Leading Narratives

  The Alchemist is a novel by Brazilian author Paulo Coelho first published in 1988. Originally written in Portuguese, it has been translated into at least 67 languages as of October 2009. An allegorical novel, The Alchemist follows a young Andalusian shepherd named Santiago in his journey to Egypt, after having a recurring dream of finding treasure there. The book is an international bestseller. It has sold more than 65 million copies in 56 different languages, becoming one of the best-selling books in history and setting the Guinness World Record for most translated book by a living author. It is recommended by Will Smith, Julia Roberts, Bill Clinton, Oprah, and many others. Empower yourself to dream.   Above all else, The Alchemist is about the power and importance of following your dreams. Before you can follow a dream, however, you have to actually have a dream. And to have a dream, you must want or desire something – whether it be an object, a place, a person, or so...

  A recurring theme from elderly people in their last years of life was to follow your dreams. Studies have shown that older people who tried to achieve their dreams were happier with their lives. None of us will ever achieve all of our dreams. If we do, we will just make up new ones! If we go for it, we can at least say at the end, "I tried!" instead of, "Why didn't I at least try?"  --Adapted from marshallgoldsmithlibrary.com A Season In Words: A Coach's Guide To Motivation From The Preseason To The Postseason © ​Contains Over 2000 Quotes For Coaches Of All Sports by Dan Spainhour Product Details Paperback; 154 pages ISBN: 978-1461187592 Dimensions: 10 x 8 x 0.3 inches ​ Buy Now (Print) $19.95 Instant Download (PDF) $11.95 Get Both The Book & The Download $29.95

I got a call from a coach from a neighboring county who wanted to visit to discuss how I got my players to play so hard. I had never met the coach but he had watched our team play and had heard from other coaches how hard our teams played.  According to him, I have a reputation for getting young people to play harder than a lot of other teams. I’m not completely sure it’s justified because there are several times during every season when I don’t think my team is giving everything they have. But I agreed to meet with the coach. He came in with a list of prepared questions such as are there any specific drills that we do, do we punish our team more than others or how many sprints do we make our players run. He was searching for the one thing that would make his players work harder. Throughout the conversation, I explained that I didn’t think there was any one thing we did. I believe that young people have to see themselves as being part of something bigger than themselves. A part of ...

A young couple moved into a new neighborhood. The next morning while they were eating breakfast, the young woman saw her neighbor hanging the washing outside. “That laundry is not very clean; she doesn’t know how to wash correctly. Perhaps she needs better laundry soap.” Her husband looked on, remaining silent. Every time her neighbor hung her washing out to dry, the young woman made the same comments. A month later, the woman was surprised to see a nice clean wash on the line and said to her husband, “Look, she’s finally learned how to wash correctly. I wonder who taught her this?” The husband replied, “I got up early this morning and cleaned our windows.” And so it is with life. What we see when watching others depends on the clarity of the window through which we look. So don’t be too quick to judge others. Leading Narratives:  The perfect collection of stories, jokes, and wits of wisdom for leaders By Dan Spainhour Paperback 6 x 9; 124 pages $24.95 Buy No...

  The great Western Disease of "I will be happy when …" is sweeping the world. You know the symptoms. You start thinking: I will be happy when I get that … that promotion … that status … that money ...that win. The only way to cure the disease is to find happiness and meaning now. When older folks who were in their last years of life were asked what advice they would give to younger people there was a theme that was present over and over--find meaning and be happy now! You may work for a wonderful company and believe that your contribution is very important. But when you are 95 and you look around your death bed, very few of your fellow employees will be waving goodbye! Your friends and family will probably be the only people who care.  Don't get so lost in pleasing the people who don't care that you neglect the people who do. --Adapted from marshallgoldsmithlibrary.com Coach Yourself: A Motivational Guide For Coaches And Leaders ​ by Dan Spainhour Product Details ISB...

  An introvert is not a shy, socially awkward, quiet being who doesn’t like people. They also aren’t people striving to fit in with an extroverted world. Introverts are over-sensitive to dopamine. If around crowds of people for too long, they feel drained. It takes them being alone with their thoughts or crafts to re-energize themselves. Extroverts are the opposite, in that they don’t get enough dopamine, and feel energized when they are around crowds of people. They thrive around crowds because they feel drained when they are by themselves. An introvert isn’t necessarily a shy person; they just would rather interact in one on one situation. They don’t waste their time around people putting on acts for a crowd, because they don’t feel the need to do that in social settings. If they are comfortable being in one on one situation, then they want to meet people of substance and value rather than someone who will put on a show for them. It’s in their nature to be aware of these things b...

  "Get in because you love the game, not what you get from the game. I would say the same thing to a player. Play because you love the game, not because of what you'll get out of the game. And then give the game back what it deserves. The rest of the stuff will take care of itself. But love the game." Leading with the Heart: Coach K's Successful Strategies for Basketball, Business, and Life