SHINE: July 2010

Characteristics of Greatness!

16 Consistent Characteristics of Greatness

HOW THEY THINK

1. It's Personal - They hate to lose more than they love to win.

2. Rubbing Elbows - They understand the value of association.

3. Believe - They have faith in a higher power.

4. Contagious Enthusiasm - They are positive thinkers... They are enthusiastic... and that enthusiasm rubs off.

HOW THEY PREPARE

5. Hope For the Best, But... - They prepare for all possibilities before they step on the court.

6. What Off-Season? - They are always working towards the next game... The goal is what's ahead, and there's always something ahead.

7. Visualize Victory - They see victory before the game begins.

8. Inner Fire - They use adversity as fuel.

HOW THEY WORK

9. Ice In Their Veins - They are risk-takers and don't fear making a mistake.

10. When All Else Fails - They know how - and when - to adjust their game plan.

11. Ultimate Teammate - They will assume whatever role is necessary for the team to win.

12. Not Just About the Benjamins - They don't play just for the money, ego, or notoriety. They play for the man next to them.

HOW THEY LIVE

13. Do Unto Others - They know character is defined by how they treat those who cannot help them.

14. When No One is Watching - They are comfortable in the mirror... they live their life with integrity.

15. When Everyone Is Watching - They embrace the idea of being a role model.

16. Records Are Made to Be Broken- They know their legacy isn't what they did on the court. They are well-rounded.

Thanks again to Don Yeager and his terrific website.

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you;
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or, being lied about, don't deal in lies,
Or, being hated, don't give way to hating,
And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise;

If you can dream - and not make dreams your master;
If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with triumph and disaster
And treat those two imposters just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build 'em up with wornout tools;

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breath a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: "Hold on";

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings - nor lose the common touch;
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you;
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds' worth of distance run -
Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it,
And - which is more - you'll be a Man my son!