LeBron James

How do champions give 100 percent?

champions-give-100-percentHow do you give 100 percent to all the important activities in your life? Do you give part of your time to each one – if there are five activities, should you give twenty percent to each? No you should give 100 percent to each, when you focus on each one. This isn’t 500 percent, its 100 percent five times. When you focus on one thing, the others are not on your agenda at the moment. Champions give 100 percent attention to each activity…one activity at a time.

Baseball great Yogi Berra is known for his great quotes that meant more than meets the eye. On the topic of dividing your 100 percent he said, “You have to give 100 percent in the first half of the game. If that isn’t enough, in the second half, you have to give what’s left.” Always give 100 percent of you.

A basketball season covers six months and 82 games. Every game counts if you want to be the best. Three times NBA champion, four times NBA Most Valuable Player, LeBron James says, “Every night on the court I give my all, and if I’m not giving 100 percent, I criticize myself.” Bring all you have to each opportunity.

Rebuilding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 1996 involved getting the team to think and act like champions. Tony Dungy evaluated the team at that time and said, “They were unwilling to give 100 percent if they didn’t personally think it was important. What you don’t understand is that champions know it’s all important.” Everything you do deserves your best.

John Wooden coached the UCLA Bruins men’s basketball team to ten NCAA national championships over twelve years. He said that practice was just as important as the games. “What you do in practice is going to determine your level success. I used to tell my players, you have to give 100 percent every day. Whatever you don’t give, you can’t make up for tomorrow. If you give only 75 percent today, you can’t give 125 percent tomorrow to make up for it.”

How do champions give 100 percent? The secret is they don’t divide up their 100 percent. Champions give 100 percent attention to each activity…one activity at a time.

 

 

Leaders: Can you give, and take, criticism?

Criticism shoesWhy do leaders need to be concerned with criticism at all?  Doesn’t the adage say you will get more of whatever you focus on, so focus on positive reinforcement?  Focusing on criticism will bring a negative response.  It’s why the first word for most children is NO; that’s what they hear the most.

Deep inside, no one really likes to hear criticism.  It’s much more satisfying in the short run to hear how good we are.  But in the long run the most successful leaders not only accept criticism, they ask for it – that’s how we got 360 degree evaluations.

The best leaders are good at giving criticism because they were first good at receiving criticism. Mark Twain said, “One mustn’t criticize other people on grounds where he can’t stand perpendicular himself.”

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The reflection of great leadership.

When you look at your leadership reflection in the mirror each morning, whmirror_catat do you see?  Do you like what you see? I don’t mean are you perfect, and I don’t mean have you always made the right decisions.  What I do mean is mean do you see someone who has overcome many obstacles to become who you are today and someone who is capable of accomplishing greatness?

That is an accurate reflection of all leaders and a positive leadership self-image. Heading out the door each day with that thought to guide you will lead you to greatness.

Why is an accurate yet positive leadership self-image so important?  Brian Tracey says, “The person we believe ourselves to be will always act in a manner consistent with our self-image.”

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