolute must.  If any of the 3 had missed their shot by even a few inches, the hostages would have been likely killed.  Oh, and the sniper shots were taken from a boat at a boat that were both rocking in the waves.  Did those snipers know they'd one day have to perform this scenario?  I doubt it.  How often do you hear about these things?  There is a reason this was turned into a movie...  What if they hadn't prepared for this unknown?

What does that look like?  3 For 3.  Regular workouts to develop Mental, Relational, and Physical fitness.  In order to develop a Strong Work Ethic, Relentless Pursuit of Excellence and A Servant Mindset.

Mentors, books, podcasts, walking, running, pushups, healthy foods...  You probably won't reap the benefits of all these immediately BUT they will prepare you for opportunities that come down the road.  If those Seals had waited till this emergency to train on the skills needed to execute the mission those hostages probably wouldn't have survived.

What are you preparing for?
           

       

I Can Do That

                                                        
Growing up, one of my favorite ballplayers was Cal Ripken Jr.  I was super pumped to get one of his rookie baseball cards.  1982 Topps.

He played for the Baltimore Orioles his entire career, mostly at shortstop which was part of the appeal for me.  I was a shortstop.

Cal didn't have a pretty swing.  In fact, it was kind of ugly.  I read that he was constantly adjusting it.  Relentless Pursuit of Excellence before I knew the phrase.  He was never "the best player in the game."  He was a solid player.

BUT, there was one thing he did better than anybody else in the game, ever.  He showed up.  In fact, he showed up for 2,632 consecutive games.  That is 502 more than the second most, Lou Gehrig.  That is 17 years in a row without missing a game about 160 games per season.  He played through sprained ankles, twisted knees, a broken nose, even a herniated disk.  These are on top of the routine wear and tear of any pro ball player.  This earned him a spot in the MLB Hall of Fame.

Cal Ripken was one of my heros growing up.  He seemed like a normal guy that just showed up and played the game.  Not flashy.  Not pretty.  Just showed up.  Every day.  I COULD DO THAT. 

I have no doubt that this consistency is what opened doors for me.  I showed up and did what I said I would day in and day out.  CFA had trust in me.  I worked with much more talented people than me.  Much smarter.  But, they weren't consistent.  They didn't get the opportunity.

There are alot of things I can't do very well but I can show up.  I CAN DO THAT.

What can you do about it?

Back in 1998 I had a conversation with a very successful businessman and during our time together I learned that he had dropped about 50 lbs and was working on a few more.  He'd adjusted his diet and gave up a couple bad habits.  (This isn't a weight management post.  It just happens to involve a person's discipline as it pertained to his weight.)

He said "Tony, I can't control what other people think.  It doesn't matter if I think it is wrong, BUT it's my observation that society discriminates against big people.  Look at who gets opportunities and they are more often not overweight.  I've built this business with discipline and hard work and I want to be in position for more opportunities down the road.  When I look around at what I can control that could impact my future opportunities, I realized that I could do something about my weight.  So, I had a choice.  I could remain as I was and disagree with people that discriminate against me, or I can control what I can control and avoid that obstacle all together.  I decided to do what I could do."

I haven't kept in contact with this person over the years but I am aware of them and see them occasionally.  He HAS been given more and bigger opportunities and is thriving.  I'm not sure if his decision to control his weight specifically played into these opportunities but I am certain that his mindset to control what he can control has been a driver of his success professionally and personally.     

Pot of Gold at the end of the rainbow...

                                      

What if there really was a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?  Would you try to find it?

I'm reading a book about people searching for a "lost city" on the Amazon river.  Stories include vast amounts of gold and other treasure at this city.  BUT, there is doubt that the city ever actually existed.  Hundreds of people have explored the area, many never making it back out.  The assumption is they died in their efforts.  Either from snake bites, starvation, cannibal tribes...  The "treasure" caused them to think different than most normal people.

People will go to great lengths for treasure.  Often, they will do things they've never done before.  Sometimes good.  Sometimes bad.

When I can see an opportunity but not the path to it, often I'll ask myself "if there was a million dollars (tax free) sitting at the solution to this problem, would I figure it out"?  If the answer is yes, then I ask "how would I get there"?  This usually gets me out of my routine thinking which clearly wasn't working to turn the problem at hand into an opportunity.

Who in their "right mind" goes exploring the Amazon?  Rarely do people thinking normally accomplish great things.

Tonight, look up in the sky at the moon.  Then, imagine landing there.  Somebody did that and they did it by creating their own "pot of gold" to help them think beyond their current thinking.  If you don't know the story of Apollo 13, check it out.  For them, landing on the moon was the initial opportunity but then, in the middle of the mission, simple survival became the "pot at the end of the rainbow" and it resulted in remarkable thinking and problem solving.

Today, somebody is thinking about landing on Mars.  Today, somebody is thinking about curing cancer.  Today, somebody is thinking about curing Alzheimer's.  I hope they are thinking beyond their thinking yesterday.  I hope they have a BIG pot of "treasure" in their mind to help them to keep thinking bigger.

What are you dreaming of doing?  What is the "pot of gold" that is going to help you think unlike you've ever thought before?