Jamy Bechler

Providing Insights on Leadership and Success. Coach Bechler is a John Maxwell Leadership Team Member.

Honoring Fallen Teammates

“Did you ever know that you’re my hero and everything I’d like to be? I can fly higher than an eagle for you are the wind beneath my wings.” (Bette Midler, Wind Beneath My Wings)

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Dustin Hale was only a year older than me, but I thought the sophomore basketball player was a pretty cool guy. We didn’t really hang out away from the basketball court, but he meant a lot to me.​

That summer he passed away as the result of a freakish accident.

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I Didn’t Quit Running

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As a middle schooler, my mother wouldn’t let me play tackle football. I figured I’d be able to talk her out of it prior to entering high school.

I guess I overestimated my lawyering skills.

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Labor Day

“Whatever you are; be a good one.” (Abraham Lincoln)

For many of us in the United States, Labor Day is the unofficial end of the summer and is filled with cookouts, pool parties, and college football.

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But Labor Day began as a way to recognize our nation’s workers and their accomplishments.

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Halfway Point

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In a 2022 NASCAR race in Phoenix, Joey Logano’s pit crew executed a flawless pit stop late in the race, putting him in the lead.

This crucial moment was the turning point for Logano, as he went on to win the race and clinch his second NASCAR Cup Series Championship.

Today is July 1st meaning it’s essentially the halfway point of the year.

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Choose to be better

“You either get bitter or you get better. It’s that simple. You either take what has been dealt to you and allow it to make you a better person, or you allow it to tear you down. The choice does not belong to fate, it belongs to you.” (Josh Shipp)

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At 27 years of age, I was the youngest women’s basketball head coach at the NCAA level. Four years later, I was allowed to take my talents elsewhere.

I got resigned.

How kind of them to let me voluntarily resign.

No matter how you spin it, I was fired.

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Roger Penske and My Dad

As a youngster, my dad would serve as a firefighter for the races run at Michigan International Speedway.

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M.I.S. was less than 10 miles from my house. My brother and I plus one lucky friend would look forward to the four or five races each summer we’d attend.

This was before the era of luxury boxes and suites, so we’d sit behind pit row with the racer and pit crew families. I got to meet a lot of cool people and collect my share of autographs.

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3 Types of Teams During March

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As a former college basketball coach, March Madness is my favorite “holiday” (insert eye roll from my wife).

I love the intrigue, excitement, and storylines. My wife always shakes her head when I plop down on the couch for days at a time.

There are really three kinds of basketball teams when March rolls around… 

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Content of Our Character

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day!!!

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I absolutely love that we honor Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and have a day set aside for him. I am glad that my son asks questions, and we get to talk about what Martin Luther King stood for, fought for, and died for.

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2 Flat Tires

“When asked if my cup is half-full or half-empty my only response is that I am thankful I have a cup.” (Sam Lefkowitz)

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A couple of years ago, my family returned from a long Thanksgiving trip in which we rented a car, we found our actual car right where we had left it in the rental company’s parking lot … but it had 2 Flat Tires!

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Only Thankful Person

“It’s not happy people who are thankful, but rather thankful people who are happy.”

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Back in Ancient times, leprosy was one of the worst illnesses a person could have. Not only was it a nasty skin disease that caused extreme pain, but it was also contagious.

Lepers were social outcasts as everyone shunned them and avoided them at all costs.

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