If you don’t know, my family is very invested in sports. We have a few athletes in the family. But, much of our passion is in watching our favorite teams. At different times of the year, we tune into specific sports, follow our teams, and do our best to cheer them on to victory.
March is all about basketball. Mostly all about basketball. Our Track & Field athlete keeps us invested in her track meets during the spring. But, mostly, we keep our tv’s and brains tuned into the NCAA basketball tournament, as 64 men’s and 64 women’s college basketball teams vie for the national championship title. It’s some kinda fun as we revel in the thrill of victory. And, heartbreaking as we slump into the agony of defeat. The rollercoaster of emotions.
As our kids made their ways through various extra-curricular sports team over the years, we had experiences with many different coaches. There were coaches who were clearly in over their heads, without a clue. There were coaches who related well to the kids; coaches who related well to the parents; coaches who were all about winning; coaches who were all about player development; coaches who played the best players; coaches who played everybody. No two coaches were the same.
During all these years, we have had experience in basketball, cross country, track & field, volleyball, softball, and soccer.
There was one particular coach for my daughter’s high school AAU basketball team who had a saying that always stuck with me. There wasn’t much about the team or the coach himself that stood out during the time that my daughter played for them. But, there was one saying that he would call out, time and time again, over and over. At first, I questioned what it meant, I thought it was just some mumbo-jumbo coach talk. But, the more I thought about it, I realized that I really liked the phrase. It was pertinent to basketball and pertinent to life in general.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
He yelled it during practice. He said it during games. He called it out many, many times over the months and months that she played for him.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
See, at practice, he was trying to motivate the girls to do their best. Don’t goof off. Don’t act lazy. Don’t give half-effort. Don’t foul or play dirty. If you do that now during practice, you are more likely to do it during the excitement of the game. Bad habits in practice may show up again when you are under pressure, even though you know better.
At practice, put your best effort forward. Hustle up.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
I assume you know a few of the rules of basketball. Like, you cannot walk down the court with the ball in your hands. That breaks a rule, which (conveniently) is called “walking” or “traveling.” Instead, while on the court, you have to dribble the ball when you move. Up and down, up and down. If, during practice, you make a habit of walking around with the ball, you are not training yourself to instinctively dribble every time you move. Your muscle memory is not set, because sometimes you walk around with the ball and other times you dribble the ball. Coach’s point was that you need to always follow the rules about dribbling, lest you have a momentary relapse in the heat of the game. Teach your body to ALWAYS dribble, so that you don’t even have to think about it.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
Same thing is true of other rules of the game. During practice, force yourself to get out of the painted lane so you don’t violate the 3 second rule by standing under the basket too long. When you throw the ball in from the sidelines, do it under the same time constraints that you face during the game. Teach yourself how long 5 seconds really is as you look for a teammate who you can throw the ball to. When you guard someone, hands off, just like you are expected to do doing the game. No fouls.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
If you wait until the actual game to play the real way, the way you’ve been taught, you may have to think about the rules, to remember them, to see if you are following them. But, if you practice properly, the rules become second nature. You can think about them less because you are conditioned to follow them automatically. Thus, you can concentrate more on the game play as it unfolds. Similarly, in practice, if you refuse to throw the ball to a certain teammate because you aren’t getting along with her (high school girl drama), you will have a harder time connecting with her during the frantic pace of the game. If you continually show off by attempting flashy layup shots during practice, it could be more difficult for you to complete a traditional layup during a fastbreak at gametime.
You need to train the way that you need to play. What you do now has the potential to affect what you do in the future. So do it right.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
That’s not to say that we all aren't allowed to take it easy sometimes, we all need a break now and then. But, on a regular basis we should be mindful of how we conduct our business. Even when we are just practicing we should show up as if it were gameday. Put it all out there. Give it our best.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
Let’s step off the field and off the court a minute and head into the real world.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
If you treat someone badly, leave them dismissed or disregarded, will they take into consideration the other 99 times when you treated people kindly? No, they will remember the one time that you were a jerk. To them, that will reflect the kind of person that you are. The way you behaved towards them tells the story.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
If you fudge the numbers on the bank account or misuse funds that are not at your disposal, will you be tempted to do it again, just one more time? Convinced that you will do it only if you really, really need to?
How you do anything is how you do everything.
If you lie, cheat, or steal for whatever reason, knowing you are in the wrong, will you have the fortitude to stand up and resist the temptation the next time?
How you do anything is how you do everything.
If you slack off on something that you know in your heart of hearts that you should be doing-- healthy diet, exercise, a good night’s sleep, or any other number of healthy habits, will you be likely to skip it, take another day off more and more frequently?
How you do anything is how you do everything.
If you find yourself justifying your actions more and more, will that voice plant itself firmly in your brain? Excuses, excuses. Constantly explaining to yourself why it's ok for you to do this, even if you know it's not right.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
Should we talk about attitude and demeanor? Are you grateful? Are you considerate? Are you irritated or annoyed? Are you resentful? Are you gracious?
How you do anything is how you do everything.
I could go on and on. But, I won’t. I realize that we all have lapses and we find times when we just can’t get in there and do the thing we are supposed to be doing. I know that we all need down time. I know that we all need to take a moment to unwind. I’m speaking more of the attitude that we sometimes have--the attitude that tells us: This doesn’t really matter right now. I’ll shape up when it’s game time. That’s when I need to really perform. That's when I will give my best effort.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
Now, I don’t think that this statement applies 100% of the time. I think it represents an oversimplification of life. But, I do think that it has merit. It’s a good phrase to keep around. It helps me check myself from time to time and ask: Is this really how I want to be doing things? Will this poor performance leak into the other aspects of my life? I am training myself to do a half-a$$ job? Have I got the right attitude? Because, the flip side, when I really put in the right amount of effort, finds me thinking: This is how it should be done. I’m proud of my work. I’m happy with my performance. I want to maintain this level of effort the next time. Can I? Next time? And the next?
How you do anything is how you do everything.
Say it with me.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
How you do anything is how you do everything.
Worth considering.
Thanks, Coach.