I'm so grateful for my memories and I know that I can't take them for granted. They are all a part of my life. Take a few moments to think and reflect back upon your memories too. Don't take them for granted. Check out my short podcast episode on this topic - HERE.
Had a few minutes sitting with my coffee this morning and thinking about the importance of my memories - all while seeing the sun come up a bit. I got a little bit emotional about them too. Remembering my father-in-law and others, that lost their memories due to illness. I don't want to take mine for granted. I thought about growing up in my neighborhood - the fun times with friends and those great memories with my family too in the house that I grew up in for almost 20 years. I thought about the schools that I went to and the friends there at each of the schools - especially college where I met my wife and found out that education & coaching was the career I wanted to spend my life doing and always looking to improve upon. It's easy to see that I will be spending my life in this field too.
I'm so grateful for my memories and I know that I can't take them for granted. They are all a part of my life. Take a few moments to think and reflect back upon your memories too. Don't take them for granted. Check out my short podcast episode on this topic - HERE.
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"Try to look at your weakness and convert it into your strength. That's success." — Zig Ziglar
There’s not a day that goes by where one of my may weaknesses taps me on the shoulder to lets me know that they are still around. Heck, every day they really don’t have to let me know, I know they are there. I know we all have weaknesses and I think many of us know & admit plenty of them that we have in our lives, but how many of us are willing to do anything about them? Zig reminds us that we should be conscious of them and look to improve them. Since there are so many of them that some of us have (like me), I guess it’s something of a challenge to turn these into strengths. The way I look at it, I can become an even better and stronger person when first admitting to my weaknesses and then choosing to improve upon them to become better. As I am sitting here at our kitchen table with the cold 35-degree morning outside; the sunshine is pouring in on me and our dog (who is sitting here with me too just looking outside) and I am warmed by the sun, my coffee and this whole concept that Zig’s talking about and it puts a smile on my face. Why a smile you ask? I have so many areas in my life to get better at, that’s why. First, it’s an incredible challenge I think to first admit that we do indeed have many weaknesses. Second it’s an equally important challenge to want to do something to improve those areas of our lives. I really kind of chuckle as to all the choices I have to improve and get better. For me it’s easy to identify the areas of improvement, since there are so many. Now the crucial part is for me to start the action steps to actually do something about them. The other important element is the time factor. None of us have the time that we think we do since it does go by fast and there are really no guarantees as to how much we have. The time is now for us to take those important action steps. For me, my son has actually helped in that he has cleaned our basement so that the table down there is now usable. I can do my school work, work on my blogs, my videos, my podcasts, and other projects that I know that I need to work on. Cleaning you say? What’s the big deal? To me, there have always been so many excuses, plus I get distracted when I go through things most times. For him to do this, he has eliminated a brick wall for me. Now I not only need to take the lesson from him (action, do something about the clutter in my life) to clean up plenty of things that I know I have to get rid of and I am willing to part with it too. This also helps set the stage for me to do the things that I want to do and I didn’t have a place to do them. A simple act by son, has helped me face some of my weaknesses (procrastination, lack of action & focus, etc.) It’s time to take advantage of this opportunity. Now, time to feed our dog his breakfast and take him for his walk on this gorgeous morning. Then another cup of coffee when I come back which I will take with me down into the basement to get some things done today before we head out to spend some time with my parents. What weaknesses can you take a look at? Who is there to help you with them or is it up to you to take that first step of action? Either way, look at something today to improve upon and then be willing to do it. As always, look to share this part of your story so you can help others. “Ask yourself what is really important, and then have the wisdom and courage to build your life around your answer.” – Wright Thurston
When I saw this quote on Twitter, it obviously caught my eye since this is something that I believe in and try to promote. The reason I hung onto it and read it again and then saved it was that I was reminded about how true this is in my life with a little discussion my wife and I had this weekend. We were talking to each other about frustrations that we have been having with each other along with other things, and within the discussion it hit me (again, since we have had similar discussions before) that she is not only right on the majority of what we were talking about, but also our discussion got me thinking about how much work I still need to do on myself. At 49 years old, yep, I don’t have it all figured out and I still have lessons to learn. The old saying popped into my head about lessons being repeated, until lessons are learned. This point about always learning hit me too as I saw a former student post something about how she thought she would have things figured out a little more at age 19 and that didn’t happen. Now at age 23, she also thought she would have more figured out, accomplished a little more, be in a certain place in her life. But she went onto saying something about how that’s not really the case as she is currently having trouble cooking noodles or something like that. She sounded like she was reflecting on the fact that she was still ok, that she’s not the only one that has thought and gone through this, and that she will continue to work at figuring things out in her life. That point hit me as I too am still working on me. With the help of my wife and others, that is something I know I need to do a better job at. Instead of casting blame elsewhere as I often have done and not putting the action steps into place that are necessary to help make some of those changes, I have yet another reminder for myself to get back into and stay in this game of getting better. As I have my 2nd cup of coffee going down here on a Sunday morning, this reflective time that I look to find every weekend is so crucial to me. With writing this blog, doing my podcasts, learning about new ways of communicating with people along with thinking about my week ahead of things I want to get done or simply get started; I know I need to continue to not only find this reflective time but then to actually go out and do the things that I reflect upon. This quote above should be something that we all can focus on for sure. What are the things you are building your life around? Find some time and take that time to really connect to what this is for you. The coffee might help too. ![]() "Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement. Nothing can be done without hope and confidence." - Helen Keller As I sit here with my (you guessed it) first cup of coffee, I’m listening to the rain and I’m thinking about many things. Most of the things I’m thinking about (my wife and family, my basketball coaches and players that I’m blessed to be working with, what I’m calling “the summer of change”, the books I want to read, and how thankful I am for this cup of coffee among many other things), I get a very contagious feeling of hope and peacefulness. I’ve always tried to have an optimistic attitude or outlook in my life. There are many times where this is difficult and challenging, but I always strive to get back to having this type of outlook. I do know for sure that Helen Keller was correct in that things cannot be accomplished without hope and confidence. At least anything that matters. Having an optimistic attitude or outlook in life is a lot easier for us when we are doing things that are connected to our heart and have passion for. It also connects with the people that we have in our lives as we need others to help encourage us, love us where we are at, support us, listen to us along with us doing the same for them. This helps instill faith in ourselves that we can achieve things we want to do. If we don’t have all these pieces to the puzzle, things get a little bit more difficult and that at times will lead to not having hope or confidence in ourselves and in our situations that we live in. This comes back to the start, the foundation that we have to have to work on setting the table so to speak, for ourselves to have this optimism in our lives. We have to reach down inside of ourselves and find out what are the things that light us on fire! What are the things that we get fired up and make us want to go after certain things in life? We need to be conscious of the thoughts, information and ideas coming into our minds along with finding and keeping those people in our lives that help us and that we are able to help too. Start today by looking at this quote and figure out what feeds into this optimism in our lives. Then look at what are the things in your heart that you know you want to accomplish and go after. Is what you do, day in and day out, helping you have more hope and confidence in your life? Or are those things pointing to not having hope and no confidence in your life? Figure out just one change today that you can make to start feeling better about things. Then keep working on that one thing as you identify one other thing, then another, and another and so on. Just keep working on one thing and keep it going as those will lead to other things to work on and improve and then just watch the changes that start to happen. What’s one thing for you to start on right now? One thing for me – to start reading more books, more articles, etc. Another quick one for me is to put more action into my days of doing the things that I have to do to make things happen. Anything that can help make me better, I have to do. Share yours as I bet it might help someone else out too. "A vision is not just a picture of what could be; it is an appeal to our better selves, a call to become something more." – Rosabeth Moss Kanter
A common theme that keeps repeating itself for me on Saturday mornings with my coffee; I am looking for, finding and reading about some great ideas to share with others. Today is no exception as I find some empowering quotes, articles, videos, blogs, etc., that I will be utilizing for future use. One that I came across this morning was this quote from Rosabeth Moss Kanter. The reason it connected with me was that I was listening to a podcast the other day about traits of successful entrepreneurs and one of the first ones that was discussed was that of having Vision. Now, whether you are an entrepreneur or not doesn’t really matter. I remember in the podcast that the speaker mentioned that exact point due to the well known fact that these many skills that entrepreneurs have, those same skills connect with success for everyone in life. One of the many things that I try and get my students to see, think and act upon is the idea of having a vision for their future. One of the many ideas I share with them is about dreams and some students think that whole term is something that won’t come real, or they hear it all the time and that it’s not something for them. So whether you call it having dreams, having a vision, etc., the key point is doing something about those ideas. The action step that is needed is what helps to make these things happen. The point I always share to my students is that if they don’t dream it, think about it, that it (whatever it is) won’t happen! First thing is there has to be that thought or idea and then there must be the action steps to make it become real. Without the thought or idea – there will be plenty of actions steps (going through life, getting up every day, working at something, the regular mundane things, etc.,) and we will end up some place for sure. However, we will not be the ones in charge – it will be life dictating us on what happens in our lives. I love how this point about vision directly connects with us having a call to become something more, something better, something bigger than where we are currently at. I've had this calling inside of me my whole life and now that I am older I can see that fact that I've always had this in me. Wow… that just hit me… as I think back throughout my life of having this idea or calling inside of me – of making a difference with others, helping them to do more, get better and go in a direction that is right for them. It seems that I've only just really focused on this for the last 15-18 years or so, but it has had roots in me for as long as I can remember. My advice to you – don’t wait so long to get in touch with what’s inside of you. Have that vision for your life connected to your heart and soul. Get rid of the distractions in your life and those around you that add to the wasting of time, drama, stress, etc., and zero in on that better self that is inside of you along with doing the things to doing more and getting better. "All progress takes place outside the comfort zone." – Michael John Bobak
This has been a reoccurring topic lately. Getting out of our comfort zone really is the place where things happen. It’s not a coincidence, it’s not luck, it’s just one of the many laws of success that present themselves to us throughout life. As I sit here in my quiet kitchen on a sunny Saturday morning having a cup of coffee of course, I can’t help to be drawn to thoughts on how much I’ve avoided getting out of my comfort zone in my past. Parts of my thoughts are of course how I wished I didn’t do that. How I should have pushed through my limiting beliefs about doing things that made me feel uncomfortable and where I could be today if I would have done those things. As I take a sip of my coffee I have quickly adjusted my thoughts as I look outside at the sunshine on all the snow we have, and I notice the snow that has disappeared from on top of our patio table. A thought pops into my head about how things are improving weather wise and that spring is coming with warmer temperatures and the snow will be gone soon enough. That also got me thinking about the fact that I cannot sit here and feel bad about past mistakes. That I know better enough to capture the lessons from those past instances and apply them to the new beginnings that are in front of me now. I had a couple of great conversations with a few students throughout the past week. A couple of current seniors, along with a couple of alumni that I saw who were on their spring breaks from college. Our conversations were in part about this very point about getting out of your comfort zone and that’s where great things start happening. It’s about the outstanding people that come into our lives when we get of our box of comfort and venture forward in new directions. It’s about the new situations that present themselves if we have our eyes, ears, minds, and hearts open; for that’s the only way we will recognize them. I even mentioned to one of my current seniors, that I too need to follow my own advice. I need to get out of my comfort zone and look in new directions for things that will further my passion in life to help and serve others. It sure does help to have that idea of what indeed is your passion(s) in life. What gets you fired up? What wakes you up early with those thoughts and ideas that start coming into your head where you can’t sleep anymore and you have to get up to get going on your day? One of the other topics I spoke about with a current senior was the fact they didn’t know what they wanted to do after graduation and how scared they were that it’s coming so fast. That’s the part about that we need to keep moving forward with doing things that we can learn new things, meet new people and have our eyes, ears, hearts and minds open to the new things that will come into our lives. This senior did something right. He said he changed his schedule around a little bit in order to take a couple more challenging classes instead of those that many people suggest to take that won’t challenge him too much. This was another moment for me where I recognized that this student just became a teacher and taught me a lesson that I needed. I too need to do some things that not only challenge me but will open new doors of possibilities in my life. Those new possibilities will not only affect me personally but could also positively affect others in my life that could benefit from me getting out of my comfort zone. So, as I grab another cup of coffee while my house is still quiet, I will look at today to see what are some other small things I can do to get out of my comfort zone and get going on some things that will pay some huge benefits soon or in the future. What can you do with today that will help you move beyond your walls of comfort? What also can you share about that part of your journey that will help others too? In Honor of Ryder Cup Week 2014 -
"Success in this game depends less on strength of body than strength of mind and character. - Arnold Palmer As far as I'm concerned, this coming week is the greatest sporting week ever. The Ryder Cup is my Super Bowl, World Series, NBA Finals, Stanley Cup finals all rolled into one. From this great week where the USA team will be looking to take back the Ryder Cup in Scotland against a very tough team from Europe, I have found a great quote from one of the best golfers and leaders that we sure can learn a lot from. When I first read the quote from the great Arnold Palmer, I thought of golf being the wonderful teacher about what's important in life. Then when I read it again, I thought of Mr. Palmer recognizing the fact that maybe he was also talking about life itself. The funny thing about this quote is that both the game of life and the game of golf can strengthen your body, but it really can work on strengthening your mind along with your character. As I sit here at my kitchen table on a cool and windy Sunday September morning with my cup of coffee of course, I can see the importance of being open to learning the lessons that both life and golf are able to give to us. The key is we have to be open to learning from both. Now, don't get me wrong - there are other athletic events, artistic events, social events, etc. that teach life lessons too. We need to be open to learning from them as well, whichever we connect to. My favorite among many events is the Ryder Cup. What are your favorite things in life that also offer life lessons? No matter what they are, first of all have some favorite events in life that you get enjoyment from along with the lessons. Second, be open to the lessons hidden within those events that tie into life. The above quote has the key ingredients of strength of mind and character. Two HUGE pieces of success in life for sure along with the importance of strength of body. So whether we are talking about my favorite event, the Ryder Cup, or you are talking about your favorite event. Hopefully it teaches you important lessons about life too. Take a few moments to think about those events in life that you connect with and what lessons you are getting from them to make your life, and the lives of those around you better. What lessons do they offer even after the event is over? Then also take a few moments to tune into the Ryder Cup this week and listen to some of the many great stories from the history of this great event to those stories of the current team members on both sides. Also remember that these events that we pour ourselves into should offer us lessons to use in life as well as finding enjoyment in watching them. So again I ask, what are your favorite events in life that you connect with and what lessons do you get from them? I still enjoy learning from others - so share away with some comments or get in touch with me. USA, USA, USA!! Games and Life – part 2
By Coach John Daly Re-printed from 2009 posting on my former blog Picking up from part 1…. The other part of my story with playing golf the other day with my dad happened even before I even got out to his house. When I was leaving that morning, I stopped at 7-11 for some coffee. As I was getting mine, a lady came in and was upset that they changed her favorite flavor of the cappuccino. She walked out disgusted and I thought as to what her day was going to be like. How could she get so upset because of her coffee? I kind of chuckled to myself quietly. I love coffee… at times I think it’s too much. But I know that would not really be a reason for me to get too upset and have it ruin my day! I really felt sorry for the people that she was going to be around today. I mentioned something to the clerk about it and he said,“that’s nothing, awhile ago, we had a guy come in and yell at the owner because we did not have any of the chocolate creams for his coffee!” Can you believe that? I guess if we think about it, sad to say, we have all run into someone like this. Of course this drove home the memory of me being like this at times in my life, yuk, I don’t want to go back to being that kind of person. The clerk and I both agreed that there are far more important things in life to get worked up about compared to coffee. I know most people see lessons like that all the time in our day-to-day activities and travels. There are constant lessons for all of us to learn from, every day, wherever we go. It’s just so important for us to pick up on those lessons. Like I tell my kids, students and players – watch, look and listen. You can learn so much from others and that means that we don’t have to make the same mistakes we see others making. I know you are thinking of at least one example right now that just came to you about this one. By the way, the clerk greeted me with a very positive attitude and a “good morning – how are you doing?” So I knew that he caught the same thing that I did. I retold the story to my dad as we were playing the 10thhole. We had both lost a couple of shots– I lost 2 balls and he lost 1. We both had to use the drop area then we both proceeded to miss the green. Another lesson hit me again. As frustrating as golf is (for me at least), it’s a great, great game. Not only can anyone play the game, really at any age; but it offers such great life lessons. This time it got me thinking the best way to approach playing golf is just like life. You have to have a humble attitude along with watching your ego. Golf is very humbling. It teaches you to not get too worked up about little things (like coffee or a bad shot). It’s a learning experience – just as life is. We should learn from our mistakes on the course and in life. If I ever get to thinking that,“hey, this game isn’t so tough” or “hmm… I’m pretty good at this game”. The game, just as life, will bring you to your knees. That must be where my bad knees come from. My dad and I agreed that we both understood that point. We also agreed that it was a good thing we enjoyed the company we were playing with too. Remember, who we hang out with in life, does matter. Do what you can to learn from wherever you are and whatever you are doing. Learn from others. Keep in mind things that are really important in life. Look for these little success and leadership principles in your day. No matter what’s going on in your life right now, there are lessons to be learned. Remember, when those brick walls and frustrating moments come up in our lives; two things to think about. As Dr. Randy Pausch said “those brick walls are there to see how bad we want what we are going after in life.” The other point to remember is that those are the moments where we can learn the most by the way we handle the brick wall or frustration. I’m always repeating that great quote that was given to me from a friend – “Don’t play small in life”, someone needs your help. Get in touch with me to share your stories so you can do just that. Your stories can help someone for sure. © Copyright , 2011 http://coachtoexpectsuccess.weebly.com |
Coach John DalyIn Education for 34 years & recently, I decided to retire from full-time teaching. Started coaching girls basketball in 1981 & still around the game today. Looking to share insights, thoughts and ideas to help everyone find their own piece of success. Archives
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