When you only look at the final scores from any sporting event, whether it's baseball, basketball, hockey, football, golf, tennis, swimming or any other event, it's sometimes hard to tell what happened during the game or competition where the winner was ultimately determined.We can look at recent games where the outcome was decided by one run, one basket, one goal, one stroke or one one-hundredth of a second. And then we can look at other final scores where it was an obvious blowout and a huge difference in the final score.Either way, at the end of the day and regardless of the difference in scoring, large or small, someone comes out with a win and someone else walks away with a loss.Now some may argue that it's not how you win, a win is just a win. And others may say that it doesn't matter how they lost, it will still go on their record as a loss. I believe we can learn from both the wins and the losses as well as the close games and matches that could have gone either way.Let's look at the blowouts first. Was one team better prepared than the other? Were they outcoached? Maybe the talent and competencies were far greater and stronger for one opponent compared to the skill levels and ability of the other. Or perhaps, they were just outplayed on that given day.And if we look at the close ones, the events where the win was decided by the slightest of margins, what was the difference there? Can we say the same things about being prepared, coaching and talent? Can we say that one team or individual showed up and just outplayed the other? Or is it something else?Could that something else be effort? When we look at the schedules for professional athletes it's easy to see how a team or player can maybe lose a little focus or effort when they play so many games and travel so often to different cities. Maybe they can become physically and emotionally drained and the effort suffers from time to time or at least becomes compromised.But what about you and me, the non-professional athlete? We work day in and day out, some of us travel often for our job, most of us commute at some level and deal with traffic and other challenges, and others of us are caregivers and have our days filled with chores and tasks that completely consume us. Some days we feel like we have won the battle by a landslide and it was easy, and other days we feel like we just squeaked by with a win. And yes, there are those days where we feel like we got blown out.The questions we have to ask ourselves are these, "Did I come ready to play today?" "Was I prepared as well as I could have been?" "Is there someone who could help me, maybe a coach or a mentor?" "Are there skills or competencies that I need to develop that could make my job or my role easier and help me to become more effective?" "Did I give it my very best effort?" "What is my competition doing just a little better than I am?"There is an old quote, "Talent without effort breeds mediocrity." And just like professional athletes or athletes and artists at any level, if we have the skills and talent but don't bring the effort, we will always be chasing our dreams and goals as we subject ourselves to mediocrity. It's when we bring that extra effort that we begin to pursue our dreams and goals and stop chasing them.There is a champion in all of us. Some days we win, some days we lose, but it's the champion's attitude and effort that makes the difference in determining whether we win or lose. So how about you? Are you bringing that extra effort every day? I would love to hear all about it at gotonorton@gmail.com, and when we recognize that we control whether we win or lose, it really will be a better than good week.Michael Norton is a resident of Castle Rock, the former president of the Zig Ziglar Corporation, a strategic consultant and a business and personal coach.
from Lakewood Sentinel - Latest Stories http://lakewoodsentinel.comhttp://douglascountynewspress.net/stories/Big-victories-require-serious-effort,213001?branding=15
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