Learning to love the process

 

After every basketball game my team lost when I was young, my dad would ask me what I could do to help the team win. My first response usually was to blame another player, but that was not an acceptable answer to my father. He wanted me to reflect on the game, think about my performance, and then decide what I needed to do to help the team win.

When I had identified something that could have been improved, his next question was, how you are going to fix it. As a result, I spent many days at the schoolyard shooting jumpers or thinking about the proper way to defend a player.

This practice of identifying improvements is one I have kept my entire life. After finishing any project or teaching a class, I think about what I need to change the next time. It has become second nature for me to admit my failures and learn from them. I have even taken the process a step further by asking students to evaluate me after every class.

When I grew older, the question became how I could help my teammates become better players. This forced me to think about their strengths and how to use these strengths to help us win. Again, I had to reflect upon what was happening on the court.

What I started to realize is that if you really want to win, you need to analyze the process. The process is going to change depending on different variables, and you need to be very flexible with your thinking.

The challenge for all of us is to open our minds to change. Remember, the best time to change is when things are going well, because you usually have the confidence and resources to make these changes work.

As always, I appreciate your feedback.