Re-post from earlier in my life

Your days are your life in miniature. As you live your days, so you craft your life. What you do today is actually creating your future. The words you speak, the thoughts you think, the food you eat and the actions you take are defining your destiny – shaping who you are becoming and what your life will stand for. There's no such thing as an unimportant day.

Each of us is called to greatness. Each of us has an exquisite power within us. But for this power to grow, we need to use it. The more you exercise it each day, the stronger it gets. The more this power gets tapped, the more confident you grow.

The best among us are not more gifted than the rest. They just take small steps each day as they march towards their biggest life. And the days slip into weeks, the weeks into months and before they know it, they arrive at a place called Extraordinary.

Values

From Impresssions by Coyte G. Cooper, Ph.D., values are the "how" element of personal branding and they should serve as a direct path to your vision if you have the discipline to live them extremely well over periods of time."

How do you cultivate core values?

1. Reflection

2. Embrace a marketing mindset

3. Study other people that are successful and determine the things that they do on a daily basis to be successful.

Independence as told by images and in reflection

Today is Independence Day in the United States. It is on July 4, 1776 that the 13 colonies claimed their independence from England, an event which eventually led to the formation of the United States.

As I reflect on Independence and what that means, it is something very special and very unique.

Independence in who I am

Independence in my faith...

Regardless of the day or the level of my independence, I am very thankful for the two signs that show this with pride - the cross and the American flag.

Collaboration

"Research shows that companies that prioritize collaboration are twice as likely to be profitable, twice as likely to outgrow competitors, and five times more likely to considerably increase their workforce. Efficient collaboration further evolves perspectives, helps projects move along faster, results in better work, encourages more innovation, and, most importantly, helps everyone end up more satisfied with the overall results." (Source: Deloitte Access Economics, 2014) 

On the evening of February 10, Kevin DeShazo of Fieldhouse Media came to talk to student-athletes and the coaches at LeTourneau University. Prior to that meeting, the LeTourneau University athletic department had a very limited and unorganized approach to its social media. In follow up to that meeting, one of the coaches - John Antonisse -  has taken a vested interest in becoming more involved with social media. As the Sports Information Director for the University, I have met with Coach Antonisse and his assistant Brittany Best on various strategies on how to engage with social media for their program. 

One of our most recent strategies is to share the knowledge of Coach Antonisse with followers during the U.S. Women's National Team run to the Women's World Cup Finals. We have done interviews and started to initiate the hashtag on Twitter #AskJohn. 

In collaboration, we posted a Good Luck image on multiple channels - Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, in advance of the U.S. Women's National Team semifinal game against Germany. 

A preview interview on Periscope and YouTube drew over 200 people; meanwhile, the image on Facebook and Instagram was seen by over 1,000 people. All of this came as a result of COLLABORATION! 

The Bench...

Earlier I wrote about having mentors and a cause, now today, I share with you the importance of the 'bench.' Not the bench in a sports standpoint, where you sit...but the people that do not make up the starters.

"I told myself it's not about me. It's about the team. And it's about how I can help the team get better." - Zach Bohannon

As someone, who did not often get the starting nod in sports, I found it important to know my role as someone off the bench. Currently, as the Sports Information Director, I know how important it is to have people ready and equipped to fill in on our team and staff. I spend time cross-training and building up each member of the team to fill in the roles. Immediately in the hiring and training process with employees, I engage and share with the team members that there is no role too great or too small for me and for them. We are going to be equipped to doing the best that we can to offer the best media and public relations service to the student-athletes, coaches, fans and media that we can.

As you enter the field of sports, the tenacity to succeed is enhanced when you are willing to sacrifice the title and do the work necessary to get the job. 

The climb to get to the top of Herndon at the Naval Academy was one of the best exercises that I have ever seen in teamwork. The desire and energy of the plebes at the Naval Academy to get someone to the top is unprecedented.

Cause

Earlier this morning, I received this message as part of an email from Robin Sharma.

"To be human is to crave a cause. We all need a powerful purpose to get us out of bed every morning and draw out the finest within us." 

Yesterday, I shared with you what I believe to be one of the cornerstones of everything that I do - mentorship. Today is Father's Day, it is the fifth year that I do not have my mentor - my father. But, I  do have a cause and purpose that gets me out of bed in which I know it will make my father proud.

As I type this, I just heard Jordan Speith talk about his father. In honesty, it has brought me to tears. 

My cause is to have a #relentlesspursuit in all that I do. I encourage you to get SET (Strategic-Engagement-Teamwork) and go after what you want to do.

Wind Beneath My Wings

The lyrics to Wind Beneath My Wings by Bette Midler proved to be the ultimate end to the eulogy that I gave when my father passed away on October 1, 2009.

Did you ever know that you're my hero You're everything I wish I could be. I could fly higher than an eagle, 'cause you are the wind beneath my wings. The reason I bring this up is in advance of Father's Day to reiterate the importance of having a mentor. A mentor by my definition is someone who will be brutal honest and not hold any punches back to see you accomplish what you set out to achieve. You can have a mentor for your personal life but you can have one for your professional life. I'm thankful for the impact that my mentors have had in my life including my father, who has left a lasting imprint and legacy with me. Wikipedia defines mentorship as:  Mentorship is a personal developmental relationship in which a more experienced or more knowledgeable person helps to guide a less experienced or less knowledgeable person. The mentor may be older or younger, but have a certain area of expertise. I recently attended the 2015 CoSIDA/NACDA/NACMA Convention and twice during the convention I was able to visit with job seekers. First, it was in my role on the job seekers committee on CoSIDA that I was able to impart my wisdom with the assembled individuals, who had came to the convention for a possible opportunity in sports information. The other time came, in partnership with Kristi Dosh, I met with some individuals to assist with various areas such as cover letter, resume and/or mock interviews.  Regardless of the situation and location, it was always important to communicate the impact of mentorship. Both NACMA and CoSIDA have formal mentorship programs, I'll be posting in the upcoming days on how to get involved with each.