Sports for the Soul

I believe one of the hardest parts of building and maintaining a positive mindset is the fear that we could be wrong.

We fear that we’re being too positive and aiming too high. We fear that we’re being unrealistic with our dreams, and we wonder if we’re deluding ourselves about what is possible. Ultimately, we fear that being too positive could set us up for unnecessary disappointment.

After all, the world is full of naysayers and cynics warning us about the dangers of being too optimistic. It’s “popular” to be cynical and there will always be vastly more people willing to tell you why something can’t be done than those who tell you why something can be.

Why is that? Is there wisdom in this majority opinion? Are the cynics and naysayers right and the optimists and dreamers wrong?

Actually, while it’s true that the naysayers massively outnumber the optimists, it’s also true that top leaders and high achievers overwhelmingly tend to be optimistic dreamers. That should tell you something.

Lou Holtz is the only coach in college football history to take six different programs to bowl games. In each case, he inherited a struggling team coming off of a .500 season or worse and had them playing in a bowl game within two years or less.

Holtz is also a sought-after speaker who has met with literally hundreds of the top CEOs and business leaders in America. In short, Holtz has learned first-hand what separates the successful from the unsuccessful in sports and business.

Here’s what Lou Holtz says is the one thing all great leaders have in common… [continue reading…]

Here in the Midwest, the leaves are falling, cooler winds are blowing in, and the first snowfall is already in the forecast. This is my favorite time of year.

With Thanksgiving and Christmas on the way, the holiday season is upon us. That means a time for family, a time when we reevaluate the role that faith plays in our lives, and a time when we prepare for the future with new goals and plans for the year ahead.

It’s also the best time of year for passionate football fans. High school teams are already battling through the playoffs while college and pro teams are fighting to earn postseason spots.

Yes, it’s the perfect time of year—a time when faith, family, and football all come together. And my latest book, Life to the Fullest, is the perfect read for this time of year.

Life to the Fullest is a story written specifically for the holiday season. The setting is a town where faith, family, and football are embedded in the culture.

But it’s more than the setting that makes this an ideal read for the holidays. Ultimately, this book is about the importance of living the specific purpose you were born to live. It’s about following YOUR heart no matter what comes your way…and what can happen if you don’t. [continue reading…]

“Positive thinking” sometimes gets a bad rap. Naysayers and cynics blow it off as pie-in-the-sky, head-in-the-clouds, unrealistic thinking.

Yet, when you study history’s top achievers in sports (and business), you find again and again that they are committed to positive thinking. There’s only one reason for that commitment: they’ve discovered that it works.

In fact, researchers have found that positive thinkers live longer, live healthier, have more energy, have more successful careers, make better decisions, are more productive, are less stressed, have healthier relationships, and (not surprisingly) are much happier than pessimists.

I have found that many of those who are skeptical about the power of positive thinking often misunderstand what positive thinking actually is.

It’s important to recognize that positive thinking is NOT the idea that you’ll never encounter any obstacles as long as you stay positive. Instead, positive thinking is all about how you respond to the obstacles you will most certainly encounter.

It’s whether you respond to adversity positively or negatively that makes the difference in life.

Here are 20 of my favorite motivational quotes about the power of positive thinking. Each one of them comes from one of the sports world’s top achievers. These quotes encapsulate what it means to be a positive thinker, why positive thinking is so important, and what positive thinking can do for you. [continue reading…]

Self-confidence means believing you have what it takes to achieve your goal and it’s a quality that is essential to success.

“I don’t think anything is unrealistic if you believe you can do it.” — Mike Ditka

“Self-confidence is the first step toward success. If you believe it, you can achieve it.” – Tommy Lasorda

“If you don’t believe in yourself, why should anyone else believe in you?” – Derek Jeter

“I have always believed that what you expect is usually what you get, what you focus on is what you draw to yourself.” – Pete Carroll

“To be an overachiever you have to be an over-believer.” – Dabo Swinney

These types of famous quotes about the importance of self-confidence could go on and on. There’s no doubt that self-confidence is a quality required for success.

But, how much confidence is required to achieve your goals? And, should you be worried about being too confident? Should you be careful to keep your confidence in check?

World-famous sports psychologist Dr. Bob Rotella offers a surprising answer to these questions… [continue reading…]