How to get your second wind
It was the summer of 1998, and I was hurting.
I was competing in the Bob Gibbons summer evaluation camp, and it wasn't going well.
A few months earlier, I was ecstatic to receive the invitation. Only the country's best players were invited to this event and felt privileged to be one of them.
More accurately, the feeling was less of privilege and more arrogance. I was pretty sure the NBA would be knocking at my door. The haters would soon kiss the ring. Then, I arrived at Mr. Gibbons's camp.
Bob Gibbons was larger than life. He was the National tastemaker for youth basketball. If he gave you his endorsement, the sky was the limit.
My time came to perform in front of Mr. Gibbons that Saturday morning in 1998. The gym smelled of fresh wax and sweat. It was intoxicating.
I can still hear the sounds of shoes squeaking on the floor and basketballs ripping through the net. But, the shoes weren't mine, and I wasn't shooting the basketball. I was sitting on the wall watching the other players. I figured it was more important to size up my competition than to warm up.
Before the evaluation began, I had memorized every player's tenancies. I knew which players preferred to go left off the dribble. Which players started their shot low enough for me to strip the ball before they could get a shot off. I even watched for footwork cues from post players. I was ready with all the intel I needed to outperform my competition.
The whistle blew, and we gathered at center court. The referee explained the evaluation- and we were split into teams. I felt fortunate to have the best player in the evaluation on my team. I figured he would take some defensive pressure off me, and I would look even better to Mr. Gibbons.
The game started and I immediately regretted not warming up. I was out of breath with a side cramp within the first 2-minutes. I was terrified. This was my chance to get Division-1 looks. This was my chance to make a name for myself, and my body was letting me down. I began blaming myself for not warming up like the other athletes. If I had warmed up, my body would have responded better. I wouldn't be in this position.
I suffered through the first half. I scored a few points, but it wasn't what I was capable of. I was sure I would be evaluated as a role player at best. My NBA dreams were disappearing before my eyes.
During half time, I didn't rest like the other players. I knew I had to make up for the lost time. So, I warmed up. I warmed up hard, spending the entire 10-minutes doing full effort drills to get my second wind.
I had learned that you always play better when you break through the first barrier. If you've ever felt the first-mile burn on a run, you may know what I am talking about. The first mile is always the hardest. Once you settle in, things get more comfortable, and your body responds.
Here's the thing, though…
If you want to get your second wind, you have to get to the edge of your first barrier.
When the game started back, I was ready. My body was warm, and my jump shot was feeling good. I finished that evaluation much better that I started and ended up with a positive evaluation from Mr. Gibbons. He predicted that I would be a solid Mid-Major Division-1 talent as long as I gained a little weight and worked on my defense.
I went left the evaluation with a valuable life lesson.
It's better to do your work than it is to sit around evaluating your competition.
As the Irish poet, William Butler Yeats said,
"Do not wait to strike till the iron is hot, but make it hot by striking."
If you want to break through, You must get winded. You must get tired.
It's going to hurt.
Your competition doesn't matter. You can't do anything about their talent. All you can do is improve yourself.
The thing is, the people who have the most stamina are the ones who consistently push themselves to the edge of their comfort zone.
They AREN’T the most talented or the most skilled. They ARE the most relentless in their pursuit of continuous improvement.
Please don't confuse this with being perfect. Perfection is the enemy of improvement.
Perfection is the arrogant brother of procrastination.
The goal isn't to be perfect; the goal is to be perfectly aware.
Aware of when we are doing well and when we are not. When we are aware, we can make changes and apply effort.
Take a moment to think about the areas in your life where you might make the iron hot by striking. You don't have to be perfect; you don't have to wait.