Blogs

  • Honest Feedback

    Accepting honest feedback is crucial for improvement. You should welcome it as much as possible. A lot of times people will have a different perspective than you or even have more experience or expertise in a particular field than you. You should want their honest feedback.

    The key word in honest feedback is “honest”. The key component of honest feedback is trust. You have to trust that the person giving you feedback is being honest and that they have your best interest in mind. You have to also trust that this person knows what they are talking about. You have to trust yourself to make the appropriate changes once getting the feedback also.

    The thing I like about golf is that it’s very technical. You have to do the right thing every time you hit the ball. A good thing about golf is that you can get instant feedback from your trainer or friends that you golf with. At times it feels like you’re doing everything right, then you hit the ball and it doesn’t go where you intended. When you have someone there to watch you swing, they can tell you what adjustments you need to make in order to improve on your next swing. Those who listen will improve as they go through the golf course. Those who don’t listen will continue to practice bad habits and not improve. The same goes for all sports. Dealing with honest feedback is key to being coachable in general. A lot of the time it’s the athlete who can handle feedback and make the adjustments who will be the best player.

    You can’t take honest feedback personal, and you have to understand that there are others out there who might know more than you, or see something that you can’t see that needs to change. Embrace the feedback. The best thing you can say to honest feedback is “ thank you”. After that, incorporate the feedback and continue to move forward.

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  • Never stop learning

    No matter how old you are, you should never stop learning. The kids who read books and continue to learn during summer vacation will return to school more advanced than the kids who do not read or learn anything during their break.

    I used to think that most of learning was associated with school, but I feel as if I have learned more after graduating college than what I did while in college.

    It’s key to find out how you learn. Then you will be able to teach yourself things. Once you can do that, the sky is the limit. I’m at the point that if there’s anything that I want to know or learn, I can find a way to learn it. There is always something new you can learn that will help you in life. It might make you more valuable as an entrepreneur or employee, or make you a more wise and knowledgeable person overall.

    I’ve now been out of school for five years. I can’t imagine not deliberately learning new things since then. A lot of things in life I’ve also had to relearn. I think it’s good to brush up on things that you we learned throughout your life. Never know when it will come in handy.

    It’s never too late to learn new things. It’s never too late to go back to school either, if that’s what you feel would be most beneficial for you.

    Make it an effort to learning new things everyday. It can change the trajectory of your entire life.

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  • The early bird gets the worm

    The saying “the early bird gets the worm” is a cliché nowadays, but it is the truth nonetheless. It is important to start something early to maximize the potential outcome.

    Lately for me, I’ve realized that in order to achieve everything that I’d like to achieve in a single day, I have to wake up much earlier than I normally do. Something as simple as waking up two hours earlier than usual will give me the appropriate time to do all of my tasks in a timely and less stressful manner.

    As I think about my life, most of my success has come whenever I wake up early and chase my dreams. In high school I would have to wake up early and workout before school started. This helped me become a better athlete. I had to do the same in college. Whenever I’ve gone to church throughout my life, majority of the time I had to wake up early. This has made me a better man of God. If I’m up super early, I’m doing something productive.

    We all have things that we’d like to do, but we always make the excuse of not having enough time. We also have a lot of great ideas and goals, but often we do not act on them as soon as we should. We should act on our ideas and goals as early as possible.

    The competition is out there, and they want that worm just like you do. They might even be willing to be the early bird. I don’t know what your “worm” is in life, but make sure you’re the early bird to get that worm. If you arrive first, you have a better chance than those who arrive late. Go get it.

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  • Good things are supposed to happen

    At times you might catch yourself anticipating bad things to happen to you in your life. You might brace yourself for bad news like not getting the job you interviewed for, deaths, breakups, bad doctor results, things not working out in your favor, anything.

    Good things are supposed to happen to all of us. Expect the best outcome out of all situations, even in a time of crisis. I have noticed that when I expect good things to happen to me, my mood is better. I become an overall happier person. I always think of the best outcome in every situation. I will get that job. I will have a good game. I will achieve my goals, etc.

    Control whatever you can control, and count on good things to come your way. Don’t have a pessimistic mindset. Have a realistic mindset. If bad things come your way, look and see if any of your actions played a part. If so, correct those actions for next time. If bad things out of your control come your way, accept them and just make the next right move. The bad doesn’t last forever. Good things will happen to you.

  • What’s inside of you?

    The future of a seed is inside of the seed. The seed contains the future plant or embryo which develops into seedling under appropriate conditions. It might look like a small seed at first, but over time the seed can grow into a large tree.

    We are like seeds. Dr. Myles Munroe once said “Your future is not ahead of you, it’s trapped within you”. So what gifts, purposes, ideas and skills are inside of you? Discover them and develop them. Tap into your blessings within you and show the world. Most importantly, show yourself.

  • You are what you consume

    Everyone has heard the saying “you are what you eat”. That’s a true statement. It goes beyond that though. Other types of consumptions matter also. Things like media, social media, music, books, etc.

    You have to be mindful of everything that you consume. You may want to be a certain type of person or have goals that you’d like to reach in life. Make sure what you’re consuming is consistent to that. When I wanted to be a good football player, I had to consume a lot of football film. All of the great players I’ve been around watched a lot of film. I also had to be around other likeminded and driven individuals. It’s a must.

    What you consume on a daily basis is influencing you rather you like it (or know it) or not. Want to be a better man of God? Read the Bible. Want to feel better in general? Consume positive things like self-help books, positive music, podcast, anything.

    Most of what you consume is a choice, just like what you to eat is a choice. Consume the things that put you in the right direction to reach your goals and aspirations.

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  • Prove them right

    A lot of times we want to prove people wrong. We worry about those who doubt us or don’t believe in us. Don’t focus your energy on them. Don’t worry about trying to change their minds about you.

    Prove those who believe in you right. Listen to their words of encouragement and focus your energy on that. Prove God right. He said you can do all things through Christ.

    Prove yourself right most importantly. Make sure you believe in yourself and know all that you are capable of. Give yourself positive affirmations. Be careful not to think negatively about yourself, cause you still might prove yourself right.

    There’s people that believe in you. Prove them right.

  • Wait your turn

    Stay patient until your opportunity comes. Do the things that are necessary for you to be ready when it’s your turn.

    When I first got to college I thought I was good enough to start at running back as a true freshman. My freshman year I was red shirted (didn’t play) until the middle of the season. When I did play, it was only on special teams.

    As a sophomore, I knew I would be the starting running back that season. When the season began, I was fourth on the depth chart and still only playing on special teams. That was fine. I was just waiting for my turn.

    Five games into the season of my sophomore year, my head coach decided to start me at running back. The game that I started changed my life. I rushed for almost 300 yards and had four touchdowns. The rest was history.

    Things didn’t happen as fast as I wanted them to, but I knew for sure my time was coming. To “wait your turn” means you know you have a turn coming. If you don’t, you have to make your turn. You do that by putting in the hard work and being the best version of yourself. The opportunities will come after. I didn’t play on offense at the beginning of my college career, but I still put the work in and made sure to contribute on special teams. That was part of me waiting for my turn, as well as making it my turn. I was able to show my athletic ability and show my effort and passion for football.

    While you wait for your turn, you still have to be productive. You should also cheer for whoever turn it is before you. You should want them to be successful because that means that you can be successful also when it’s your turn. I loved to see other running backs perform well in a game. I knew when it was my turn I would do the same (actually I knew I’d do even better LOL).

    Have faith in God and yourself, and wait your turn. It will come. Just make sure you’re ready when it does.

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  • You cannot retire from your gift

    A bird never retires from flying. A fish never retires from swimming. You’ll never retire from your gifts.

    Me being good at football was never my gift. My gifts helped me be good at football, but I’ll still have them way after playing a sport. We all have God-given gifts within us. You don’t retire from your gifts like you would a job. They are with you forever (or until God says so). You have to choose when and how you use those gifts.

    You also have to know that you have gifts to use in the first place. What were you good at as a kid? What came natural to you? What was purposeful for you and brought you happiness? Those gifts are still inside of you, it’s up to you to use them.

    Never let a job, a person, or a situation dictate what gifts you have and when you can use them. You’ll have your gifts forever. Use them in whichever way you want, as long as it’s for something positive.

    Know your worth. Know your gifts. Use them constantly.

  • Start with a walk

    You might want to begin your fitness journey and don’t know where to start. Start with going on walks. It gives you a good foundation to build on.

    A lot of times we get overwhelmed when we see all that we have to do when it comes to achieving a new goal or task. It’s key to break things down into simpler task. They say there is only one way to eat an elephant: a bite at a time.

    Start with a short walk daily, then gradually increase your walking duration. Then maybe start to walk and jog. Then maybe jog the entire time. It’s just about doing out there and doing something, and then building on that. The small action of going on a walk can give you the right confidence and momentum to achieve your bigger goals, such as weight lifting on the regular or losing weight.

    I like to start my day or workout with a walk outside. I think it helps reduce my stress and anxiety. Walking is one of those simple/ enjoyable things that we don’t do as often as we should anymore because we now have a lot of other vehicles to get us around. Nothing beats an old-fashioned walk though.

    Rather you’re trying to start your fitness journey, or just want to start your day off on a positive note; start with a walk.

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