One of the topics in my clinics is working on getting our sport families to think divergently, where it is not just “this OR that” but “this AND that.” Where somehow you get 1 + 1 = 3 and make more from what we have. I find the concept of “thinking outside the box” to be very important these days, as we have an eternity to be thinking inside the box. Share this challenge with yourself and program if not seen, to prove a point.
Lately, I have found a growing collection of quotes that inspire me. It seems appropriate to share them with all reading this blog, as part of the journey we are all on to be our best while being able to change, even when change might be uncomfortable.
I have fished all my life, knowing what ‘coach’ Henry David Thoreau knew to be true, that "Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after." For me, there are two quotes that resonated in this divergent way which have impacted me through life.
The first is that, "I would rather face an army of lions led by a sheep, than an army of sheep led by a lion."
The second is something I have had since I played in Italy, as it is about the hard work needed by all.
This translates to:
“Every morning in Africa, a gazelle wakes up
Who knows he must run faster than the lion,
Or he will be killed.
Every morning in Africa a Lion wakes up
Who knows he must run faster than the gazelle
Or he will die of hunger
When you get out of bed in the morning
It does not matter if you are a lion or a gazelle
It is best that you begin to run…"
So I will run with some of the other quotes that have made me ponder, in part of the juxtapositioning that is core to the statement.
"It is not because things are difficult that we do not dare, it is because we do not dare that they are difficult." - Lucius Annaeus
"Beautiful people are not always good, but good people are always beautiful."- Unknown
"With the right music you can either forget everything or remember everything." – Anon
"True friends say good things about you behind your back and bad things to your face." - Anon
"Never trust someone who lies to you; never lie to someone who trusts you." – Unknown
"Respect people who make time for you in their busy schedule, but love people who never look at their schedule when you need them." – Unknown
"Most coaches do not listen with the intent to understand and guide discovery, they listen with the intent to reply and tell their athletes what to do." – John Kessel
"Speak in such a way that others love to listen to you. Listen in such a way that others love to speak to you." - Unknown
"A lie has many variations, the truth none." - African Proverb
"It’s impossible to forget someone who gave you so much to remember." - Unknown
"The problem is not the problem; the problem is your attitude about the problem." – Captain Jack Sparrow
"To know what you know and do not know, that is knowledge" – Confucious
"In this world it is not what we take up, but what we give up, that makes us rich." - Henry War
"It is not true that people stop pursuing dreams because they grow old, they grow old because they stop pursuing dreams." - Gabriel Garcia Marquez
"A man once asked his father, how do I find the right woman? The father responded – “Forget finding the right woman; focus on being the right man…" - Unknown
"It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live." - Marcus Aurelius
"It is not titles that honor men, but men that honor titles." - Niccolo Machiavelli
"When we learn by doing, we will do what we have learned." - Steve Bain
"When we stand in lines to learn, we will learn to stand in lines" - Steve Bain
"It is not joy that makes us grateful; it is gratitude that makes us joyful." - Brother David Steindl-Rast
“There is no substitution for hustle, and if you don’t hustle there will be substitution” – Tex Winter
"Many men go fishing all of their lives without knowing that it is not fish they are after." - See Trace Adkins Just Fishin'
In closing, these thoughts for us all from a wise thinker, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe,“It is not doing the things we like to do, but liking the things we have to do, that makes life blessed."
And remember, in the wise words of Bill Nye, the Science Fuy, "Everyone you ever meet knows something you don’t..."Got any other “juxtaposition” quotes to share with everyone? Please add them to the comment section and thanks for your help in growing the game together.