Welcome back to It's More Than a Game podcast,
powered by Elite Fit Connect, and I'm your host,
Jalen. And if you've been rocking with me for
the first couple episodes, first and foremost,
I appreciate you. I really do. Whether you're
watching or listening to Spotify, or if your
thing is Apple Podcasts, I appreciate you. Make
sure you follow so you can get the weekly updates
as we drop these episodes. If you prefer the
video format... Make sure you check out the YouTube
channel, right? Elite Fit Connect. Again, this
is video, same podcast, but just in video form.
So if you enjoy that, please go check that out.
For those of you who are new here, the first
thing that I want to tell you is that this is
more than just a basketball podcast or a sports
podcast for that matter, right? We have to understand
that someday the basketball is going to stop
bouncing. Whether you stop playing before you
get to college or you have a 5, 10, 15, 20 year
career in the game, at some point the ball is
going to start bouncing, stop bouncing. Right.
So it's important that you use basketball as
a tool. Right. It's such a great game. And really
anything that you learn, the skills that you
develop, whether they're, you know, the intangibles,
right, like hard work, leadership, things like
that, that can transition into. anything else
in your life, right? So I want to make sure that,
especially if you're a young player today, as
you continue to develop your game and work on
your craft, to make sure you work on everything
else with that, because it's going to help you
on the court and it's going to help you off the
court, right? This is also about leadership,
because I truly think that it's important for
individuals who have been through the game. whether
you played for a long time, whether you're coaching,
whether you're training, whether you're some
kind of organizational owner, you own an academy,
whatever it may be, it's important for us leaders
to make sure we bring back ethics and integrity
to the game. And we truly, you know, put focus
on the younger generation of hoopers, right?
Making sure that everything is being done the
right way. We are 100 % tuned into their player
development and to help them reach their goals
and get to where they want to in life, right?
Because again, at the end of the day, it's more
than a game and it will always be more than a
game, right? This is about life, preparing for
life. This is about leaving a legacy, okay? What
you do as a person does not stop when you leave
the floor. And I find that a lot of players...
kind of lose themselves once they stop playing
the game, okay? And they find themselves lost,
right? They don't know what to do. It's a tough
thing. We all go through it. But I want this
platform to have that, you know, community, right,
for players, whether they continue playing or
they stop playing, right? I want to make sure
that the younger generation understands what
to expect, okay? Today's episode is about leadership,
right? Not just on the court, but... in the locker
room as well, in your community, and more importantly,
in your life, right? And I want to talk about
something that's way bigger than the points that
we score or the wins that we tally up, right?
It's how leaders in this entire basketball ecosystem,
right? And that includes players, past and current
players, trainers, coaches, parents, anyone involved
in the game. How can we guide this next generation
of hoopers to see that it's more than just playing
basketball? It's about knowing the game. It's
about understanding the game and letting the
game teach you about life. So that's what we
want to talk about today. Again, if you're not
following, if you're not subscribed, make sure
you do so. I'm on most platforms, I think, if
not all, right? I have Instagram, EliteFitConnect.
I have Facebook, again, EliteFitConnect. TikTok,
come check me out on TikTok. It's more so for
the players, but I try to... provide valuable
information, tips, guidance, whatever it may
be for the younger generation of hoopers. It's
more personable, right? I don't have to worry
about editing short -form content because we
know that, you know, young hoopers, just kids
in general that have short attention spans. So
really just try to be direct and personable on
TikTok. Also, I have Twitter. I'm not too active
on Twitter. Also, I have LinkedIn. But anyways.
Long story short, just trying to build this community
for the reasons that I mentioned earlier, right?
I want to build this community, make sure that
there are trusted leaders within this space for
the younger generation of hoopers, okay? At the
end of the day, right, we need to understand
what leadership truly means, right? What do you
think of when you hear about leadership, okay?
Through the game and outside of the game, okay?
It could be your favorite player. It could be
some of the best players in the game today. It
could be your coach. It could be, you know, trainers.
It could be players that are doing it right now,
whether they're playing high -level basketball
at the college level or professionally. It could
be your trainers. It could be parents. It could
be anybody, right? Who do you see or who do you
look up to as a leader, okay? We often think
that being a leader is about being the captain
or having the loudest voice on the court, but
that's not necessarily the case, right? Sure,
most of your captains on a team, they're essentially,
you know, the leaders of the team. They're an
extension of the coach on the floor. But at the
end of the day, leadership is just being able
to influence, right? As a person, right, if I
can relate to someone or if someone is where
I want to be in life, right, I'm going to look
up to them and I might go to them. and maybe
ask them to be a mentor or look up to them as
just a leader, right? That person will have an
influence on some of the decisions and actions
that I take, right, currently. Because I have,
like, interests, I have, like, goals, you know,
things like that. So leadership is influence,
essentially, right? For players, really, it's
about you showing up daily, right? Are you setting
the example for your teammates and for anybody
else that's watching you, right? It's going to
involve your effort, your attitude, right? Are
you showing respect to your coaches and other
people that's involved in the game, right? For
your coaches, it's the example you set. Are you
enforcing accountability? Are you making sure
that your kids are doing everything the right
way? However you teach that, right? That's another
conversation, but are you ensuring that your
kids are following? a set of expectations and
the standards that you place on your team or
in your organization, right? It's about communication.
Are you speaking appropriately? Are you speaking
in a way that your kids can understand? Because
a lot of people just talk. They just like to
talk. Sometimes it don't make sense or sometimes
it's not catered for the audience in front of
you, okay? So communicating appropriately is
a big factor in being a leader, okay? And it's
also setting the right values, right? Because
again, you're teaching these kids more than just
what's in between that rectangle on the court,
right? You're teaching these kids life, okay?
And if you truly care about them and if you care
about their overall development, you're going
to help them. You're going to build them up into
becoming great people in this life, in this world,
okay? For trainers, are you training with integrity?
Are you setting the standards? Are you training
with structure, with purpose, with a clear vision?
Are you teaching your kids for growth, right?
Same thing, very similar to a coach, right? Are
you allowing them room to grow? Are you setting
those standards, those expectations up front
so they know what they can get out of the training
session? There are also some trainers out there
and coaches who are in it for the complete wrong
reasons. And we'll touch on that. But it's important
as athletes that, you know, again, We have leaders
in this community who are doing everything right,
not necessarily by the books, but doing everything
for the best interest of these kids. I see a
lot of trainers out there who are just in it
for the money, especially when I talk to them.
There's some red flags that I can gather when
I talk to some of these trainers and coaches.
But it's very clear to see who are the ones that
actually care about these kids the right way.
And then for parents, right, leadership might
look like just, you know, how you parent. Like,
are you modeling resiliency in your kids? Because
there are going to be days when these kids come
home ready to quit. You know, they're discouraged.
They went, maybe they had a bad practice. Maybe
they had a bad game. Maybe the coach yelled at
them. Maybe they made a bunch of mistakes, right?
How are you teaching your kids to go through
moments like this? Because these kids don't just
handle moments like this on the court. It's going
to occur in the classroom. It's going to occur
in life, when they go to school, college, in
the professional world, when they get a job.
How are you building them for resiliency when
they get cut, when they lose their starting spot,
when they lose that job or get passed up on a
promotion? Again, it's more than just a game.
We also go through injuries, something that I
battled during my college career. How do we build
these kids to be resilient? The truth is leadership
is about showing others what matters most. Simple
as that. And in basketball, what matters most
isn't just the stat line, how many points we
put up, how many assists we get, how many wins
we get. It's the lessons the game teaches you
if you are willing to listen. And again, this
kind of goes back to what I said earlier. It's
about communication. Are we communicating the
right way? A good leader knows how to communicate
effectively, right? And they understand that
communicating with one player might look different
than communicating with another. There's no one
size fits all here. Every person is different.
Every athlete is different. Every player will
be different. Even the way you train, right?
There's one thing, the one thing that I harp
on is for trainers is to understand that you
cannot do the same exact workout with one kid
and with another kid. They're just totally different
players. Maybe if you're doing like, you know,
skills or positional training, right? But if
we're talking like true player development, skills
development, you need to train based off of,
where that kid is at in their own journey, what
are their goals, and what skills do they need
to develop. That's not going to be the same for
the next kid and the next kid and the next kid.
That's why it's so important for these trainers
to really be dialed in to their athletes, right?
Some of the best trainers I know, they are always
in the gym watching basketball. They are watching
their players, whether it's through film, going
to their actual games, going to their runs. Or
they're hosting their own pickup runs with some
selected athletes or players so they can visually
see what needs to be worked on. That's just watching
film. Players should be doing that too. But as
a leader, in the perspective of a trainer, you
absolutely need to be completely tuned in to
what your player is doing. There's a comment
that I saw the other day on one of my TikTok
videos saying that Like trainers don't need to
do that. They don't have time to watch film,
to watch video. If you're not doing that, then
what is your purpose? Are you truly developing
as players? Are you just doing random drills
out there, random workouts with a group of kids,
hoping that it sticks with no real explanation,
with no real purpose or vision, right? These
kids have no idea what they're doing, but they
look up to you as a leader. Just because they
don't know, right? And that's the issue to me.
That's a problem that I see in the game. And
that's why I say we need to bring back, you know,
ethics and integrity into the culture of basketball.
It's important, okay? And then this is where
community comes in. Community, right? A leader
in the basketball community isn't just the one
drawing up plays or running the drills, right?
A real leader is the one explaining why. Why
are we boxing out? Why do you need to box out
every play or every time the shot goes up? Why
does your attitude define your character? And
then why is it even more so important for you
to check your attitude when you make mistakes
and when you lose, okay? Because everybody's
watching, especially if you're trying to get
to the next level. If you have a poor attitude
in certain situations, coaches are just going
to write that off. They're going to cross your
name out and then they're going to move on to
that next player. So this is where leaders come
in within that community to really teach these
young kids how to process certain situations
and how to develop not only as a basketball player,
but just as a human being. Why do we need to
watch film? What's the purpose? What are we watching
for? You know, because you're not going to sit
in a film session, you know, watching everything
at once. You're probably going to watch the same
film a few different times, looking at different
things each time you look at it, right? Why is
watching film sometimes more important than being
on the court working on your jump shot? Okay,
these kids need to know the why, not just...
You telling them what they need to do. They need
to understand why. Because there's going to be
a day when they might not have anyone, but because
you were a great leader and you set that foundation,
the standards and the expectations, you built
them through resiliency, they have a great foundation
to work off of, okay? Playing the game and knowing
the game are just two different things. Completely.
Two completely different things. Now, it's one
thing if, you know, if you're just in the game
just because you enjoy playing, right? And you
just, you know, want to go play pickup, play
for fun. People call them civilians, right? But
in order to really thrive in the game and be
successful and get to the next level and reach
your goals, you absolutely have to know the game
through and through, right? And that's one thing
that I kind of wish I focused on more. Coming
up in the game is like really and truly being
a student of the game. I played a lot of basketball
and that's kind of how I built my IQ and my skill
set. I played a lot of basketball. I trained
and then I used that training to test it out
in live basketball and pickup runs and in environments
that forced me to grow, you know, with bigger
and better players, smarter players who have
done it before. So that just forced me and that's
one way we can do it. I do wish that I spent
more time, you know, on the X's and O's and the
theories and the concepts and things like that,
right? Because that stuff makes a huge difference.
You know, you can go watch LeBron James' podcast,
you know, he had one a while ago with J .J. Redick,
now with Steve Nash, but the way they talk about
the game, you know, they don't skip a beat. They
understand the game through and through, okay?
I think last episode I mentioned that I was talking
with a local football trainer and he played,
you know, divisional football, mid -major, I
think. Pretty successful as a player and now
trains, right? He does pretty much anything and
everything in between from, you know, skills
development, strength training, conditioning.
My guy here, he takes kind of a holistic approach
to, you know, personal and player development,
right? And this is the bio. for his account.
Those who see the invisible do the impossible.
The internal change awaits, right? Involution
of the athlete, soulful, purposeful, enlightened.
Doesn't say anything about sports or football
for that matter, but he's talking about just
building yourself wholly, holistically, okay?
And then, you know, if you scroll through the
page, right, you see, you know, clips of workouts.
players that he's worked with that have gone
to the next level. So, you know, he's verified,
you know what I'm saying? Like, he's legit. He's
done it before. So this is Storm Woods with Atholite,
right? So this is, you know, obviously football
jurors and whatnot. He also trains, you know,
older folks, right? Just for, you know, personal
health, personal development, right? I think
that's a great thing. So if you want to go check
this out, I'll say it anyways, and I'll just
let them know. But it is Stormwoods with, at
the, at the light, T -H -E -A -T -H -E -L -I
-T -L -I -G -H -T, I can't spell. I'll put it
on the screen too. And then, you know, I'll call
out some other local, you know, trainers specifically
for basketball that I thoroughly, you know, enjoy
and I believe in, right? So yeah. BTY Basketball,
also known as TPA. The thing about this group
here, or my guy here, I've known him for quite
some time. And I want to say he coached for Texas
Hardwood Prospects way back when. And that was
an organization, an AAU organization that my
dad put together. I'm kind of started with my
last year of summer ball with ATX boys. But with
that team, we, we kind of separated ourselves
from the original ATX boys. We had, you know,
my dad, but our main coach was coach Tim Farley,
RIP. One of the best coaches I had as far as,
you know, caring for players and really, really,
you know, putting all he had into us and getting
us to that next level. Zach, with B2Y Basketball
right here, I think he does a great job at really
showing the amount of work it takes and pouring
into every athlete that he touches. And this
is someone that I would love to partner with,
that I'm trying to partner with, right? And I
think he does a tremendous job at really showing,
Kids, obviously, depending on what level they're
at, but, you know, showing them the right way.
Right. When it comes to skills development, you
know, he posts a lot of clips on here. And the
thing about social media can get a little tricky
because a lot of people just like to throw highlights
and like, you know, the sexy and the fancy stuff.
But when you look through this guy's account
or, you know, this academy's account, you see
some legit training on here. some really, really
good training on here. And, you know, some of
the segments that they have, and his brother,
you know, started making some clips on here too,
but just the thought process, the thought leadership,
it's awesome. And, you know, they're paving out
to be one of the better, if not the best, you
know, academy group of trainers in our area,
right? Simply because of... all that they pour
into, the amount of work and effort that they
pour into it. And, you know, it shows that they,
you know, they truly love the game for one, but
they also truly love player development, okay?
And I think they could care less about anything
else, really. As long as their players are getting
better, developing as athletes and people, and
helping them achieve their dreams, right? I'll
give you a couple more that I really... So I
talked about Tim Farley the last year, my AAU
team. One of my old teammates on that team, Malk,
Malcolm Canada. One of the best players I've
ever played with as an athlete and just as a
person, as a human being, right? So locked in
Malk, right? Really good guy. The homie. Someone
that, you know, I look up to greatly because
I think his story tells a lot. His story is remarkable,
and I'm not going to tell it here, but understanding
his story, and if I was a basketball player,
a young basketball player trying to get better,
trying to get to that next level, Malcolm would
be the guy that I'd be looking up to, right?
Because he's been through it, all the ups and
downs in his personal life and on the court.
He's seen success. He's seen failures. And he's
just a great person through and through. So another
great person. And then lastly, someone else that
I really enjoy keeping up with and someone else
that I'm trying to partner with is with Zach
with B2Y Basketball and Malk with Locked In.
It is JWE, and this is Josh Washington Elite.
This is a former Texas Tech player, but he is
a player development coach. elementary, all the
way up to the NBA, right? He runs this whole
program, his whole academy. He's a faithful man,
follows God, husband, father, as are, you know,
the other individuals that I mentioned. But,
you know, some of the best conversations I had
around the game have been with this dude right
here, okay? And he is super busy, right? He's
managing a ton of athletes, a ton, different
leagues. again, from the youth level to the professional
level. And he is doing some good work, some really,
really good work. He is partnered with Under
Armour, which is great, right? But again, someone
that when you check him out and you peep his
page and learn a little more about who he is
and his philosophy and his vision, someone that
I would follow easily. So huge tangent, huge
tangent. You know, I felt... I felt it was right
to shout out some of these people just because
they're, again, like these are great leaders
in the game that I personally know and that I
even look up to currently. So where were we?
I definitely got lost. So I introduced Storm
with Athlete. And again, he's a football trainer,
right? But he reminded me how powerful it is
when leaders can create spaces where young athletes
can not only learn the skill, but also process
the journey, right? And I think that's the most
important part. Not every kid that you, you know,
interact with or have the opportunity to train
and coach, they're not all going to make it.
You know, and that's just being 100 % honest
with yourself, okay? But knowing that, right,
what else can you do to further their development?
Yes, it's all centered around the sport. It's
all centered around basketball. But, you know,
the things that you teach. Right. Your values
and your standards. Right. All those should be
able to, you know, that should be implemented
into real life. Right. And I think if if you
come with that perspective and that mindset,
you're going to be an amazing leader in the game.
And kids need to understand that this journey
isn't always rainbows and sunshine. OK. Right.
Like the teammate that I mentioned that I had
locked in. Right. I'm out. Right. He went through
hell and back. But now he's in a place where
he's using his experience to give back to the
game, right? The kids need to hear these stories.
They need to understand that you are going to
go through failures. You're going to go through
a lot of downs. We talked about the law of thirds,
right? A third of the time, it's going to be
great. Another third is going to be just boring,
repetitive, mundane. And that final third, it's
going to suck. You know, it's going to make you
want to quit. It's going to question everything,
right? But you have to expect that and be ready
for that and understand that when you go through
that chapter in your life, we're going to get
through it. And it's up to the leaders to guide
these kids through that and teach them how to
overcome all these obstacles. And it's just that,
right? They need to hear that adversity is part
of it. That's part of the game. There's no way
to get around any of that. There's no way, okay?
Politics exists, right? It's more than just what
you do on the court. Your skill and your success
on the court is going to open doors for you and
it's going to get you those looks, right? You
have to be good to play at the next level, but
everything else matters just as much, right?
And that's your character. That's how you are
as a person. It's your community. It's your network.
And that's why it's so important to build your
community or find that community with great leaders
so that they can help you get through those doors.
They're going to put you in the right environment.
They're going to put you in the right situation
where, you know, you can go off and let your
game speak for itself. And then you have people
to back you up and pound the table for you and
be like, hey, I got a kid for you. He's a great
kid. He takes care of his schoolwork. but he
can also ball. This is someone that you need
in your program. That's what people in your network
are going to do for you, okay? And that's why
I harp on the need for a solid network to have
a solid circle around you, and that community
is going to help you get to that next level.
It's going to help you reach your goal. It's
going to help you become a better person, a better
player, okay? That's where leaders in this community
come in, like I said, right? You just don't prepare
kids for the next game. You prepare them for
life through the game, okay? And I bring up adversity,
right? Adversity for players, but, you know,
that adversity is going to turn them into leaders,
right? Clear example of, you know, my old teammate
Malcolm, myself, right? I went through much adversity
through the game from, you know, being the smallest
one on the court, not being the strongest. What
else? You know, just people kind of doubting
me and my success as a basketball player. Not
being, you know, put on varsity as a freshman
when I thought I should have. Right. I had all
these expectations for myself, you know, and
some I didn't meet. Right. You know, me not finishing
my college career, me getting hurt and injured,
me not having a great relationship with my college
coach. All that's adversity. Right. But. I would
not change any of that for the world because
I am who I am today. And I have this platform,
have the experience. I'm able to provide for
my family. I have a beautiful wife and two beautiful
kids, right? Very thankful for where I'm at today
because of the game of basketball. When I got
hurt at West Point, right, I questioned everything.
I questioned my career. I questioned basketball.
You know, I fell out of love with the game. And
I quickly realized that it's okay. It'll be okay,
but it's how you respond to those situations.
And I learned that leadership isn't about how
high you can fly or how athletic you are or how
good you are. It's about how steady you are when
everything goes sideways, right? And that's the
biggest takeaway. That's the biggest growth that
I went through as a hooper, okay? It took some
time. Don't get me wrong. It takes time. And
the best players are the ones who can, you know,
reflect. but then move on quickly and grow from
it and use that as just, you know, stepping stones
to get to that next step or that get over that
next hurdle, right? It's all about learning.
It's all about growth, okay? For players specifically,
like I mentioned, right, how do you respond when
you get benched, when you lose your starting
spot or, you know, you get injured? For coaches,
how do you respond when your team loses 10 games
in a row or you don't make the playoffs or you
lose your key players? For trainers, how do you
respond when your athletes quit or don't show
up? For your parents, how do you respond when
your kid comes home frustrated and wants to give
up, right? So those are key things that you have
to be, you know, willing to go through and address
and respond appropriately, you know, not only
for you, but for everyone that looks up to you,
right? That's when true leadership shows up.
And that's the moment where leaders guide, not
just with words, but through example. Right.
Because, again, if you're not walking the walk,
but you're talking it at some point in that in
your own journey. Right. You're going to get
called out and you are going to fail and it's
going to be really hard to come back from that.
Right. Because that's something that you can
control. OK, so so make sure you're doing you're
doing it right. OK. We talked about the law of
thirds again. Right. And this is something that
every leader needs to really and truly understand
is. You're going to have your highs a third of
the time. You're going to have the boring, the
mundane a third of the time. But then you're
also going to have the sucky times, right? Again,
you have to expect that. And as a leader, sometimes
some people just don't want to follow you, right?
They just don't align with your vision or whatever
it is that you do, right? They might not align,
but that's okay. That's completely okay, right?
You're not doing this to be liked, right, or
to have a popular following. You're doing this
because, one, you love the game, but you also
love seeing the success of these young kids as
they navigate the ins and outs of the game of
basketball, okay? And as long as you keep that
perspective, the ones who are going to show up,
they're going to keep showing up, and they're
going to keep trusting you, and they're going
to keep believing that you're going to help them
develop as a player and as a person, okay? And
it's going to be up to you just to keep going,
keep pushing them, but also allow them the space
to grow, right? You can't force them, but as
long as you give them that space to grow, sometimes
that's the best you can do. For those of you
who don't know, which I'm going to keep it real,
if you don't know who this is, then shame on
you, but John Wooden, right? He has a book on
leadership. And within that book, He talks about
the pyramid of success. And the reason why this
is so important, because in this pyramid, there
are blocks that he focuses on that kind of, you
know, build upwards and are going to help you
reach a level of success in whatever it may be.
And it's not just about basketball. It's about
life, how to be successful in life with whatever
you do. OK, and so for those of you who just
so happen to not know who John Wooden is, right,
he's a. a very well -known basketball coach,
right? And he played way, way long ago, but he
was nicknamed the Wizard of Westwood. He's won
10 NCAA championships in a 12 -year period as
a head coach for the UCLA Bruins, right? Remarkable
coach, remarkable leader, right? And many coaches
today, you know, built their philosophies and
their teachings off of John Wooden, right? So
with this pyramid of success, right, what it
looks like. And if you're watching a video format,
I will throw it up on the screen so you can see.
But we'll also talk about it, okay? So at the
very bottom, you have certain blocks, okay? And
when you look at it, you see that he didn't put
scoring. He didn't put athleticism, anything
like that. At the very bottom of the block, you'll
find industriousness, right? And I'll explain
what all this is too. So you'll find industriousness.
friendship, loyalty, cooperation, and enthusiasm.
So that's the very bottom layer. Okay, so let's
go one by one, right? Industriousness. Industriousness
is really just the way your hard work and your
planning, right? It's dedicated, planned hard
work, okay? Success travels in the company of
the very hardworking people. There's no tricks.
There are no easy ways. It's just hard work.
Friendship, you know what friendship is, right?
When it comes to building a basketball team or
playing with the team, right, you understand
the power of just that community, of that bond,
right? And that's where friendship comes in.
Some of the best teams, right, they're like this.
You cannot tear them apart. Next one is loyalty.
You know what loyalty is? Be true to yourself.
Be true to those you lead, okay? Cooperation,
having the utmost concern for what's right rather
than who's right. Again, that's just having integrity,
having ethics, okay? The last one on the bottom
layer is enthusiasm. Your energy and your enjoyment,
drive, and dedication will stimulate and greatly
inspire others. Again, we don't see athleticism.
We don't see scoring, anything like that. Why
is that? It's because he knew that leadership
was about teaching young men how to be men and
how to live with discipline, humility, and purpose.
And when you look at the top of the pyramid,
I know we're skipping a few layers. You see competitive
greatness at the very top. Competitive greatness.
And that's to perform at your best when your
best is required. And your best is required every
damn day. Simple as that. Right under it, you
have poise and then you have confidence. Again,
right? These are key, key steps, key blocks that
will lead to that competitive greatness. And
that would lead to the overall success of whatever
you do, right? And then under that, we have condition,
skill, team spirit. And then again, under that,
we have self -control, alertness, initiative,
and intentness. And it's clear, right? Again,
you don't see athleticism. You don't see scoring.
You don't see skill -related blocks within this
pyramid. That's what leadership is. Leadership
is not about winning games. It's about preparing
kids for moments in life when their best is needed.
And that can be anything on or off the court.
And that's on us, the leaders in this community,
to teach and to mentor and to guide, okay? So
exactly why I'm doing what I do, right? Through
this podcast, through my social media channels,
it gives me the platform to kind of speak what's
on my mind and talk about the experiences that
I went through, through the game, on and off
the court. But it's all tied to it, right? this
allows me to kind of be a voice, right? And I'm
not saying I'm anyone special. I've just played
the game for a very long time and I've experienced
quite a few things through the game, okay? And
so for people that can relate to me, why not?
Why not have a voice, okay? And then on top of
that, you know, with my business, EliteFit Connect,
a digital platform to streamline all the back
office operations, the admin tasks, the headaches
through scheduling, keeping up with the calendar.
collecting payments, invoicing, messaging, everything,
everything and everything, all that, right? Content
creation, content management, things like that.
This platform alleviates all of that. It takes
that off the plate of the trainer or the coach
so that way they can buy back time, right? So
they can be on the court more to train and develop
their players. Instead of being tied up in all
the admin tasks, right? Because their main priority
is to, you know, develop their players skillfully,
help them grow into amazing people with great
character, okay? Because that's what it's all
about, growth, right? EFC isn't just a tool for
business. It's a tool for leadership. It's built
to free up time and energy so coaches can be
present when they're needed most, okay? on the
floor, in the huddle, in the conversations that
matter, right? And that's true leadership in
my eyes, okay? Yes, it is a tech platform. Sure,
yes. But at the same time, it's built to help
coaches and trainers spend more time on the court
doing what they love most, okay? And that's the
impact that I'm trying to create with EFC, along
with building this community of trusted coaches
and trainers to get back to the game the right
way. As always, okay? I like leaving actionable
steps or some kind of takeaway at the end of
the podcast of each episode to make sure that
we're getting better, we're developing, right?
Especially if you're a young player, okay? Whether
you're a leader on the court, on your team, you're
a coach, you're a trainer, whoever you are, right?
I think this will help tremendously. And these
are some things that I do on a daily when it
comes to leadership. You're always going to have
to teach the why. It's never always what you're
doing, but it's why you're doing whatever it
is. So if you're a leader, don't just tell someone
what to do. Explain why it matters. And that's
how you build understanding. Why is it so important
to watch film? What are you watching? Why are
you watching? That's what a true leader does.
The second thing is start applying these blocks.
the John Wooden's Pyramid of Success. Apply these
blocks and maybe focus on one block maybe for
a week. And then the next week you focus on another
block. So this week, maybe start with loyalty.
And then the next week it's self -control, right?
And you practice living that and then you teach
it, okay? You live it, you model it in your everyday
and then you teach it to your kids, okay? The
third and final thing is, remember, you're not
just coaching. You are a mentor. You are a guide.
You are someone that these kids look up to. So
it's more than just about teaching the game,
okay? Think about different ways that you can
guide someone beyond the game this week. I think
that's an easy thing to do. Maybe it's talking
about just life off the court, right? Maybe it's
about school. Are we putting emphasis on the
work that's needed in the classroom? Because
at the end of the day, if your grades aren't
right, you're not going to go play college ball.
Simple as that. I've known plenty of players
who were great at what they did on the court,
but never played a single game in college because
their grades sucked, right? So are you just coaching
the game or are you guiding them through life,
right? Talk about the character, some things
that they can improve as a person, as a leader,
okay? That's leadership in action, all right?
And the truth of the matter is, right, playing
ball is great. Like it brings, it has brought
such a joy to my life. It's opened so many doors
in my life. Like, I cannot imagine life without
basketball, even now, right? I just go play pickup
and some controlled runs, right? And it still
brings me joy. That's just the game. That's the
beautiful thing about the game. But again, you
have to know the game if you truly want to get
to that next level. You have to understand it,
right? You have to go through all these lessons.
You have to go through all the ups and downs
and expect that and be ready for it, okay? be
willing to learn and grow from those lessons,
right? Because that's where true leadership comes
in. That's where your community comes in to help
you through those times, okay? It's important
for us who have been through it to serve, right?
We got to give back in one way or another, right?
We were fortunate to play the game for so long.
So why can't we just give back and pour into
the younger generation? Whether you're a player,
whether you're a coach, Whether you're a trainer
or a parent, whether you're someone like me going
a different way, you know, it's a podcast, social
media, a tech platform, right? We need you. We
need us, right? Because it's important for us
to guide, to mentor, and to model, right? These
kids, whether it's through basketball or life
in general, right? It's not always about the
highlights or the clout. It's about learning
who they are through the game. and who they can
become from the game, okay? This was It's More
Than a Game podcast powered by Elite Fit Connect.
The third episode, again, we're making movement.
We're making waves. I think this is awesome.
And I get really nervous. I'm not going to lie.
I do get nervous. And that's just me, right?
That's just me. But I think it's because I'm
passionate about the game. I still am. And I'll
always be, right? Again, like I want to make
sure that we build a community of just solid
leaders to give back to the game. OK. And, you
know, you know, maybe next time we can talk about
like, what does talent look like? What does good
talent look like? We can talk about what does
hard work look like, because those aren't necessarily
synonymous. Those are different. Right. And they
can both lead to different things. But I will
say, right, I do think hard work is always going
to tip the scale. That's always going to put
you over the edge. OK, because your talent can,
again, can get you the looks. It can open the
doors. But the hard work and all the other intangibles,
you know, when we look at John Pyramids or John
Wooden's Pyramid of Success, right, when we look
at all those blocks, those are the things that
actually matter. That's going to help you reach
that level of success that you're looking for.
OK, so again, I really appreciate you tuning
in. Check us out on all platforms, social media,
Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, this, that,
and the third. And until then, right, stay consistent,
stay hungry, keep working. Let's continue to
build this legacy, right? Continue to build your
pyramid, and I promise you, you will reap the
rewards. And again, it's been a pleasure. This
is It's More Than a Game podcast, and I will
catch you next week. Peace.