​My brother and I like to torment one another with old family pictures, as only brothers can do. As the years pass, it seems there are more “old” ones with us in them!  He just sent me a snapshot of the one I’ve posted with this article; that happens to be yours truly awhile back.

I loved playing football as a kid and it’s still my favorite sport to watch today.  Around the time that picture was snapped, I was enthralled with Florida Gator Football and Steve Spurrier, who was their Heisman Trophy winning quarterback.  I was serious about football and getting ready to play.

Football was about focus, determination, hard work and sportsmanship. The point of all that effort was to achieve success, to help the team win. It turns out that the lessons of those early days came in handy down the road. Winning feels good; losing doesn’t.  And if you want to win consistently, you’ve got to get yourself ready to play.  Every down.  Every game.  Every day.

Looking back, there has always been a seriousness infused into whatever I’ve tackled.  Football gave way to basketball, which became my favorite sport to play, but those early football lessons stuck with me. Perhaps there should have been more pure play at the heart of it, but that wasn’t how I was wired or what drove me.  Down deep I had to know that I’d given it my best, but I also owed my best effort to my teammates every game, whether it was on the football field then, or much later in the game of business.  The fun of it all lies in the teamwork and sense of accomplishing goals bigger than yourself.

Get ready to play and…..Enjoy the Journey!