Fallen angels litter the sports pages. Guys with great athleticism and a track record of success who lack the character and maturity to translate talent into successful careers and productive lives...
The most extreme is Aaron Hernandez, former New England Patriot now permanent inmate. The more mundane is Johnny Manziel, who seems beset by substance abuse with an overhanging domestic abuse profile. They make Cleveland's Josh Gordon seem more like a petty criminal with serial weed violations.
But all failures begin with a lack of self-control and discipline. Boston's Antoine Walker squandered a hundred million dollar career earnings. How many other promising players failed to translate skill without will because they were content to cash checks and left fortunes on the table because "making the NBA" without "building a reputation" was enough?
As coaches and 'talent evaluators', we need to be character evaluators. Nick Saban discusses losing out on a star recruit who is a bad guy. Paraphrasing, he says "if he goes to a rival he can beat you once a year. If he's on your team, he beats you every day."
When a talented player "fails" to earn a role, I wonder whether too much Xbox, skirt-chasing, and clubbing undermined excellence.
Tim S. Grover describes the pain of excellence in his seminal work, "Relentless". He writes, "Being relentless means demanding more of yourself than anyone else could ever demand of you, knowing that every time you stop, you can still do more. You must do more.”
If excellence is important and greatness a goal, then it has to be an everyday target. We don't get to pick and choose when we sacrifice to prepare and practice.
Successful players and coaches invest their time. The "baggage handlers" waste it.
