Life-Sports-Business in 1 sentence!!

Life-Sports-Business in 1 sentence!

The one sentence that sums up life.... "There's no such thing as a free lunch!"

Arthritis?

A drunken man who smelled like beer sat down on a subway next to a priest.  The man's tie was stained, his face was plastered with red lipstick, and a half-empty bottle of gin was sticking out of his torn coat pocket.   He opened his newspaper and began reading.  After a few minutes the man turned to the priest and asked,  'Say Father, what causes arthritis?'  The priest replies, 'My Son, it's caused by loose living, being with cheap, wicked women, too much alcohol, contempt for your fellow man, sleeping around with prostitutes and lack of a bath.'  The drunk muttered in response, 'Well, I'll be  damned, 'Then returned to his paper.  The priest, thinking about what he had said, nudged the man and apologized. 'I'm very sorry.  I didn't mean to come on so strong.   How long have you had arthritis?'  The drunk answered, 'I don't have it, Father.  I was just reading here that the Pope does.'  

MORAL: Make sure you understand the question before offering the answer. 

Turkey?

A turkey was chatting with a bull. 'I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree' sighed the turkey, 'but I haven't got theenergy.' 'Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?' replied the bull. They're packed with nutrients.' The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree. He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree..

 

Moral of the story:

Bull Shit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there.

Eagle?

An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing. 

A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, 'Can I also sit like you and do nothing?'

The eagle answered: 'Sure, why not.' So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested. 

All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.

Moral of the story:

To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

Greg DiRenzo, M.S.

Performance Coach, Trainer, Motivator

"S.M.A.R.T.fit Solutions" - THE NEXT BIG THING!

"Small Hinges Swing Big Doors"

Gastric Sleeve Surgery vs Eating Normal

I was just involved in a conversation about Gastric Sleeve Surgery.  For those that don't know what it is see below.... But in short, it simply (but surgically) limits the amount of food you can eat.
Well well, that is amazing, who would have thought that if you eat less you loose weight!!!! Incredible and revolutionary!  IF YOU WANT TO LOSE WEIGHT STOP EATING LIKE AN ELEPHANT!!!!!

Gastric Sleeve SurgeryGastric sleeve surgery (sleeve gastrectomy) is one of the newer forms of bariatric surgery but has quickly been gaining popularity over the recent years. Also known as vertical sleeve gastrectomy, vertical gastroplasty or sleeve gastroplasty, this procedure is another option for those looking to help with their morbid obesity through gastric bypass surgery. The gastric sleeve is a restrictive procedure meaning that it achieves weight loss results by restricting the amount of food that your body is physically able to take in. There is no malabsorption involved with this procedure but can be followed up with a malabsorptive procedure afterwards if the patient wishes.

Can You Solve This Riddle?

I am your constant companion. 

I am your greatest helper or your heaviest burden. 

I will push you onward or drag you downward. 

I am completely at your command. 

Half the things you do, you might just as well turn over to me and I will be able to do them quickly and correctly. 

I am easily managed--you must merely be firm with me. 

Show me exactly how you want something done and after a few lessons I will do it automatically. 

I am the servant of all great people and of all failures. 

Those who are great, I have made great. 

Those who are failure, I have made failures. 

I am not a machine, though I work with all the precision of a machine plus with all the intelligenc of a person. 

You may run me for profit or run me for ruin--it makes no difference to me. 

Take me, train me, be firm with me, and I will place the world at your feet.  

Be easy with me and I will destroy you. 

Who am I? 

HOW ABOUT A LITTLE HINT:

 "_____ is a cable; we weave a thread of it every day, and at last we cannot break it." Horace Mann 

I am HABIT.

Where do YOU get your Inspiration from?

Where do YOU get your Inspiration from?

There are two words that have always intrigued me, one is Fascination and the other is Frustration.  Are they opposites or are they synonyms? Well I guess that's how you use them!

Fascination is just one little single step above interest, it can inspire you to learn, or to try harder and to become better all while giving you the H.S.E. (Holly Sh.. Effect) from what you've just encountered. You can learn more from being fascinated by something that you encounter in life than you can from being frustrated by it.  I wonder how many millions of eggs were sold after Rocky?  How many kids started running after Usain Bolt won gold? How many girls started playing soccer after the US Women won Gold in 2008? A lot of people get frustrated tho, they see something they want or want to do, then they try it looking for immediate gratification, get frustrated and quit.  Remember, in my previous post on "talent" I write about the dedication it took to get to the point that it takes to give someone the H.S.E.!

In the last decade or so I have developed a fascination with "successful" people, in life, in sports and in general.  First I think I need to define what I believe "success" is.  I believe success is truly believing that you have done everything within your power to achieve the most out of yourself, no matter what the task.

I’m fascinated with so many things and people, like Apple, Michael Jordan, John Wooden, Bill Gates, Ted Williams, Muhammad Ali, the 1980 Men's Olympic hockey team, and many many others.  What fascinates me is "how are/were they sooooo much better than everyone else?  And I think I figured it out. I think it's because they want to be better, not only today but tomorrow and forever! They have this burning desire to be the best they can be AND they don't lose that fire.  In sports you hear coaches say, "how bad do you want it?" well these people obviously wanted it real bad, but I believe the difference is that an additional question they asked themselves was "how long do I want it bad for?" Anyone can "want it" for a short period of time, anyone can "want it" when things are going good, but it takes a different type of person to "want it" everyday for months, years and even decades!

What happens to you when your doing all you can and you run into a road block, or something sets you back, a brick wall? In my career I've seen it over and over again with my athletes and clients, some get frustrated and some get fascinated.  When there is push back, when it becomes difficult, when there is an insurmountable resistance, successful people get excited, they get excited by the difficulty, they get fascinated by difficulty. This fascination drives them even more to do better, it gives them a challenge that they NEED to conquer.

Steve Jobs speech at Stanford is one for the record books, as well as Randy Pausch and his presentation "The Last Lecture.". Both discuss brick walls and what the walls purpose is, so go back and Google them if you haven't seen them yet, and if you have, go and take another look again and again and again. That just triggered a memory.... Again, again, again, again......on and on and on. For those of you who saw "MIRACLE" you know what I mean.

That fascination to me is the most inspiring thing I can think of, most people get defeated by the difficulty, successful people get inspired!  The harder it becomes, the more excited they become, that taller the brick wall, the harder you have to climb to get over it!  Imagine, just imagine, if in life you are going to be presented with problems; just like sports life is a continuous set of problem solving tasks.  I guess you have a couple of choices when you are presented with problems, are you going to get frustrated or are you going to get fascinated?  Most people get turned off and frustrated. I don't think Apple throws up their hands when Blackberry launches their new device.  I can bet that their engineers got highly excited and fascinated to an extreme degree, and that's why they just may be one of the best companies in the world!  What about when Usain Bolt lost in his Olympic trials? Did he just accept that or did he re-focus and work harder. He worked harder and crushed the field, again! Because when he gets excited, his body gets excited and he seems that he gets more energy, he gets to do amazing things! 

There is a secret tho.... Yes a secret, how did they learn the secret to get fascinated and who told them?  I think it just came to them actually.  But is it really a secret? You already know all of their secrets, Apples' secret, Ted Williams secret and yes even Rocky's secret.  You can too, get excited, get focused and become fascinated to an extreme degree!  

So, in closing what can you do? It's simple, do more, do what you are doing better, do it smarter and use fascination / frustration to your advantage.

To help keep yourself fascinated set gold, short and long term goals.  Create  a list of more goals and dreams to accomplish, write down as many as you can. Read books, listen to seminars, study "successful" people, mimick them, discover a new skill to learn, re-learn old skills, investment time to make yourself better, and meet new people.  And one last thing, stay in shape because there are a lot more brick walls out there for you to climb!

The "Wow He/She is Talented" Perception

When most of us admire athletes for being "a natural" or say, "that kid was put on this earth to do that" aren't we simply saying that their value is being brilliantly gifted rather than valuing what they have accomplished through desire, dedication, hard work, and effort?  I'm not sure about you, but if we praise for "talent" I believe it sends the message that being naturally talented and exceptionally gifted are what it takes to be successful?  Today, our society is so focused on classifying people as being inherently brilliant, talented, beautiful, and/or physically superior that we have allowed ourselves to believe that the most valued assets; success, fortune and fame are a given because "they are just gifted" rather than the fact that hard work, desire and dedication are the attributes that get truly successful people to the top.

Isn't a better message to send to young athletes this, "Continually do your best, push limits and industriously make every effort to achieve more through effort"?  Ask any world-class athlete if it was his "talent gene" or specific and targeted effort that got him or her to where they are today. The age old saying, "hard work beats talent when talent doesn't work hard" speaks volumes, no matter what age, skill or sport.  If you want long-term success you must practice, work hard and smart, and have a laser like determination.

When I speak to coaches and parents they always want to know how to praise their kids correctly in order to help them continue to grow and do their best.  The first question I always ask to the parent or coach is, "Why are you giving or do you want to give praise?"  The coach and parent first and foremost need to examine their reason for praise/feedback.  If it is just for giving some praise or "feedback" as I like to call it, is broad, well then there is no real value.  Feedback needs to be useful, specific and instructive if you want to help them.  The best way to start with praise and constructive feedback is to get their perspective on what they are doing or have done, you can do this by asking them questions on the "why" they are doing something or what they have done.  What we fail to realize is that at one point, we were that person-that kid you are now talking to.  If you are a person who gives feedback, follow 5 simple rules; be specific, be sincere, listen to the person you are speaking with, understand their perspective and look them in the eyes. Numerous studies have taught us that children and adults are starved for feedback, not an outstanding amount of praise.  They want it to be honest, specific, and helpful. It is about providing information that will help.  Feedback that only states that they need to "do more" or "work harder" isn't feedback, it's a scolding and no one like to be scolded or told they are not doing things correctly.  Maybe the child believes he or she is doing things correctly or doing enough, that's where the feedback comes into play, here is where you now can ask questions and give proper feedback/praise, but remember to be specific, be sincere, listen to them, understand their perspective and look them in the eyes   I've talked to hundreds of kids who truly believe they are doing all they can, but with proper feedback most of the time we can help redirect them into doing things more effectively, efficiently and smarter.

So Greg, "Are you saying that anyone can be anything he or she wants to be if he or she just works at it more and tries hard enough? Yes and No, what I am specifically saying that anyone can be better at what he or she wants if they are willing to put in the time and effort it takes to do so.  Nothing is hard, let me repeat that, nothing is hard, it just takes time.  However, you are correct in saying that there are certain physical and mental aspects that can play into this such as specific limiting physical attributes that can put people at a disadvantage.  The chance of a 5'2" man playing in the NBA aren't too high, but he can be the best 5'2" basketball player in the world, the chance of a 7' Jockey winning the Kentucky Derby may also be slim, and the chance of someone without limbs on his lower extremities running in the Olympics is slim right... oh wait, scratch that, it was done - successfully in 2012. Personally I am very cautious about assigning limits on anyone because of physical limitations.  A lot of my clients have heard me say that the most powerful thing you can have is DESIRE, desire trumps all, desire gets things done, it beats talent, it beats genetics, it beats the newest vitamin and training tool you can buy off that infomercial, desire wins, always.  Desire, specific "deep practice," and effort wins, it creates habit and habit creates Myelin, but creating Myelin is another topic for the future.  I do think in some people that there is a bit of neurological awareness that gives them an advantage, and yes some do seem to have a certain knack or taste for the sport or the tasks they chase.  They seem to have a "flow" or that sense of being "a natural," to do what is hard for others.  However, that early success will not and does not survive without desire, specific "deep practice," and effort.


So in the end am I saying that we have to stop admiring "talent," No, No way!  What I am saying is that praising "talent" isn't always what we are we doing, we need to remember that athletes, and specifically kids here, surely have different aptitudes, skills, competencies, and the financial means to hire great coaches, but except for a minute portion of our population who has severe impairments, we can all get better at things that matter to us.  It just takes a commitment to effort.  So don't ever believe that someone can be better than you just because he or she is "a natural." 



Greg DiRenzo, M.S.
"Small Hinges Swing Big Doors"