“Reputation is what YOU’RE PREVEIVED to be. Character is WHAT YOU REALLY ARE.”
Success and achievement in life have so much to do with character-and yet character is so hard to define. In my mind, it’s simply having an innate sense of the right thing. The right thing to do, the right thing to say, the wise decision to make.
To me, someone with character is someone who can be trusted with anything. Who can be relied upon to know the proper thing to do in any situation. And character, to my mind, is something that’s formed early, In youth. Maybe even in preschool days.
What I’ve always tried to get across, both to my own kids and to anyone I’ve ever coached, is the difference between character and reputation. Reputation is what the world sees …show more content…
And often, the two can be very, very different. Contradictory, even. It’s character, of course, that’s far more important -- - although we seem to worry more about what others think of us that what we think of ourselves.
As I look back on my coaching career, two observations come to mind.
The first is that I’m more and more convinced that really good coaching is based purely in leadership and a positive example -- - not fear and intimidation. So many coaches, even big- name coaches, use fear-based tactics to ride herd on their team. And they’re successful, frequently -- - they have great results, maybe even better ones, by using a more positive approach. Good coaching is about leadership and instilling respect in your players. Dictators lead through fear-- -good coaches do not.
The second observation is the irony that, while individual athletes, both college and professional, have gotten better over the years -- - athletes are better, bigger, stronger, more skilled now than they were 30 or 40 years ago, without doubt-- -team play has, in fact, declined.
My reputation on a character is that each character is unique and different in a way.
There is no character that will be the same as another. It is a person that describes you and
Success and achievement in life have so much to do with character-and yet character is so hard to define. In my mind, it’s simply having an innate sense of the right thing. The right thing to do, the right thing to say, the wise decision to make.
To me, someone with character is someone who can be trusted with anything. Who can be relied upon to know the proper thing to do in any situation. And character, to my mind, is something that’s formed early, In youth. Maybe even in preschool days.
What I’ve always tried to get across, both to my own kids and to anyone I’ve ever coached, is the difference between character and reputation. Reputation is what the world sees …show more content…
And often, the two can be very, very different. Contradictory, even. It’s character, of course, that’s far more important -- - although we seem to worry more about what others think of us that what we think of ourselves.
As I look back on my coaching career, two observations come to mind.
The first is that I’m more and more convinced that really good coaching is based purely in leadership and a positive example -- - not fear and intimidation. So many coaches, even big- name coaches, use fear-based tactics to ride herd on their team. And they’re successful, frequently -- - they have great results, maybe even better ones, by using a more positive approach. Good coaching is about leadership and instilling respect in your players. Dictators lead through fear-- -good coaches do not.
The second observation is the irony that, while individual athletes, both college and professional, have gotten better over the years -- - athletes are better, bigger, stronger, more skilled now than they were 30 or 40 years ago, without doubt-- -team play has, in fact, declined.
My reputation on a character is that each character is unique and different in a way.
There is no character that will be the same as another. It is a person that describes you and