The Coach's Corner

Shaun White and Focus

The drizzle of snow had turned into a blizzard.  Visibility was now a major distraction.  As Shaun White pondered the pressing conditions before him, he also considered the opportunities that had been lost.  His first two runs had ended in disaster with falls at the end of both runs.  This night – Finals Night in the men’s snowboarding superpipe event at Winter X Games 13 – belonged to him, but it was slowly fading away.  With a hungry Kevin Pearce in the lead and tasting a Winter X Games gold medal, Shaun White threw his helmet down after his second run in disgust, and exclaimed, “I’m going to put this next one down.  I’m over it.  I’m going to land this thing.”

The next few moments were critical to his success.  Would he be able to conquer this mountain in these conditions?  Would he be able to forget the past runs and prepare for a successful run?  Could he trust his abilities in the moment and not be frozen by fear?

The answer was “Yes!” becoming the first person to win back-to-back Winter X Games gold medals in the superpipe event and also achieving the most X Games medals in the history of the competition.  Throughout his career, he has been able to focus on the goal and conquer it.   Afterwards, White revealed, “I thought about falling.  I just kind of blanked that all out.  That was not even an option.”

Going into the night, he could never had predicted the evening would come down to this – a third and final run to make history or to come up short.  In life, we can never predict when the defining moments in our lives will happen.  We can, however, be prepared for these moments so that we are not surprised when the moment is upon us.  For Shaun White, he was prepared.  His ability to focus ON the moment before him allowed him to have focus IN the moment and nail his final run.

Consider this key question: How are you preparing for the defining moments in your life?  More specifically, here are three questions that can help block out the distractions and allow you to focus on the moment:

• What’s at stake?
• Who else is involved and impacted?
• What can you do to make an impact?

For more information on how to focus on the moment, read my blog entry on the Monday Morning Moments web site.

Monday Morning Moments

To support readers of my new book Moments: Making Your Life Count For What Matters Most, we have created a web site called Monday Morning Moments.  Check out this site to discover more about the book as well as to purchase this resource.

We also have a blog on the site that I will update every Monday to inspire, challenge, and encourage people to put into practice the principles in the book.  Click here to check out the latest blog entry.

Moments on KSBJ

I will be talking about my new book Moments: Making Your Life Count For What Matters Most on KSBJ Radio - 89.3 FM in Houston - on Thursday morning.  You can listen to it at approximately 7:15 and 9:15 am.  The interview will also be streamed live on the web at KSBJ.

For more information about the book, check out Monday Morning Moments.

Tim Tebow's Defining Moment

“I just want to say one thing. To the fans and everybody in Gator Nation, um, you know what, I’m sorry. I’m extremely sorry. We were hoping for an undefeated season. That was my goal – something Florida’s never done here.

But I promise you one thing. A lot of good will come out of this. You have never seen any player in the entire country play as hard as I will play the rest of this season, and you'll never see someone push the rest of the team as hard as I will push everybody the rest of this season. And you'll never see a team play harder than we will the rest of this season. God bless."

• Florida quarterback Tim Tebow to reporters after unranked Ole Miss defeated No. 4 Florida 31-30 on September 27, 2008

This press conference was a defining moment for Tim Tebow.  He could have never predicted that this moment would come.  Earlier in the day, he could not even conceive that his team would have lost to Ole Miss.  His plans were to lead his team to an undefeated season and a national championship.  With the dreadful detour of a loss to a lesser opponent, he was faced with the question: Do I let this moment define me, or will I find the strength to define this moment and the moments to come?

The key to defining moments is being prepared for them and expecting that they will happen in our lives.  We cannot always predict when they will happen, but we can be prepared for them.  For Tim Tebow, he had been preparing both on and off the field for anything that life might throw him.  His faith has provided an unwavering source of strength, direction, and peace in his life.  His accomplishments and the life that he leads off the field overshadow all of his accomplishments on the field.  Florida Head Coach Urban Meyer says that everyone who spends time in the presence of Tim Tebow walks away a better person from the experience!

Fast forward from September 27, 2008 to January 8, 2009.  Tim Tebow willed his team to a victory over the Oklahoma Sooners in the BCS National Championship game for college football.  As the game was hanging in the balance and momentum was wavering between the two teams, it was Tebow’s will, belief, and determination that helped him and his teammates gain the victory!  As I was watching the game, I flashed back to the defining moment in September that helped propel him as a leader to focus on the factors that would lead to this victorious moment:

• Learning from the past
• Working hard
• Preparing for and expecting success
• Having faith and belief
• Saying “I Will” and meaning it

It really came down to this quote:

“Learn from the Past, Prepare for the Future, Perform in the Moment!”

For tips, stories, and insights on being prepared for and making the most of the moments in your life, check out my book  Moments: Making Your Life Count For What Matters Most.