Providing Insights on Leadership and Success. Coach Bechler is a John Maxwell Leadership Team Member.
I don’t remember the context but the other day I told my mother-in-law that “Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit but wisdom is knowing not to put it into a fruit salad.” She then proceeded to find a magnet that had that saying on it. It is on our refrigerator at home. Hopefully she just thought it was a neat saying and wasn’t trying to tell me something – but, I digress. [Read more…]
Last week we celebrated the 4th of July here in the United States. That date marks our nation’s birthday – our Independence Day. Besides the usual array of hot dogs, parades, and fireworks, many of us took time and were reminded of the concepts of freedom and sacrifice.
However, I have a different kind of freedom on my mind today.
28-3…
Many football fans remember that as the score of Super Bowl LI when the Atlanta Falcons led the New England Patriots midway through the third quarter. The Patriots would end up coming back to win that Super Bowl in dramatic fashion.
The year was 1999 and we were just two kids relishing in the hopes, dreams, and passions like any other set of newlyweds. We were living on Spaghetti O’s and love. I was a very low-paid assistant basketball coach and she was a bank teller. Our household income was below the poverty line.
Little did we know that our financial situation was about to change.
This is a guest post from Dr. Keith Starcher, a long-time college professor and business consultant. Most importantly, he is the father of my wife, which makes him a big-deal.The presence, or absence, of asterisks can be a divisive topic in the world of sports today. Think about it. In baseball, should that home run record be followed by an *asterisk?
If a certain NFL team goes undefeated this year, should their season stats include an asterisk? The world of biking, track & field and yes, even business seems to be plagued by those who just don’t want to play by the rules. Yet as some bend or break the rules to enhance their performance, their legacy potentially ends up being tainted with an asterisk (or worse).
Bueller? Bueller? Anyone? Anyone?
We all remember the iconic scene from the movie “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” when the teacher (played by Ben Stein) is having no success trying to get the class to participate. We have all been around those people that might have been really smart but we just didn’t like them much. They didn’t inspire us. They didn’t motivate us. Think of the people that have meant the most to us. Most of the time, it was probably because of how they made us feel.
I remember how I felt about second grade and my teacher.
My friend Alan Stein, Jr. is considered one of the top performance coaches in the nation. For years he has worked with some of the best basketball players in the world. In fact, when I was a basketball coach, I used many of his conditioning drills for my teams.
He once told me about his first encounter with Kobe Bryant back in 2007 when he was in his prime and considered the best player in the world. Nike flew Alan out to the Kobe Bryant Skills Camp.
Social research might prove what we’ve known all along.
Money can’t buy happiness.
Nor, it turns out, can good looks or social status.
I love to read but it wasn’t always that way. We were made to read in 1st grade and I hated it. However, all that changed in 2nd grade.
This past summer, I went golfing with my wife and her parents. Now, this might seem like the opening line to a joke, but I assure you that they are nice people and I would never say a bad word about them – at least until they stop reading my articles.
About halfway into the round, I finally birdied a hole and my father-in-law said “It’s about time. I’ve waited 10 years to see you get a birdie.”
I think I saw a playful smile on his face.