Perspective

After watching a few bowl games over the long weekend I saw a pattern of behavior that I found interesting. Several teams lost after being down big early - 20-30 points behind in the first half - only to make a spectacular comeback in the fourth quarter. They fell short and still lost.

The thing I found interesting was the reaction of the coach and/or "star" player after barely missing a big play that would have brought them closer to a victory. They seemed completely dejected, as though the entire game was dependent upon that one play.

The reality is that if they had played with that same intensity early in the game they would not have been in as deep a hole as they were. I believe we can learn some things from this. Make every play count. Make your best effort before you get behind. Don't allow the cushion of time to keep you from pursuing the goal.

You can call it procrastination or complacency. You can call it lazy or unmotivated. It really doesn't matter how it is explained. The reality is it will require an extraordinary effort to recover from a slow start, and most of the time you will fall short of the goal. Determine now to do your best work. Make the effort now to improve your plan, skills, or work ethic.

My high school basketball coach, Gerald Fikes, used to say, "The best defense is a good offense." When you are scoring points the pressure is place on the opposing team to keep up. You can't always control what others will do. You can, however, determine the level of effort you will give. Make it your best, always, if possible. The game clock will expire one day. Make sure you stay ahead in the game.