Charging Into The Storm

Me and 2 of my sons

Phew, what a weekend! All you see here are three smiling faces; what you don't see is the pain, difficulty, arguing, and mental fight it took to get to this point. This was the crescendo of our soccer season, all 17 kids and 3 coaches had worked hard since August to get to this moment. Since my kids started playing sports I have been assistant coaching for them. In the last 2 years, we have done well and made it to this final round of the tournament, only to lose it in a close battle. I've seen the tears run down the kid's faces and felt the hurt for them. As the whistle blew at the end of the game on Sunday there was that moment of disbelief that turned into tears of joy, as they realized they fought just hard enough to win.

When we woke up on Sunday morning (2nd day of the tournament), my son told me he did not want to play goalie anymore. I told him, you do what the coaches decide is best for the team, and if you are what they believe is the best option there, then you do it and you give it your all. In addition, I warned them. I told them that every game so far has been a battle. Most games won by 1 goal or a tie. These teams are good and we are going to be in for a battle. You played 3 shortened games on Saturday and have 1 more short game before the semi-finals. When you get to the finals you are going to have to dig deep, it will be the 6th game played over the course of 2 days. When your legs hurt you are going to have to push harder for a few more moments. This is when you prove how much you want it.

As I yelled from the sidelines player movements and switches I saw something amazing click. In the first 10 minutes, the team strung together several great passes to lead off with a 1-0 lead, only to be crushed right before the end of the half with a tying goal. Coming off the field the team was down, but not out. We encouraged them as coaches, pulled them together, and once again told them to dig deep. As we entered that 2nd half it was clear, both teams were digging, 20 minutes ticked by and there was not a goal to be seen. Then something sparked. My son, who did not want to play goalie, dove to his left, stretched out his hand and narrowly deflected what would have been a leading goal. I only wish I could print the picture from my mind.

The other team' got a corner following the deflection, and we marched it back down the field, and with just about 8 minutes to go, it happened. We blasted one on goal and in an effort to stop it, their player put it in the back of the net. As we shifted to defensive mode, those last 8 minutes slowly wound down, and finally, that whistle blew to end the game. Making this team Tournament champs on top of their Division Championship, leading to these smiles, and looking forward to the next season.

Why does all this matter today? Well, I'm tired with a crackling voice this morning, but the sports lessons apply so much to everything in life. We started the season not even sure we would have a team. Those 17 players on an under-19-year-old (U19) team were made up of everyone from 7th grade up to seniors in HS (about half playing up 1 or 2 levels), men and women, skilled and newly skilled. The focus was the same every time, one game at a time, and the team slogan that we proudly chanted, "Knock and Move." Use your team, trust your team, and play together. It wasn't always pretty, it certainly wasn't always easy, but they overcame much adversity and charged into the storm together.

No matter what you are working on you have to charge into the storm. You have to face the hardships, face the battles, and be prepared when adversity comes your way and charge through it. Be ready for what you may face, but do not quit, do not give up, push through it. Is it always going to go the way you want it to? No, definitely not, but I would rather lose the battle knowing I gave it my all, than lose, having quit halfway through. If you lose, learn from it, and go after it again. It is not time to quit!

Up for the battle!

1) Set the goal in your sites!

2) Put a plan in place to achieve the goal

3) Determine the risks and obstacles you will face

4) Communicate the plan

5) Execute the plan

6) Lead through the storm

The best way to face a storm is to charge into it and go! What is your battle? What are you facing? Are you ready to take the steps above? Need help? We all need a coach sometimes to make us think differently, get out of our own heads, work out a plan, and find the path through the storm.