It`s Not What You Don`t Have

There`s very few people that would have a better understanding of this concept than former big league baseball pitcher, Jim Abbott.


As a result of a birth defect, Jim was born with only one hand but that didn`t deter him from following his dream of being a professional pitcher.

Here are a few of his accomplishments:

• pitcher for the Gold Medal Olympic Team in 1988;

• threw a 4-0 no-hitter for the New York Yankees versus Cleveland (September 4, 1993).

• played for 10 seasons on 4 different teams and ended his big league playing career in 1999.

Instead of choosing to focus on what he didn`t have, Jim turned his attention towards the things he did have and refused to be defined by his missing right hand.

As a motivational speaker, Jim joins the next episode of HCL Radio to talk to about his playing career, how he personally overcame obstacles and what kinds of things motivated him to fulfill his dream of becoming a professional baseball player.

Listen as Jim talks about the importance of being accountable to ourselves clicking here.

Click here to read Jim`s full biography.

For more great insights be sure to check out the program or to stay regularly up to date with new episodes, click on the follow button on slightly above the show description!

See you on the court!

Toughen Up

Have you ever wondered what mental toughness is?

It's that thing we all have inside that helps us work through life's adversities and challenges and helps us to achieve our goals.

I recently asked mental toughness guru, author and public speaker, Steve Siebold to provide a definition.



Click here to listen to what he said.

Mental toughness could be used in virtually any situation from the basketball court to the office or out shopping in a crowded mall.



Steve joins HCL Radio to discuss mental toughness and its importance in our lives.

Plus he'll share why anyone can use mental toughness to get the things they really want.

Tune in to HCL Radio to hear more from Steve on harnessing the power of mental toughness.

Click here to listen to the interview.

Thanks for reading!

Focus on the Present

The 2008 NBA Finals saw the re-birth of a long time rivalry between the Boston Celtics and LA Lakers.

It was an epic battle that saw the Celtics take an early 3 -1 lead in the best of 7 series.

During a media scrum just before game 5, LA Laker superstar, Kobe Bryant was fielding a series of questions.



One reporter asked whether or not he had plans of re-signing a new contract with the team at the conclusion of the season.

He looked at the reporter and said, "If I choose to answer that question, then I'm acknowledging that the season is over."

It's real easy to get caught up looking ahead at the road of doom and gloom as opposed to maintaining our focus on the present.

We seem to fall into this trap especially when things look bleak and abysmal with no end in sight.



In the case of Kobe and the Lakers, the chips were stacked against them:

•they were facing a Celtic team that had the best regular season record in the NBA;
•LA's star centre, Andrew Bynum was out with an injury; and
•the Celtics featured three great players in Ray Allen, Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce.

So in some ways, you can see why reporters thought the season was over.

Does this change Kobe's approach to the game?

No.

You still play with purpose and have a clear focus on the present situation as opposed to looking ahead to what you think may happen.



Be in the present and don't worry about what happened yesterday or what you think might happen tomorrow.

Here are 3 things leaders can keep in mind as they are faced with the challenges of life.

Accept the past,focus on the present and not stress about the future.

It should be noted that the Lakers won the fifth game but eventually lost the Finals in game 6 to the Celtics.

In fact, the 39-point margin of victory was the largest ever in an NBA championship-clinching game.

(So it looks like the reporters were right, oh well)

Thanks for reading!

Audley
Where developing leaders is more than just a game.