Tonight I will be attending a Fantasy Football draft "party." I don't know if the word party is the best noun available for what we'll be doing tonight. Neither is celebration or bash. It's more of a social gathering - like male bonding - but no one would dare call it that.
I'm actually kind of excited about playing Fantasy Football this year. I've played in the past and it's never turned out well for me. I'm too much of a homer and I draft players with my heart, not with my mind, which is I why I'm adamantly trying to trade-up to have the first pick in the draft so I can take Aaron Rodgers. I'm sure Rodgers will be available in my original #7 position, but I can't stand the anticipation in knowing that he could be someone else's team. I probably will lose all interest in this league if Rodgers isn't on my team. My best guess right now is that I'll have 4-5 Packers players on my roster, meaning I probably won't win this league because I'm too loyal. What's a Packers fan to do, though? It's my cross to bare cheering for the green and gold and I wouldn't have it any other way. Those who cheer for other teams can't identify. Only Packers fans understand.
The media has done a very good job marketing Fantasy Football. ESPN has programs devoted to it. Magazines, books and websites are created only for Fantasy Football. It's really very ridiculous if you think about, but at the same time, it's not. Human beings' souls crave for community and men are not exempt. Somehow, our culture has decided that it's macho or manly when a man avoids community, fellowship or commitment. I don't understand why. I think it has something to do with our society telling guys that they need to be consumers to be "men" (drink a lot of beer, sleep with a lot of women, drive cool cars and trucks, take as much as you can and stake your claim), but to be a man we need to be contributors.
If Fantasy Football was called Fellowship Football or Friendship Football, no one would sign-up to play. Call it Fantasy and it becomes the land of make believe. Every man has fantasies, right? This time, the real fantasy actually isn't a fantasy at all, it's fact. Obviously, the whole coaching a make believe team is not real, but the fact that men crave fellowship and community is the single reason it has turned into such a large market in this country.
So, fittingly enough, I'll be going to our church for our Draft Party. We'll eat wings and pizza (duh, of course we will) and talk about a football fantasy world, but we will also be bonding and building meaningful friendships...don't tell anyone.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Stayin' busy?
"Are you stayin' busy?" This seems to be the most frequent question I receive from individuals who inquire about my involvement at Victory School of Wrestling. Many of them follow up this question with something along the lines of, "well, as long as you're staying busy..." or "all you can ask for is to be busy..." as if being busy is a good thing. In their eyes, being busy means that you're successful, but not in mine. I don't want to be busy, I want to be productive.
This mindset reveals a lot about the condition of our society and the culture of youth sports - in our case, youth wrestling. The busier we seem to be, the more successful we think we are. This couldn't be further from the truth. Parents sometimes believe that if their son/daughter practices more, they'll win more. Wrestle in more tournaments, in more states, and your son/daughter will have a bright future. Wrong, again.
Our young athletes are participating in sports and living their lives at an unsustainable pace. We call it normal to place children in positions with an abundance of stress and pressure. It's normal for a youth wrestler to compete in far more competitions than our top collegiate athletes. Kids have schedules that are over committing themselves to things that don't matter while sacrificing time for things that do matter. There is very little margin for error in the most important areas in the lives of young athletes.
Young athletes today fill their lives with things that don't matter, making the small things supreme things, like they never have before. I don't think it's as much their fault as it is their parents, though. There are so many opportunities for kids to become the best today (never mind the future), but there's no time for character or spiritual development.
Kids are quitting youth sports at alarming rates because they have no margin in their lives (I can't say that I blame them). Fun is replaced with expectations and pressure to succeed and development is replaced with immediate gratification.
Margin is the difference between our "load" and our "capacity." It's the amount available beyond what is necessary; the difference between what you have and what you need. It's enjoying what you're doing. It's having the emotional capacity to deal with problems when they come up. It's having a few nights a week with nothing on your schedule. It's extra time to invest in others; time to think, reflect, meditate or dream. It's being able to spend significant time with God. Margin is what most of us don't have because we're simply too busy. The irony is that the most significant things in life happen in the margin. It is time to fight against the pull of culture (see Ephesians 5:15-17 below).
Andy Stanley wrote a book called The Best Question Ever and he said the best question we can ask ourselves when we're making a decisions is, "is it wise?" Not is it right or do I have time or what is everyone else doing, but in light of future hopes and dreams, is it wise? Before you make a decision to add another practice, event or competition to yours or your child's schedule, do you ask if it's wise?
By possessing a "production mindset," we often miss the moment. We feel like if we don't have something on the schedule, then we're being unproductive or missing out on something that will push us to the next level or even provide a sense of fulfillment. We believe we have to be busy, but busy doesn't equal productivity. Busy doesn't mean important. Busy isn't meaningful. Just because you have time to do something doesn't mean you should.
We must learn, in courage and faith, to say "no" to many good things so that we can say "yes" to the best things. Too many good things quickly become the enemy of the best things. Is it wise? Do you (and your children) have time in your life for what really matters? Do you have margin? Don't let anyone else talk you out of what's most important.
Some of the content above is taken from the series "Margin" by Craig Groeschel of LifeChurch.tv.
This mindset reveals a lot about the condition of our society and the culture of youth sports - in our case, youth wrestling. The busier we seem to be, the more successful we think we are. This couldn't be further from the truth. Parents sometimes believe that if their son/daughter practices more, they'll win more. Wrestle in more tournaments, in more states, and your son/daughter will have a bright future. Wrong, again.
Our young athletes are participating in sports and living their lives at an unsustainable pace. We call it normal to place children in positions with an abundance of stress and pressure. It's normal for a youth wrestler to compete in far more competitions than our top collegiate athletes. Kids have schedules that are over committing themselves to things that don't matter while sacrificing time for things that do matter. There is very little margin for error in the most important areas in the lives of young athletes.
Young athletes today fill their lives with things that don't matter, making the small things supreme things, like they never have before. I don't think it's as much their fault as it is their parents, though. There are so many opportunities for kids to become the best today (never mind the future), but there's no time for character or spiritual development.
Kids are quitting youth sports at alarming rates because they have no margin in their lives (I can't say that I blame them). Fun is replaced with expectations and pressure to succeed and development is replaced with immediate gratification.
Margin is the difference between our "load" and our "capacity." It's the amount available beyond what is necessary; the difference between what you have and what you need. It's enjoying what you're doing. It's having the emotional capacity to deal with problems when they come up. It's having a few nights a week with nothing on your schedule. It's extra time to invest in others; time to think, reflect, meditate or dream. It's being able to spend significant time with God. Margin is what most of us don't have because we're simply too busy. The irony is that the most significant things in life happen in the margin. It is time to fight against the pull of culture (see Ephesians 5:15-17 below).
Andy Stanley wrote a book called The Best Question Ever and he said the best question we can ask ourselves when we're making a decisions is, "is it wise?" Not is it right or do I have time or what is everyone else doing, but in light of future hopes and dreams, is it wise? Before you make a decision to add another practice, event or competition to yours or your child's schedule, do you ask if it's wise?
By possessing a "production mindset," we often miss the moment. We feel like if we don't have something on the schedule, then we're being unproductive or missing out on something that will push us to the next level or even provide a sense of fulfillment. We believe we have to be busy, but busy doesn't equal productivity. Busy doesn't mean important. Busy isn't meaningful. Just because you have time to do something doesn't mean you should.
We must learn, in courage and faith, to say "no" to many good things so that we can say "yes" to the best things. Too many good things quickly become the enemy of the best things. Is it wise? Do you (and your children) have time in your life for what really matters? Do you have margin? Don't let anyone else talk you out of what's most important.
Be very careful, then, how you live your life - not as unwise but as wise, making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord's will is. - Ephesians 5:15-17
Some of the content above is taken from the series "Margin" by Craig Groeschel of LifeChurch.tv.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
My version of coaching wrestling
The more wrestling opportunities that I'm a part of, the more I realize that the way I coach is different than most wrestling coaches. My personality is constructed in a way that encourages me to challenge the process. I'm confused by this at times because I fit into society very well and have friends and look "normal," but I'm quite different than most people I meet or associate with.
Everything I do in the sport of wrestling is carefully thought of in advance and done intentionally. This alone puts me in a different catergory than most wrestling coaches. I'm not one for doing things the way they've always been done just because they've always been done that way. I enjoy tradition, but I also like to know that I'm doing what is best in every situation. I like to ask why we do the things we do and often times I find that the traditional way of coaching wrestling is not the best way to do it.
Generally speaking, most coaches teach moves; I teach principles. Most coaches try to show athletes how to score points; I focus on controlling and winning positions. There are hundreds of matches taking place within every single wrestling match. I want my athletes to focus on the small "causes" that lead to successful "effects." Wrestling should be approached in a systematic way with small attacks that eventually may or may not lead to an opportunity for a committed attack (e.g., a "shot").
As a culture, wrestling is very bad at applying the scientific method. I enjoy formulating theories within the sport and testing them. If they don't work, I'm quick to try something else. If there are unique correlations, I build on them and continue asking why and formulating more theories that can be tested. For example, I notice that a very large percentage of state champions can successfully execute a round-off to a back flip (tuck or layout). So, I begin to wonder if teaching a round-off to a back flip is more valuable than teaching and arm bar. It's an idea to think about.
Something else that I notice and take initiative to change with my athletes is the lack of attention to the "easy work." As wrestlers, we understand hard work. We lead the sports world with being able to push ourselves hard, but we're not very good at doing easy work. We don't take enough time to stretch properly after practice because it will cut into our live wrestling opportunities. We don't take the time to drill positions well because it cuts into wrestling hard. I could go on and on with this one.
Wrestling coaches continuously watch the wrestlers around them instead of those above them. I choose to watch and study the highest levels of international wrestling and teach my youngest athletes the skills that work there. Our minds are lazy and will not expand if we don't look ahead. I'm shocked by how many youth coaches and high school coaches don't know who represented the US in the Olympics in 2008, or worse yet, even what styles are competed in the Olympics. I talk to middle school girl's basketball coaches and they know everything about the most recent Dream Team, but wrestling coaches don't know the top athletes in their sport. It creates a stagnant environment with very little room for growth.
At Victory School of Wrestling, I can assure you that we systematically go through the positions and experiment with new skills, tactics and positions. Ultimately, I want to teach the wrestlers how to wrestle, not just how to drill well and execute techniques in a fixed setting. They need to adapt to changes and be willing to put together one concept with another and continuously move forward (isn't that a perfect picture of life?). I want them to learn for themselves, not just repeat a system of moves (like a parrott). Everything we do is on purpose. Our wrestling style is very intentional, thoughtful and creative. We teach technique because it gives us a base, but we allow everyone to wrestle to their strengths.
I think I'm different right now, but I see a lot of other coaches who think the same and want to break out of the old mold. Sometimes they just don't understand that they can. There are endless opportunities when you become your own man/woman and coach athletes they way they need to be coached and begin to move away from doing things the way they've always been done.
Everything I do in the sport of wrestling is carefully thought of in advance and done intentionally. This alone puts me in a different catergory than most wrestling coaches. I'm not one for doing things the way they've always been done just because they've always been done that way. I enjoy tradition, but I also like to know that I'm doing what is best in every situation. I like to ask why we do the things we do and often times I find that the traditional way of coaching wrestling is not the best way to do it.
Generally speaking, most coaches teach moves; I teach principles. Most coaches try to show athletes how to score points; I focus on controlling and winning positions. There are hundreds of matches taking place within every single wrestling match. I want my athletes to focus on the small "causes" that lead to successful "effects." Wrestling should be approached in a systematic way with small attacks that eventually may or may not lead to an opportunity for a committed attack (e.g., a "shot").
As a culture, wrestling is very bad at applying the scientific method. I enjoy formulating theories within the sport and testing them. If they don't work, I'm quick to try something else. If there are unique correlations, I build on them and continue asking why and formulating more theories that can be tested. For example, I notice that a very large percentage of state champions can successfully execute a round-off to a back flip (tuck or layout). So, I begin to wonder if teaching a round-off to a back flip is more valuable than teaching and arm bar. It's an idea to think about.
Something else that I notice and take initiative to change with my athletes is the lack of attention to the "easy work." As wrestlers, we understand hard work. We lead the sports world with being able to push ourselves hard, but we're not very good at doing easy work. We don't take enough time to stretch properly after practice because it will cut into our live wrestling opportunities. We don't take the time to drill positions well because it cuts into wrestling hard. I could go on and on with this one.
Wrestling coaches continuously watch the wrestlers around them instead of those above them. I choose to watch and study the highest levels of international wrestling and teach my youngest athletes the skills that work there. Our minds are lazy and will not expand if we don't look ahead. I'm shocked by how many youth coaches and high school coaches don't know who represented the US in the Olympics in 2008, or worse yet, even what styles are competed in the Olympics. I talk to middle school girl's basketball coaches and they know everything about the most recent Dream Team, but wrestling coaches don't know the top athletes in their sport. It creates a stagnant environment with very little room for growth.
At Victory School of Wrestling, I can assure you that we systematically go through the positions and experiment with new skills, tactics and positions. Ultimately, I want to teach the wrestlers how to wrestle, not just how to drill well and execute techniques in a fixed setting. They need to adapt to changes and be willing to put together one concept with another and continuously move forward (isn't that a perfect picture of life?). I want them to learn for themselves, not just repeat a system of moves (like a parrott). Everything we do is on purpose. Our wrestling style is very intentional, thoughtful and creative. We teach technique because it gives us a base, but we allow everyone to wrestle to their strengths.
I think I'm different right now, but I see a lot of other coaches who think the same and want to break out of the old mold. Sometimes they just don't understand that they can. There are endless opportunities when you become your own man/woman and coach athletes they way they need to be coached and begin to move away from doing things the way they've always been done.
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