Gary Pritchard
Keeping Your Eyes on the Dream
“If you have only two pennies left in the world, with the first penny, you should buy rice to feed your family. With the second penny, say the wise Japanese, you should buy a lily. The Japanese understand the importance of dreaming.”
We all love to dream. But we also need to make a living.
It takes [...]
Team Culture
Let’s start with a trick question.
Does your team have a culture?
Remember, it’s a trick question. And the answer is yes.
Whether in sports, in business or even in your family, your group has a culture.
It may be weak or it may be strong, but it’s a culture.
It may be positive or it may be negative, but [...]
Work Hard, Work Smart
In giving his excellent team-building sessions, my friend and fellow author Gary Pritchard always says that there are three things you can control: your effort, your attitude and your response to failure. He calls it EAR.
Now billionaire sports owner Mark Cuban is echoing Pritchard. In this article from Business Insider, Cuban, owner of the NBA [...]
What Motivates People?
This article from US News sheds some light on what motivates children and adolescents. It compares and contrasts pupils in the United States and China.
It says that up to a certain age, pupils in both countries are motivated by a desire to please their parents. Then things change. As they move into adolescence, according to [...]
The Power of Reframing
Peak performance coach Dave Cross taught me about reframing. It’s a mental technique in which you simply look at a familiar landscape in a different way — a way that’s better for you.
Cross told the story of bringing his team into a hostile gym for a crucial game. The fans were making lots of noise [...]
Must-Read Books for Leaders
A coach just asked for recommendations on a book to help him mold his philosophy.
What a great question! Here are three for sure:
Outliers, Malcolm Gladwell.
Talent Is Overrated, Geoff Colvin
The Talent Code, Daniel Coyle
All three discuss the subject of human potential, and how anyone can pursue excellence and success.
Another must read is “How to Win Friends [...]
How to Win the Lottery
When you play the lottery, do you get the feeling that you’re going to win?
Of course! Otherwise, why would you play?
Here’s the hard reality: The odds can range from 18 million to 1 to as much as 120 million to 1. Not very good.
But this is not really about the lottery. It’s about you. Would [...]
Four Big No-No’s of Preparing for the Big Dance
Let’s say you’re fortunate enough to have reached your “Big Dance,” whether it’s the NCAA tournament or your state final. Many coaches make the fatal mistake of believing they must do something special because of the occasion.
Dave Cross can help you avoid that. Dave is a nationally known coach, an expert on mental skills and [...]
When Creative Isn’t Right
This quote popped up on a Web site and made me wince. It took me back to practices I’ve run. Bad ones.
It’s from Phyllis Hunter, a Houston-based consultant.
“Teachers do not have a right to do whatever they think best in the classroom. It’s not about teachers or what the teachers need or the rights of [...]
Encouragement
Today’s post will be brief and come in the form of quote sent by my friend and co-author, Gary Pritchard.
It says, “A word of encouragement during failure … is worth more than a dictionary of praise after success.”
Sometimes people quit when they are so close to success. As a coach, you never know when just the [...]
