When I was a kid, my older sister Heather bought a pack of glow-in-the-dark star stickers to put on her ceiling. After she carefully adhered them to her bedroom ceiling, she called me to her room to show me how they glowed in the dark. I thought Heather’s new constellation was the coolest thing I had ever seen.
That evening, on a routine trip to the bathroom, I saw that Heather had thrown away the packaging from the stickers in the bathroom garbage can. I immediately noticed that the entire sticker sheet that she removed the stars from was made of the same glow-in-the-dark material as the stars. Which meant that the discarded star sheet carcass, or starcass, still had great value.
Instantly, a little glow in the dark light bulb appeared above my head.
I snatched the de-starred sheet from the garbage can. I ran to our craft closet and pulled out a pair of scissors. Despite my excitement, I did not run with them. I carried them, pointed down, the way I was taught to safely pack such a dangerous weapon in school. Once I safely transported the scissors to my upstairs bedroom and secured the door to my bedroom/laboratory of invention, I proceeded to cut the remnant sticker sheet into dozens of little squares and stuck them all over my ceiling.
I was so excited by my new star-stickered ceiling that I rushed down the hall to Heather’s room and exclaimed, ‘You’ve got to see something awesome in my room!’ She followed me back down the upstairs hall to my room to see what all the fuss was about. I turned off the lights, and my little star scraps speckled the ceiling. I could practically hear the angels sing. It was like that moment in Christmas Vacation when Clark Griswold finally gets his outdoor Christmas masterpiece to light up. I felt like I was the smartest boy alive.
The effect was amazing. The small squares dotting my ceiling looked just like the stars outside in the Vermont night sky. (Note: Rural Vermont has literally zero light pollution. Also note: Rural Vermont is a redundant statement.)
But Heather was not amused.
She had spent several dollars on her star stickers. And I had spent nothing. Yet we essentially had the same amazing result.
After a small sibling flare-up, we agreed that I would pay her 50 cents for the sticker refuse material that I had stuck up in da club. It was still a great value for me. And an even better lesson.
Key Takeaway
Be careful what you throw away. It may still contain great value. Keep an eye on what others are discarding, giving away or selling for next to nothing. There is unrecognized value everywhere. Train yourself to see it. And then take action to extract that value. You will find it in the garbage, in giveaway items, in collectibles and second hand markets. You will find untapped value in remnant time and in leftover space. Once you condition yourself to see it, you will find that untapped value everywhere. It is the perfect straw for your entrepreneurial mind to spin into gold.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
There are some things that I am good at. And other things I am not good at at all. (Like folding fitted sheets and stopping myself from thinking, ‘That’s what she said…’ a thousand times a day.)
One of the things I haven’t been good at at work is entering my time into our time-tracking software at the end of each day. (I also wasn’t good at avoiding that at-at thing in the previous sentence.)
To be clear, I keep a detailed to-do list each day that lists my activities. Plus, I schedule my daily activities on my calendar, which provides a detailed log of my time. So I have records of how I spent each day for great reference. In fact, when archaeologists someday discover my notebooks, they will have a strong understanding of how I spent my days and could enter my time for me. But I expect it will be too late for us to invoice that time.
Still, I have never liked walking away from the office without completing my time entry for that day. Yet the tight demands on my schedule often meant that I didanyway.
One of my goals for 2025 was to enter my detailed time each day on the day I did the work. So, I added something new and simple to my long list of habits.
On my daily Success List (what you might call a to-do list, and what Scooby Doo might call a Scooby To-Doo list), I have added a line that says, Enter Time in Harvest.Harvest is The Weaponry’s time-tracking software.
As we started February, I noticed something interesting. I entered my time each day for the entire month of January.
The key to my behavior change was simply writing Enter Time in Harvest on my daily Success List.
I love crossing things off my list. It makes me feel accomplished. Having a list keeps me productive and focuses my time on my most important activities throughout the day. Because I already had a strong list-making and list-crossing-off habit established, I simply utilized my habit of doing the things on my daily list daily to create this valuable new habit.
The key was right in front of me all along. Or should I say, write in front of me?
Bonus: Another valuable thing I added to my daily Success List last year was the line No Social Media Before Lunch. This prevented me from falling down social media rabbit holes and wasting precious time during the golden morning hours of productivity. Again, because I love crossing things off my list, I avoided the socials between 9 am and whenever I stopped for lunch. As a result, I got more important work done each day.
Key Takeaway
You are a product of your habits. If you use a daily to-do list or Success List, try adding the behaviors you want to modify to your list. Remember, those may be behaviors you want to add or eliminate. By writing them on your daily activity guide and crossing the actions off your list at the end of the day, you may discover the easiest way to get the results you want.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
The slow no is the decision that is always going to be no. No matter how much support there is for a yes.
Decision makers will let you explore, research, propose, pile up work towards, and spend a lot of time diddling on things that are always going to finish with a no.
It’s a waste of time, energy, enthusiasm and hope. Like that romantic interest that you know is way out of your league, but they are really nice to you, and you start thinking there is a chance, when there is really no chance there is a chance.
What’s the best way to deal with the slow no?
Cut to the chase.
Ask if this is likely to end in a slow no.
Ask the decision-makers, if all the evidence seems to support a yes, will it still be a no because of politics, budget, bias, distance, favored-competitors, or other factors out of your control.
The slow no is likely to occur when:
You wonder why the decision maker hasn’t made a decision like this before
The cost seems out of line with the budget
It all seems too good to be true (like the whole Lance Armstrong thing)
The action would be out of character for the decision maker
You smell political factors or nepotism at play
They say you are facing 1 in a million odds, and you think they are saying there’s a chance
The decision maker puts the word pro in procrastination
The best thing you can do is hit fast forward and turn that slow no into a fast no. Or a know-now no.
You can also openly rescind your proposal or request.
When your change of heart is met with a shrug, you know it was a slow no.
That puts time back into your account. So you can use it more productively on something else. Or someone else.
Key Takeaway
Don’t lose time on a slow no. Sniff them out. Fast forward them to the final answer. And use your time on something more valuable.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
I have been investing in the stock market since my first year out of college. I knew that it was important to not just work for money but to make money work for you. You can read Robert Kiyosaki’s works for more pithy moneyisms like that.
As an investor I have had plenty of successes. I have had plenty of failures. Kinda like a typical country song. But I have become much better at evaluating stocks and recognizing great buying opportunities over time.
Today, when I review my investments, there is one stock that stands out and makes me cringe every time.
It is Netflix. (NFLX on your radio dial.)
It is the only stock I own that I shake my head at when I review the details of my purchase. I am always left wondering, what the heck was I thinking? I can practically hear Nancy Kerrigan screaming, “Why? Why? Why?” when I check my E-trade account.
The Details:
I bought Netflix in 2022 for $184.25 per share.
As of this publishing Netflix is selling for $848.26 per share.
Today, the return on my investment stands at 360%.
I have almost never been as right about buying a stock as I was about buying Netflix when I did.
So what’s the problem?
I only bought 5 shares.
Not Ten. Not Fifty. Not 500 million.
Five.
Heck, I have twice as many fingers as I have Netflix shares.
The Kicking of Myself
I knew Netflix was a great company.
I knew the stock was at a great price after falling far from its recent highs.
This was the classic dip you always look for to buy stocks in blue chip companies.
It was like investing in Martha Stewart as she headed off to summer prison camp. She was a good bet in a down time. And an amazing bet with a potential prison-cred reboot with Snoop Dogg.
I knew that all signs pointed to Netflix being a great investment at a great time to buy.
Yet I didn’t go all in.
I barely went in at all. Not even 4 figures.
I invested just $921.25
Today that is $4,241.20.
But imagine for yourself what would happen if there was another zero behind that investment. Or two. Or a hundred billion zeros… (Insert Dr. Evil Laugh.) Consider what those scaled investments would have translated to today.
Obviously, I am grateful that I have a very handsome (almost Zoolander-like) return on my investment.
But I am disappointed with the strength of my conviction. That I didn’t bet bigger when all the signs said Go!
Key Takeaway
When you have done your homework, and you know you are right, you need to go all in. Push all your chips into the center of the table. It’s true for investments, entrepreneurship, and relationships. It’s true of all the important commitments and bets you will ever make on yourself.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
On Saturday, January 4th, I attended a dinner party at a restaurant in downtown Milwaukee.
I had a really good time with some really good friends.
I know I had a really good time because, around midnight, the valet sought me out in the private room I was in in the back of the restaurant to hand me my keys. I was standing in a circle of the last of the party-goers who weren’t even done with the night. Like John Cougar said before he got mellencamped.
Apparently, I had stayed at the party so long that the valet was turning into a parking pumpkin, and wanted to go home. So he had parked my car just outside the front door, found me in the restaurant, handed me the keys and walked away. Not only was he not looking for a tip, he didn’t even charge me for the valet parking. Which meant that I had enjoyed myself so much that I actually saved money in the process.
Reflection
It can be hard to know whether or not you are being generally successful in life. Not everything is easily scored. But in my scorebook, if the valet comes to find you at a party because he wants to go home and play Grand Theft Auto, and you still want to stay and hangout with your wife and your 4 other friends who aren’t ready to leave, it is a good sign, that at least for the night, you are winning at life. (Also according to my scorebook, if those friends will answer to Pablo or Bert, even though those are not their real names, you score bonus points.)
Key Takeaway
To live a great life, spend more time with people you want to stay up late with. Go to events you don’t want to leave. We have a finite amount of time on this planet. Make it count.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
We are all on some type of self-improvement journey. It’s how we are wired as humans. There are always things we can find to improve. And the beginning of a new year is like Improvapalooza. Suddenly, we are thinking of all the things we should do to make more money, read more books and look better naked. (Presumably while reading books.)
There are 3 key points on your self improvement journey.
Your starting point
Your current position
Your ideal
To maintain motivation, you need to balance how much time you spend focused on the distance to your goal, versus the progress you have made.
If you only focus on the ideal goal you will spend somewhere between 99% and 100% of your time on the journey disappointed.
Because you are always falling short. Like Martin.
If you spend all of your time focused on your growth you can feel like you have done enough.
Which will make you feel prematurely satisfied. A condition I call PreMatSat. (Which I think is also the test you take to get into med school.)
In this case, you are likely to settle for less than you set out to achieve.
The key is a balanced diet of both perspectives.
Just as your ideal food intake requires a proper balance of protein and carbohydrates, motivation requires a balance of attention towards both your goals and your growth.
I have found a simple formula that works best for me.
Think of this like spending your work week focused on your goals and your weekends enjoying your growth. It provides a great combination of grind time and satisfaction with your accomplishments.
Key Takeaway
It is important to set lofty goals to push yourself to become the best you can be. But the real win isn’t simply in achieving your goals. The win is in the improvement. The goal is the tool to keep you marching forward. The growth is the reward. It’s the fruit you harvest. If you don’t take a little time to look at your improved physique in the mirror, enjoy a bit of that hard-won money, or admire your elevated skills, you are planting a garden without ever eating the crop. Don’t focus so much on the destination that you forget that the real value is in the journey. And it always has been.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
At the beginning of a new year, I attempt to put my accumulated wisdom to good use. I reflect on the important lessons I have learned so I can project a better year ahead. A year that is packed with the things I consider most important. And a year that minimizes or eliminates the things that work against me. Like sweet tea and peanut brittle.
As a part of this process in 2025, I made a list of reminders as I start the new year. You may find some value in this. Or the value may be in deciding to create your own list.
1. Use your time. It’s your most valuable asset. It’s finite. Don’t waste it. Even if you are sitting on the dock of the bay.
2. Do hard things. They are the most rewarding.
3. Do something valuable for yourself first thing every morning. That is your golden time. The filet of the day. It’s even better than a Filet O’ Fish.
4. Don’t overlook the compounding effect. Good habits, exercise, kindness, investing, being trustworthy, writing, brushing your teeth. They help more the more you do them.
5. Surrounding yourself with great people leads to a great life.
6. Weigh yourself every day. It provides a direct link between your actions and the results. Both good and bad.
7. Reach out to others first. The world is full of lonely people afraid to make the first move.
8. Get rid of the things that don’t serve you. It works the same way editing makes your writing better. It helps you move faster and lighter. And frees up space in your brain.
9. Find a passion project. These help make life more fun and enjoyable. Remember, you are the one responsible for putting fun and enjoyment in your life.
10.Discover your purpose. This is your lifelong quest. The sooner you find it the more meaningful your time after it will be.
11. Don’t stay in a job that has you dreading Mondays. Move along. There is a better option for you. (Unless your job is dreading hair. Then, you should probably also dread on Mondays.)
12.Develop and maintain connections across multiple generations. You can learn a lot from those older and younger than you. Like how to turn on the remote. Or what a manual transmission was.
13.Provide value before you try to extract value. This is always the order.
14.Be an imperfectionist. Take action first. Improve as you go. Be comfortable with mistakes. They are approximations that get you to the right answer faster.
15.Always bet on yourself. It’s the safest bet you will ever make. And listen to Kenny Rogers.
16.Call your parents while you still can. If you no longer can, then make sure to recall your parents often.
17.Remember that you are part of a trustee family. You are entrusted with carrying the family legacy forward for all of those who came before and those who will come after you. Recognize what others have done to put you where you are now. And do your part for those yet to come.
18. Make new memories with old friends. This is the best.
19.Set lofty goals and plans to achieve them.
20. At the end of our days, the only thing that will matter is the impact we have on others. If your actions are selfish, your impact dies when you do. (Note: impact is also a leading cause of death.)
21.Exercise is the best medicine. And it’s available without a prescription.
22.Those who laugh the most have the best life.
23.If you can delay your gratification you can achieve anything.
24.Always do what you know is right.
25.If you can’t eat, sleep. If you can’t sleep, eat. (I use this one more than you know.)
Bonus Jonas:
26. Give people more than they expect.
Key Takeaway
Through trial and error, and through your readings, and wrongings, you will discover great lessons. Collect them. Remind yourself of them often. They will serve as reliable guideposts to health, happiness and success. And they make for a great inheritance for you to pass along.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
A new year is the best gift you will ever get. Because it has more hope in it than the Hope Solo documentary on Netflix.
2025 offers you an opportunity to apply all of your experiences, self-reflection and learning to help you do everything better than you have ever done it before.
I hope that 2025 is your best year ever. Like, ever, ever.
I hope that you love your work and look forward to all 52 Mondays. Even the manic ones.
I hope your boss recognizes how fricken awesome you are. (Especially if you are your own boss.)
I hope you push yourself to become a more valuable asset to your organization. Because your value is directly related to your contribution.
I hope you develop a best friend at work. A Laverne to your Shirley. Or like those brothers on The Bear.
I hope you have great relationships with your family, and that you look forward to going home to them each day. And that you appreciate having a home to go home to. And that you are not too good for your home, like Happy Gilmore said.
I hope you make the most of your commute. They are secret gifts of time to learn, connect, prepare, decompress, or try to figure out what these obscure personalized license plates really mean.
I hope you visit your doctor once and your dentist twice.
I hope you see your therapist as much as you need to.
I hope you keep your weight in your acceptable zone until next eggnog and coookie season.
I hope you enjoy exercising as much as your body enjoys the benefits.
I hope you make new memories with old friends.
I hope your new friends start to feel like old friends. (Because of the growing familiarity, not the declining eyesight, hearing, and ability to climb steps.)
I hope you don’t take things personally.
I hope you swear less this year. You always have other options. (poo, darn, fudge, heckaroo.)
I hope you laugh more.
In fact, I hope you laugh until you cry several times this year.
And I hope you laugh until you blow liquids out of your nose at least once, thanks to unexpected hilarity.
I hope you are comfortable sharing the truth.
I hope you fondly remember the people you have lost, and it hurts your heart a little.
I hope you build momentum every day.
I hope that you recognize that you are writing the story of your life every day, like Elvis Costello. And that it is your job to make it a story worth reading.
I hope that you create and maintain great new habits. And that when you have to skip a day you get right back to it the next day.
I hope you spend more time in a different room than your phone.
And that you don’t look at your phone first thing in the morning.
I hope you see your people in real life. They are better than they are on the socials. And more interesting. Remember that social media is just a bridge between in-person experiences.
I hope you share lots of compliments because you are impressed by the people around you.
If you are not impressed by the people around you, I hope you surround yourself with better people. People who are easy to compliment.
I hope you go to your place of worship. God knows you need it.
I hope you remember to wear sunscreen. And maybe a floppy hat.
I hope you get prints made of your favorite photos and hang them on your wall. Don’t just settle for pics in digital form. Eventually, those printed photos will become your most valued possessions.
I hope you enjoy more game nights. Game night is when we really live.
I hope you experience the great joy in giving your time, talent or money. Teach your kids by example. Or teach other peoples’ kids if you don’t have your own.
I hope you find something you like enough to collect in reasonable quantities. (But don’t wind up on an episode of Hoarders.)
I hope you remember all of the important dates in your life.
I hope you read great books that improve you and the way you think about the world.
I hope you struggle and suffer just enough to be reminded how tough and capable you really are.
I hope you don’t give up when things get hard.
I hope you tell your closest friends and family members that you love them while you still can. That window closes without warning.
I hope you find splurges that are totally worth it. (And then tell me what they are.)
I hope you find great new music that makes it into your Spotify 2025 Wrapped. And I hope that you aren’t afraid to admit that Sabrina Carpenter, Taylor Swift and Kacey Musgrave were all in your Top 5. (There, I admitted it…)
I hope you can understand some of the slang that kids are using today. But not all of it. Unless you are a kid.
I hope you find yourself in nature and stop to just listen.
I hope you use all of your vacation days, but none of your sick days.
I hope you get all the sleep you need.
But I hope you get rid of all the other things you don’t need.
I hope you forgive and move on.
I hope you experience thrills. Without spills.
But most of all, I hope you enjoy great happiness and share it with everyone you meet.
Happy 2025.
Let’s do this!
*If you know someone who could benefit from kicking off their 2025 with this New Year message, please share it with them.
I never wanted to be a coach. Some people are innately drawn to it. I am not. I thought it was a cool role for other people. But I just wasn’t that into whistles and sweatpants. When I graduated from college, I fully expected to never be involved in sports again, other than as a fan. Even after I had 3 kids, I never expected to coach them at any level. I didn’t feel like I knew anything well enough to coach. Except maybe being a class clown. But I felt I could teach that through more of a mentoring relationship.
So it is very strange to realize that this fall I wrapped up my 7th season coaching my son Magnus’ football team. So, how did this happen? To find out we’ve got to go back in time, like Marty McFly.
In The Big Inning…
Like most things, my coaching career started very small. When Magnus was in first grade, we signed him up for flag football. At that level, the teams practiced for one hour and then played a game for one hour on Saturdays in the fall. At the first practice-game the two guys coaching Magnus’ team asked me if I could help out the following week because one of them was traveling. I was happy to help. And I felt like a helper more than a coach. Plus the kids were in Kindergarten and first grade. So they wouldn’t be fact-checking my coaching.
Magnus carrying the ball in 1st grade, when I could point where I wanted the players to go.
That Saturday’s practice-game went well. I had fun. Magnus enjoyed having me involved. None of the kindergartners asked to be traded or held out for more NIL money. So I became the third coach on the staff, helping whenever I could the rest of that cute little 6-week season.
Stepping Up A Notch
When Magnus entered 2nd grade, the program was looking for more parents to coach. My wife Dawn encouraged me to volunteer. So I got paired with another father. And we had a good time. Again, this was just 2nd and 3rd graders with one practice-game combo pack each week on Saturday mornings in the fall. And we were literally on the field placing each player in position and whispering in their ear what we wanted them to do. It was kinda like playing chess with tiny humans. Even better, the play didn’t start until the coaches said they were ready. The hardest part was organizing which parents were bringing the snacks.
Magnus and Me in our second season together. That’s a happy father/son combo pack.
Gaming The System
By 3rd grade, I realized that you could choose to pair up with another coach to lead a team. And when you did that, it allowed you to stack your team with 2 good players. So my great friend Dr. Mike Brin and I teamed up to coach. DMB played football for the University of Wisconsin Badgers, and we had been friends since we were teenage college athletes in Madison. Mike’s son Josh ‘Aquaman’ Brin was a talented and enthusiastic athlete. Josh and Magnus gave us a strong nucleus to build a team around. Kinda like D-Wade and Chris Bosh. We were lucky enough to land a few other really talented second and third graders, and we had a fun and successful season, even before the snacks.
Season 3. We were really upping our snack game by then.Me and Magnus, Mike and Josh Brin, Josh and Hudson Hunt. All 3 of the guys in the back row were UW Badger athletes, which meant we knew how to recruit. (You do it with cupcakes.)
The Curve Ball
In 4th grade, COVID-19 hit. And the program was canceled for the year. Boo. But Magnus was desperate to play football. So we were allowed to enroll him in the 5th grade Mequon-Thiensville Cardinals tackle football program, where he played up a grade as a tall and eager 4th grader. The boys played with face masks over their face masks, which looked funny and may have had no practical effect, but it made everyone feel better about playing football during a global pandemic. No kids got sick. And I got to sit in the stands, 6 feet apart from other fans, and cheer through a mask like a normal COVID-era parent.
At this point, I thought I was finished coaching. I enjoyed the season as a fan only. (Not to be confused with Fans Only.
When Magnus was in 4th grade, he played tackle football with 5th graders, And I got to cheer in the stands with Dawn. I also got to wear flip-flops without a fear of getting cleated.
Magnus and a little wind machine for the hair.
Back On Track
That spring, I made a much bigger coaching commitment and started coaching high school track and field. My daughter Ava Albrecht was a freshman at Homestead High School in Mequon, Wisconsin. And I knew that I knew more about throwing the discus and putting the shot than most Mequonians. The flag football coaching experience made me think I could handle track. After all, when you coach throwing, you simply coach technique. There is no strategy. Or defense. Or concussion protocol. Go track!
Tackling Tackle Football
When Magnus entered 5th grade I was asked to help coach his tackle football team. I was reluctant because of the time commitment, especially on the heels of a long track season that went almost to July and left me with just 1 month without coaching obligations. But my coaching confidence was growing. So, I agreed to coach part-time. I was another warm body there to supervise kids and help run drills. I cheered a lot. And I tried to make it fun. For much of the season we only had 16 kids available. So we could only run 8 vs 8 scrimmages. Which was pretty silly. But I like silly.
5th Grade. And We’re back together for Cardinal Rules football.
Jumping Into The Deep End Of The Pool.
When Magnus entered 6th grade my friend Josh Hunt volunteered to become the team’s head coach. Josh played football at the University of Wisconsin and had a lot of coaching experience. He asked me if I would be willing to be the defensive coordinator for the team. I agreed. Because Josh is a nice guy and didn’t seem like the type to burn my house down if I made some mistakes.
Realer Than Real Deal Holyfield
That’s when coaching got real. The slow build of casual coaching obligations helped lead me to a very real coaching position. Suddenly, I would be preparing for every week by watching game film of the teams we would be playing that week. I sketched out every unique formation and play the upcoming opponent ran, noted who carried or caught the ball, how frequently they ran each play, and generally how effective it had been. This represented a huge increase in both my time commitment and my emotional investment. I started to understand why Bobby Knight threw chairs and why Mike Leach went off on a seemingly insane rant about the players fat little girlfriends. Now I certainly don’t condone their behavior. But I started to understand it.
In practice, I taught our team the opponent’s plays and devised strategies to defend against them. Then, on Sundays, I watched our own game film from Saturday and marked up all of the footage on software called Hudl to show what we did right, what we did wrong and how to do things better the next time. I learned that those 3 lessons are the basic pillars of coaching.
I spent more time than I care to admit watching game film, preparing defensive strategies and developing lineups each week. It was a significant commitment. But I loved coaching this group of boys. And I loved spending so much additional time with Magnus.
6th Grade. And one of my favorite photos. If you look closely you can see my knee next to Magnus’ (#55)
So I raised my hand to do it again in 7th grade.
We had a great season in 7th Grade. This was after our last game of the season. Every team should end the year feeling like this.
And again in 8th grade.
For the past four years, from August through October, football has been an intense focus for me. I felt the pressure that comes with being an amateur coach in a high-profile team sport like football. So I prepared as much as I could to help give the boys an edge in the games. Sometimes it really helped. Sometimes it didn’t seem to help at all. This was either because our opponent was so good at doing what they do that we couldn’t stop them, or because they were bigger, faster and stronger than us, and we couldn’t stop them. But either way, I always felt as if I did all I knew to do to prepare our team for each game. And I learned a little from each win and each loss. Which meant that I found a way to win no matter what the outcome was.
Magnus’ 8th grade season. My last year coaching football. And the first time Magnus was taller than me..
The 10 Best Things About Coaching Football.
1. Winning. There is nothing quite like winning a team sport.
2. Being called Coach. For years, I have been called Coach in our community. It’s always fun and surprising for someone who never expected to coach anything to be called that on the sidewalk, in the schools, and in stores and restaurants. It feels both respectful and as if you had a positive influence on a child’s life. It also makes me feel like I should be wearing a whistle everywhere I go.
3. The Brotherhood: Seeing these boys support each other and coming together as a strong team is amazing. Hearing the stories of them sitting together at lunch at school is rewarding. And knowing how close I still am to the guys I played football with makes me excited for them and the relationships they are forging through their collective football experience.
4. Hearing our defense call out the opponent’s offensive formation and the play they are about to run during a game. It meant the boys were paying attention in practice, they recognized what they were seeing and were prepared to defend the play. I loved that.
5. Stops in the backfield: Quarterback sacks and stuffed runs were the big wins for a defensive coordinator. We have had plenty of those over the past few years. It was a thrill every time.
6.Blocked Punts and Kicks. These have a huge impact on the game. They are magical gifts from heaven. Magnus had a slew of these during his Cardinal football career. And I discovered that a slew is the same amount in both the English and Metric system.
7.Interceptions: These are mission-accomplished plays. They are never not exciting.
8. The Funny Kids: Football is a serious game. But I love the kids who brought their sense of humor to practice and made us all laugh. The funnies often create stronger memories than the wins.
9. The Intense Kids: These kids set the tone for the team at practice and in games. They helped get the team mentally prepared to go to work. I always admired the mentality these winners brought to the field.
10.The Respectful Kids. The kids who responded to all coaching with Yes, Coach and No Coach, who looked you in the eyes, and who asked intelligent questions were a pure pleasure to work with and a sign of good parenting.
Key Takeaway
If you have a chance to positively impact the lives of kids, do it. Coaching, mentoring, volunteering, teaching, chaperoning. All of it helps. And you will get just as much out of it as the kids. Our youth can never have too many positive adult influences in their lives. And you gain by sharing your time, talent and knowledge with others. Don’t worry that you don’t know enough. Raise your hand and learn as you go. That’s what I did. And I can’t imagine my life without this chapter, these experiences, and these boys.
*If you know someone who could benefit from this message, please share it with them.
Adam Albrecht Blog 