During this time of year, High Schools across the country are in the middle of their playoff runs and are hoping to make it to the state tournaments. The soccer team I coach is right in the middle of that exciting yet nerve-wracking journey.
As I was preparing for the game held last night, the question that kept popping into my head was “What are you going to get out of it?” The simple answer that came to mind was, “A win!” However, at that moment I knew a win wasn’t guaranteed and that it was going to end up one of two ways. We’d walk off the field elated as the winning side or physically and emotionally drained as the losing side.
With those two realities in mind, the question popped back into my head: “What are you going to get out of it?”
Another, perhaps better question is, “What’s underneath the wins and losses?” In all honesty, “What’s the point of participating in anything?”
What we call Star Qualities are the answers to questions “What are we going to get?”, “What’s the point of participating?”, and “What’s underneath the wins and losses?”.
Star Qualities are the personal development character traits that young people acquire as they mature into young adults. Qualities like responsibility, self-motivation, organization, and patience are certainly desired outcomes for our children, students, and athletes. They’re the primary reason parents, teachers, and coaches engage each day. The image below gives some examples, but there are many, many more.
Wins and losses are measurable and important components of an athletic program, but so are Star Qualities. Wins and losses might be where an athlete develops persistence. In the game of soccer, spending the day before a playoff game working on shutting down potential opponent formations develops perspective as the players learn to sees things from other points of view. Activities offer so much more than just wins and losses. There is always something underneath.
Star Qualities stay with you long after the game is won or lost. They hang out with you for the rest of your life and make a much larger difference in the quality of your life than just a record of wins, draws, and losses. This doesn’t mean that your record isn’t important; however, it does mean that Star Qualities are more important in helping you create a better ride through school, relationships, and life.
In preparation for our playoff game last night, I spent time with the players reminding them about what playing soccer is really all about. I listed some Star Qualities that they are developing by being on the team and that they will undoubtedly use in their lives forever. I reminded them that knowing how to function in a 4-4-2 formation is useful right now, but that its use will diminish after their final games are played. The Star Qualities they developed by learning, practicing, and implementing that formation will last a lifetime.
So, what did my soccer team get out of last night’s game? We got patience, we got practice in self-control, we developed tenacity and practiced resilience, and thankfully we also got a win! So, preparation begins again, and we need to authentically search for what we’re going to get!
A good challenge for today is for you to think of an activity or task you currently see as pointless and identify some Star Qualities that you will develop by working through those tasks. Remind yourself that you’re always developing something and it’s often your choice as to what that is and what you’re going to get.
Thanks from our Top 20 team,…Willow, Tom, and Kevin
Kevin Brennan
Director, Top 20 Training
651-373-0297
kevin@top20training.com
