Friday, May 13, 2011

Remember what got you there

At the beginning of every football season, legendary Green Bay Packer coach Vince Lombardi would stand in front of his team, some of them who had been playing football all their life, and raise a ball high above his head.

He didn't give a rousing speech, nor introduce himself to the team. He didn't chastise anyone, nor was he showing them how to make a huddle.

He simply stated, "Gentlemen, this is a football."

The point he was making was simple - every year the team started with, and continued to focus on the basic fundamentals of football. It doesn't have to be complicated, and you can't do the fancy stuff if you don't have a firm grasp on the basics.

In football it comes down to blocking on offense, and tackling on defense. When you block, you stick with your block until the whistle blows. When you tackle, you drive into them with your shoulder, and wrap your arms around the oponent, and continue to drive until they stop and fall.

Almost every broken play is a function of someone not doing these simple jobs. They try to get too fancy, or just run into someone and think they're going to fall.

Everything you will ever be successful in comes down to the basics.

Gaining muscle mass comes from heavy weights and low reps. Endurance and cardio health come from light weights and high reps. Losing weight comes from eating right, excercising, and burning more calories than you take in. Keeping a business client comes from doing what you say you will do, and treating the customer with respect.

It's all simple, yet we want to overcomplicate things hoping our 'new' method will get us there faster. It won't.

Look at the paperclip. That ain't rocket science.

Don't over-complicate things, and remember the basics. When nothing else is working, this will do the trick every time.

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