Chasing Excellence

Now is everything you have to work with. When you live it fully, it is more than enough.

For years, I practiced visualization in this fashion. I had my athletes visualize perfection, executing flawlessly, achieving their desired outcomes, decimating the competition, and doing it all effortlessly.

The personalities on those two teams will be different, but both teams will have the same thing in common: habits. Boring old habits. I know you want me to let you in on some big secret to success in the NBA. The secret is there is no secret. It’s just boring old habits.

focusing on improving areas in your performance that are not satisfactory.

Only those who have the patience to do things perfectly will acquire the skills to do difficult things easily. —Friedrich Schiller

Simon Sinek, “How Great Leaders Inspire Action,” Ted Talk, September 2009, https://www.ted.com/talks/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action

In reality, it’s the opposite. People tend to focus disproportionately on results, while neglecting the day-to-day things that will get them there. What’s the effort you need to put in in order to achieve that goal? Goals are nothing but the results from which you put forth effort.

Along the way, you have to practice like you’re possessed. The kind of deliberate practice that leads to success takes a level of commitment, dedication, patience, focus, grit, and resilience that is impossible without an essential ingredient. Passion.

This is the process—acknowledging where you are, identifying where you want to be, and breaking it down into pieces. Excellence is a matter of steps. Excel at this one, then that one, and then the one after that.