Postings have been small the last couple of days because of a demanding travel schedule.

Still, we have to note the holiday that celebrates the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Over the weekend, a coach challenged me with this question: Do you think of others before yourself?”

The answer is, “Not nearly enough.”

At the same event, I heard a sports psychologist lay out the various stages of a coaching career. Her talk made me think about what stage I’m in. And here’s the answer. I’m at the stage where I must do a better job of thinking of others!

Dr. King put others before himself. He gave his time, energy and finally his life for a cause bigger than himself.

Boxing legend Muhammad Ali, who is also marking a birthday this week, once said, “You lose nothing when fighting for a cause … In my mind the losers are those who don’t have a cause they care about.”

A couple of weeks ago, a student/athlete surprised me with the wisdom of her answer when I asked what her New Year’s Resolution was.

“To be a better version of myself,” she said.

A wise man (or woman) said, “We get better at what we do when we get better at being who we are.”

Let Dr. King inspire you to be better at who you are.

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TotalGamePlan offers Winner’s Workshops for schools, sports teams and businesses. The emphasis is on motivation, skill-building and teamwork. To bring a Winner’s Workshop to your group, just email coachtully@totalgameplan.com or call (973) 800-5836. To order a copy of “Ten Things Great Coaches Know,” click here.