Success is most usually measured in inches not miles. It is usually measured in tenths of a second, not minutes or hours. Success is differentiated from failure in very small increments, not large and lengthy distances. Horse racing for instance (over one mile long) is most often determined at the very end of the race distance by usually no more than a “nose” (6 inches or less). Automobile races are decided at the finish line by only feet or even inches. Athletic contests played for hours at a time are won at the buzzer, bringing the game to an end. Frequently, the winner is announced as the victor by a one point margin.
As a former track and field athlete and state champion in three different events, I set records and won many races by no more than “inches” ahead of my competition, and as measured in “tenths or even one hundredths of a second.” When competition is that keen, the most well-trained, well-conditioned, and most well-prepared to compete athlete is the one who puts into the equation so much preparation to win against the the competition that there can be nothing left to chance. The Champion is always the one who knows full well that he or she is going to win,…long before the race is actually run. The winner is always the one who ready and is personally confident that he or she will win. That ‘s It, Period!
The eventual winner will always be the one who is totally and completely prepared to win, the winner will be the one who is best coached and mentored, and the winner will always be that athlete who is the most mentally as well as physically prepared, warmed up, and ready to compete. Without proper preparation and conditioning and readiness to compete, there will be no experience of victory,…no first place ribbons or medals. There will be lots of really close second place finishes,…but not first place finishes.
My physical stature was not that of a giant sized and muscle bound strong man. My short legs (only a 29 inch inseam) were really not the length of choice by the best and fastest of the sprinters. I was not perfect nor was I a “naturally born” champion. The track on which I ran and did all of my training and preparation work was not a state-of-the-art rubberized asphalt running surface, nor was it the usual crushed lava-rock cinders surface. I was fortunate enough to have received all of my training and practicing preparation work on a track made out of good old Idaho dirt,….with lots of rocks mixed in with the dirt. My road to success in the sprints and relay races came about from my willingness to set and accomplish some big goals, and then out-work, out-train, out-condition, and out-perform all of my competition, all of whom were better physically qualified to run the sprint races than was I. It was my personal “desire-to-win” that kept me ahead of all of my competition.
What set me apart from all of my competition was first and foremost my incredible and totally committed personal track and field coach and mentor, Ed Troxel. My second “secret” ingredient was the technique I was taught by my coach to be used at the finish line of the races in which I competed. “Run through the tape,…not to the tape.” Lastly, my secret to winning was my preparation for victory. My coach always pushed me way past what I thought to be my outside limits of physical and mental ability and endurance. It was my “Heart of a Champion” physical training and positive mental attitude that Coach Troxel developed in me that gave me an edge my competitors did not have. I totally and completely expected to win every race I ever entered…..and I did!
Coach Troxel’s words,…fifty-three years after he used them,…still ring loud and clear in my mind today. He told me….“Dave, you may not win every race you enter, BUT….you just make sure that IF anyone ever does beat you, they will have to break the state record to do it!”
A good coach will always take you where you cannot take yourself!
Well, to my personal recollection, no one ever beat me, and I did set the state record in the sprints (100 yard and 220 yard dashes and the 440 yard Relay Race for which I ran the anchor leg). Still to this day,…to my knowledge, I still hold those records set in 1963. I am not bragging, my point is simply to tell you that I, as the most unlikely to win in my field of competition, became a champion because I was (1) better coached and trained and was (2) unreservedly committed to pay full price and do whatever it took to be a champion and was (3) more and better prepared to perform better than was any of my competition.
Success will occur in a person’s life when “Opportunity” and “Preparedness” come together. When they meet, it is a focal point in any person’s life.
Proper coaching and better conditioning (mentally, physically, emotionally, and spiritually) as developed in me by my mentor, when coupled with an un-compromised willingness on the part of the performer to be properly prepared to compete, are the things that make for the right mixture of ingredients so as to produce a champion…in any field of endeavor!
All too often, men and women who by virtue of God given talents and abilities, more advanced knowledge and education, and greater past training and understanding,…get out-performed by individuals with much less latent talent. The one thing that separates the winner from the losers, regardless of their personal talents and abilities is what is commonly known and called “The Heart of a Champion.”
Success, winning, being first place, whatever you desire to term it,…in any arena, venue, or activity,…is always an inside-out proposition. Mental preparation is the key. Success always begins on the “inside.” Because if you are properly mentally and physically prepared and you possess a positive mental attitude and mind set that you are going to win…these two attributes will always enable you to put yourself into a place or position where you can be victorious.
Success will find the person who is best prepared and best positioned to win.
Never forget that it is you and you alone who is the person responsible to get yourself into proper physical and mental shape so necessary for you to win!
When the dream is big enough, the facts simply don’t count.
Never mind the “differences” between you and the other competitors. Mentally envision yourself competing not against other competitors, but rather only against yourself and your known abilities and capabilities.
Don’t ever compare yourself with the talents and abilities of another human being. God made you just the way He wanted you to be made. You got all that you will ever need to achieve and accomplish the preplanned purpose (His Will) for your life.
You should compare yourself to yourself. You should only compare that which you “have” done with that which you know that you have the ability “to do.” When you make this comparison, it should internally motivate you to want to work harder, prepare better, and perform at a higher level….in other words, it should motivate you to win!
Finally I want to give you the same advice my mentor, Ed Troxel, gave me in 1963. “Run Through The Tape,…not just to the tape.” In other words, accelerate through the finish line! In his words, he was teaching me how to win, how to persevere, how to continue to compete no matter the real circumstances. That could only be accomplished by doing more than was required.
The 100 yard sprint almost always is won by the racer who has the fastest and best start. The runner who leads at 30 yards almost always ends up the winner of the race. 80 percent of my training time and effort for the 100 yard dash was spent on my start. As a result, I had the best,…the fastest start,…of all my competitors which is why I was the state champion in this event. This race is run with all of the runner’s body weight carried up on his toes with his arms pumping as fast as is possible
The 220 yard dash was a little different. That race was almost always won by the runner who had the best and most powerful finishing “kick” at the end of the race. Most coaches waited at the finish line to coach, encourage, cajole, or cheer their racers onward…Not so with my coach, Ed Troxel. He always stood at the side of the track closest to the lane in which I was running and always at the 180 yard marker. As I came racing past my coach who was always standing there by himself he would yell loud enough for me to hear the single word “toes.” This was my que to come back up on my toes, increase my sprinting speed and pump my arms faster to move my legs faster as I accelerated into my race-ending “kick.” It worked every time….I won,…state champion again!
For the 440 yard relay, the secret to winning was the perfect exchange of the baton between the runners within the exchange zone, without slowing the pace. That is all we four runners practiced. We had the most seamless uninterrupted exchange of all competitors and therefore won the race…yet another state champion finish.
If you really want to win, you must do ALL that is required, ALL that you can and should do, and then,….DO A LITTLE BIT MORE!
All week long as I practiced my sprinting,…on the dirt track,…for the events in which I excelled, I never ran the actual distances of the track meet (competition day) races. During my training (preparation) work outs, I ran 110 yard dashes, and 300 yard sprints,….never the actual race day distances of 100 yards and 220 yards. I practiced and trained for more than was required. That way I was over prepared personally and better prepared than was my competition. The day of the track meet was always the “easiest day” of the week. It was the week-day practices that were the toughest.
Because of the wisdom of my mentor,…and my willingness to listen to and learn from him,…and finally my willingness to do just as he taught and trained me to do, I was prepared and positioned to succeed.
Consequently that is exactly what I did. I won! And because I did more than I was expected to do (which was not what all my competitors did…they only practiced just the minimums), I not only won,….I set state race records as I did win.
Now listen! It was this kind of advanced personal training, this kind of personal preparation and readiness, and this kind of required self-discipline that rolled over into my subsequent professional, military, and business careers which is exactly why I was also successful in those arenas.
I do not say this to brag or boast of my achievements. Quite the contrary, I tell you this so as to exhort you to do the same thing if you truly desire to win in what it is that you are doing!
Success will always occur in a person’s life when “Opportunity” and “Preparedness” come together.
Do you now see why I always say, the person you will become in the next five years totally depends upon the books you read and the people with whom you associate. Those two things will most always determine your own mental environment. And you, as a human being, will be a product of your own mental environment. It is those two most significant things that will teach, train, and prepare you for any of the great opportunities that come tumbling into your life as you move through your life’s journey towards success!….Are You Ready for the Journey?
If you are ready, if you have decided to win and win big at the game of life, then you have set yourself apart from the masses. You have put yourself on a path that few people travel. Just be willing to pay full price,…and then a little bit more,…and you will make it to the top!
“Runners, Take Your Marks”…“Get Set”… “Go”!
Peace and Love to All of You……………….Poppa Bear