Whatever the Outcome, I Hope We Dance

July 22, 2011 By 12 Comments

The Lake Placid Ice Dance Championships are next week. That’s an event that marks the beginning of the competition season for many ice dancers. The perspective of the skaters (and their coaches and families) can make all the difference between a happy or miserable competition.

In sports – and life in general – it’s too easy to get caught up in placements and success. But there are some quotes I find especially helpful.

When my kids were competitive figure skaters, we always were happiest at competitions when we found something to celebrate, regardless of the competition outcome. It really is good to remember the Carl Lewis quote “It’s all about the journey, not the outcome” and to have an “attitude of gratitude.”
DChitwoodItsAllAboutTheJourney“It’s All about the Journey” Word-Art Freebie

And whatever the outcome, I think we all need to remember to just dance – through competitions and through life.

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“We Should Dance” Word-Art Freebie

In a comment on my “We Should Dance” word-art post, Snowcatcher, a Colorado blogger with stunning photography and designs, reminded me of the song “I Hope You Dance” by Lee Ann Womack. I think that song fits perfectly with the quote “Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we’re here we should dance.”

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If you’re an athlete or have athletes in your family, you might find these posts helpful:

How to Get the Most out of a Skating Competition

Let Gratitude Carry You through the Competition Season

Whether it’s in sports or life, I truly hope we can all just dance.

Linked with Thought-Provoking Thursday and Kirsty & Friends Linky Party.

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Best Goal Quotes

January 14, 2011 By 4 Comments

Even though it isn’t the very beginning of the year, this is still a good time to set goals (or reset goals). I’m a believer that even if you had resolutions you’ve already broken, it’s not too late to start again.

Athletes are used to setting goals, but goals are useful for anyone. Here are my favorite goal quotes:

“Goals are dreams with deadlines.” Diana Scharf Hunt

“Goals determine what you’re going to be.” Julius Erving

“Your mind has a way of putting limitations on your goals. When you persevere, you develop character. Nobody knows their ceiling.” Paul Molitor

“I’m a firm believer in goal setting. Step by step. I can’t see any other way of accomplishing anything.” Michael Jordan

“You must have dreams and goals if you are ever going to achieve anything in this world.” Lou Holtz

“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” C.S. Lewis

“Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there.” Bo Jackson

“It must be borne in mind that the tragedy of life does not lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy of life lies in having no goal to reach.” Benjamin E. Mays

“Without goals, and plans to reach them, you are like a ship that has set sail with no destination.” Fitzhugh Dodson

“One way to keep momentum going is to have constantly greater goals.” Michael Korda

“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.” Henry Ford

“If you want to reach a goal, you must ‘see the reaching’ in your own mind before you actually arrive at your goal.” Zig Ziglar

“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” Zig Ziglar

“The major reason for setting a goal is for what it makes of you to accomplish it. What it makes of you will always be the far greater value than what you get.” Jim Rohn

“Life takes on meaning when you become motivated, set goals and charge after them in an unstoppable manner.” Aristotle

“Man is a goal seeking animal. His life only has meaning if he is reaching out and striving for his goals.” Elbert Hubbard

“A good goal is like a strenuous exercise – it makes you stretch.” Mary Kay Ash

“Establishing goals is all right if you don’t let them deprive you of interesting detours.” Doug Larson

“If you raise your children to feel that they can accomplish any goal or task they decide upon, you will have succeeded as a parent and you will have given your children the greatest of all blessings.” Brian Tracy

“If you don’t know where you are going, how can you expect to get there?” Basil S. Walsh.”

“Of all the things I’ve done, the most vital is coordinating those who work with me and aiming their efforts at a certain goal.” Walt Disney

“Glory lies in the attempt to reach one’s goal and not in reaching it.” Mohandas Gandhi

“A goal is not always meant to be reached, it often serves simply as something to aim at.” Bruce Lee

“Arriving at one goal is the starting point to another.” John Dewey

“Whoever wants to reach a distant goal must take small steps.” Saul Bellow

“If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll probably end up somewhere else.” Lewis Carroll

“People with goals succeed because they know where they are going… It’s as simple as that.” Earl Nightingale

“We aim above the mark to hit the mark.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Hitch your wagon to a star.” Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Shoot for the moon. Even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.” Les Brown

What is your favorite goal quote?

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Best Quotes from Athletes

October 1, 2010 By 18 Comments

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Top athletes have learned from experience what it takes to succeed in sports. While their quotes are great as sports quotes, I find them equally valuable for success in life. Following are some of the best quotes from athletes. There are even some quotes about what’s more important than external success.

“I’ve missed more than 9,000 shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times, I’ve been trusted to take the game winning shot and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that is why I succeed.” Michael Jordan, basketball

“Just play. Have fun. Enjoy the game.” Michael Jordan, basketball

“You are never really playing an opponent. You are playing yourself, your own highest standards, and when you reach your limits, that is real joy.” Arthur Ashe, tennis

“Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.” Wayne Gretzky, hockey

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take.” Wayne Gretzky, hockey

“Talent is never enough. With few exceptions the best players are the hardest workers.” Magic Johnson, basketball

“You’re the only one who can make the difference. Whatever your dream is, go for it.” Magic Johnson, basketball

“It’s all about the journey, not the outcome.” Carl Lewis, track and field

“The moment of victory is much too short to live for that and nothing else.” Martina Navratilova, tennis

“Sports create a bond between contemporaries that lasts a lifetime. It also gives your life structure, discipline, and a genuine, sincere, pure fulfillment that few other areas of endeavor provide.” Bob Cousy, basketball

“If all I’m remembered for is being a good basketball player, then I’ve done a bad job with the rest of my life.” Isiah Thomas, basketball

“The harder you work, the luckier you get.” Gary Player, golf

“Somebody will always break your records. It is how you live that counts.” Earl Campbell, football

“With confidence, you have won even before you have started.” Marcus Garvey, Jamaican nationalist

“Don’t ever forget that you play with your soul as well as your body.” Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, basketball

“Excellence is not a singular act but a habit. You are what you do repeatedly.” Shaquille O’Neal, basketball

“Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there.” Bo Jackson, football

“The only disability in life is a bad attitude.” Scott Hamilton, figure skating

“If everything seems under control, you’re not going fast enough.” Mario Andretti, race-car driver

“Goals determine what you’re going to be.” Julius Erving, basketball

“When you have fun, it changes all the pressure into pleasure.” Ken Griffey Sr. and Ken Griffey Jr., baseball

“Each of us has a fire in our hearts for something. It’s our goal in life to find it and keep it lit.” Mary Lou Retton, gymnastics

“When the game is over I just want to look at myself in the mirror, win or lose, and know I gave it everything I had.” Joe Montana, football

“The values learned on the playing field — how to set goals, endure, take criticism and risks, become team players, use our beliefs, stay healthy, and deal with stress — prepare us for life.” Donna de Varona, Olympic swimmer

“For me, losing a tennis match isn’t failure, it’s research.” Billie Jean King, tennis

“If you win through bad sportsmanship, that’s no real victory.” Babe Zaharias

“As you walk down the fairway of life you must smell the roses, for you only get to play one round.” Ben Hogan, golf

“I may win and I may lose, but I will never be defeated.” Emmitt Smith, football

“Winning isn’t getting ahead of others, it is getting ahead of yourself.” Roger Staubach, football

“Confidence is the result of hours and days and weeks and years of constant work and dedication.” Roger Staubach, football

“I think it’s the mark of a great player to be confident in tough situations.” John McEnroe, tennis

“Champions aren’t made in the gyms. Champions are made from something they have deep inside them – a desire, a dream, a vision.” Muhammad Ali, boxing

“The man who has no imagination has no wings.” Muhammad Ali, boxing

“I’ve got a theory that if you give 100% all of the time, somehow things will work out in the end.” Larry Bird, basketball

“Don’t let winning make you soft. Don’t let losing make you quit. Don’t let your teammates down in any situation.” Larry Bird, basketball

“Sometimes the biggest problem is in your head. You’ve got to believe.” Jack Nicklaus, golf

“The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.” Bruce Lee, martial arts

“Concentration is the ability to think about absolutely nothing when it is absolutely necessary.” Ray Knight, baseball

“You find that you have peace of mind and can enjoy yourself, get more sleep, and rest when you know that it was a one hundred percent effort that you gave — win or lose.” Gordie Howe, hockey

“You have to train your mind like you train your body.” Bruce Jenner, track and field

“The most important attribute a player must have is mental toughness.” Mia Hamm, soccer

“Sports can do so much. It’s given me confidence, self-esteem, discipline, and motivation.” Mia Hamm, soccer

“Competitive toughness is an acquired skill and not an inherited gift.” Chris Evert, tennis

“When I’m in my groove there is no thinking. Everything just happens.” Ozzie Smith, baseball

“What has benefited me the most is learning I can’t control what happens outside of my pitching.” Greg Maddux, baseball

“I’m proof that great things can happen to ordinary people if they work hard and never give up.” Orel Hershiser, baseball

“Set your goals high, and don’t stop till you get there.” Bo Jackson, baseball and football

“Love never fails. Character never quits. And with patience and persistence, dreams do come true.” Pete Maravich, basketball

What is your favorite quote from an athlete?

Photo Credit: Photo by Möller Marco-Ken

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Character Counts

August 27, 2010 By 6 Comments

LightAfterDarkness_JhongDizon_Flickr

I love the quote by Vince Gill that says,

Success is always temporary. When all is said and done, the only thing you’ll have left is your character.

That thought is relevant for anyone, but I think it’s especially important for athletes and anyone in a field that focuses on winning and success.

Michael Josephson has a character-education program I love called Character Counts. The program can be used anywhere but is especially popular in schools and athletics. It emphasizes six pillars of character: trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship.

My dissertation for my master’s degree in education was on using Montessori methods to teach courtesy. For part of the literature review, I researched character-education programs in schools. I Iiked everything I read about Character Counts.

I had already been subscribing to the Character Counts newsletter for a few years. I found the stories helpful for my children as athletes. I still enjoy reading the stories for the great values they share. Character Counts has a character educator blog and newsletter. It also has a commentary blog with thought-provoking stories from Michael Josephson’s radio commentaries on character and ethical living.

The Character Counts newsletter for coaches and anyone involved in amateur sports is called Pursuing Victory with Honor.  Don’t you just love that title?! There’s even a sportsmanship self-assessment for athletes and for coaches, parents, and administrators.

Here’s a beautiful video by Michael Josephson called “What Will Matter.”

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Photo Credit: Photo at top of post by Jhong Dizon.

Filed Under: Character, Making a Difference, Motivation Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Best Success Quotes

August 6, 2010 By 11 Comments

I’m a real fan of quotes to motivate athletes – and everyone else!

A few weeks ago, I wrote about sports helping athletes develop qualities like self-confidence and self-motivation that lead to success in life. Last week, I talked about success and spirituality.

Here’s my list of the best success quotes for sports or life in general.

“The secret of success in life is for a man to be ready for his opportunity when it comes.” Benjamin Disraeli

“Unless you’re willing to have a go, fail miserably, and have another go, success won’t happen.” Phillip Adams

“You have achieved success if you have lived well, laughed often and loved much.” Anonymous

“Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” Herman Cain

“Failure is the condiment that gives success its flavor.” Truman Capote

“Success is not to be pursued; it is to be attracted by the person we become.” Jim Rohn

“Failure is success if we learn from it.” Malcolm Forbes

“Success is always temporary. When all is said and done, the only thing you’ll have left is your character.” Vince Gill

“I do not think there is any other quality so essential to success of any kind as the quality of perseverance. It overcomes almost everything, even nature.” John D. Rockefeller 

“The greatest barrier to success is the fear of failure.” Sven Goran Eriksson

“The successful warrior is the average man, with laser-like focus.” Bruce Lee
“Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you made the effort to become the best that you are capable of becoming.” John Wooden
“Character is the real foundation of all worthwhile success.” John Hays Hammond 
“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” Winston Churchill
“Success is a journey, not a destination.” Ben Sweetland     

This list will be a work in progress so that I can add to it if I come across an amazing success quote. What is your favorite success quote?

Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/showmeone/4380638410/in/photostream/

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“The Greatest Barrier to Success” Word-Art Freebie

August 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment

Here’s a word-art quotation freebie related to this Friday’s blog post.

To download word art, click here, then right click on the image and choose “Save Picture As . . .”

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Awaken the Olympian Within (Book Review)

June 4, 2010 By Leave a Comment
Awaken the Olympian Within: Stories from America’s Greatest Olympic Motivators
 
Compiled by John Naber
267 pp  Griffin Publishing Group

It often seems that successful athletes who have had painful failures have the most wisdom to share. Speed skater Dan Jansen is a good example. Dan Jansen shares his wisdom in one of the 27 inspiring stories from Awaken the Olympian Within: Stories from America’s Greatest Olympic Motivators compiled by John Naber.

Dan Jansen’s advice is in a chapter called “There’s More to Life Than Skating Around in a Circle.” Although Dan Jansen has an Olympic gold medal in speed skating, he is sometimes known best for his painful Olympic path to success. In particular, he is famous for his heartbreaking 1988 Olympics when  his sister died from leukemia before the race in which he was favored to win. Jansen fell in that race and the one after it. It wasn’t until his fourth Olympics in 1994 that Dan Jansen won his gold medal.

Jansen believes in learning from failures. He quotes a Garth Brooks song:

Failure isn’t failure if a lesson from it is learned.

Each athlete in the book approaches his or her story and advice in a different way. Jansen has a section for each topic he discusses.

Perspective

For example, in “Perspective,” Jansen talks about his first National Championship, when he cried all the way home in the car after coming in second. His father’s advice at the end of the trip became inspiration for the title of the chapter when he said: “Dan, you know there’s more to life than skating around in a circle.”

Goals

In the “Goals” section, Jansen talks about his training experience running and jumping up ski hills. His coach, Peter Mueller, helped Jansen keep going and learn to reach goals one step at a time. Mueller’s words were:

You’re looking at the top of the hill the whole time you’re running. I want you to look up there before you start, because I want you to know where you want to end up, but once you start running, just keep looking ten feet in front of you and pretty soon you’ll find yourself at the top of the hill.

Competition

Jansen advises people to be aware of their competition but not to dwell on the competition:

Don’t worry about them, don’t try to copy them, don’t even think about beating them. Worrying too much about your competition takes the focus away from making yourself the best you can be.

Courage

Dan Jansen emphasizes that you need to take chances to be successful in any field. He uses the saying:

You cannot discover new oceans unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.

Jansen used that philosophy to continue to train for the 1000 meter race when many told him to train only for his specialty, the 500 meter race. Although many thought training for both races would weaken his 500-meter race Jansen says:

Over the next two years, I broke my 500-meter world record four times and became the first person ever to skate the distance in fewer than thirty-six seconds.

Preparation

Jansen quotes the Boy Scout motto: “Be Prepared.” He has a slightly different slant on preparation, though:

Achieving your goals requires being both mentally and physically prepared. It requires a balance in your life—a balance between hard work and recovery time.

Jansen has learned to be true to himself. His successes and failures have given him a balanced perspective on life:

You, and you alone, are the person who should take the measure of your own success. . . . I do not try to be better than anyone else. I only try to be better than myself.

Jansen’s wisdom is only one of 27 stories by athletes with advice that can be applied to any field. One story could be read each day. There’s certainly more than a month’s worth of reflection in the book.

 

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