Success in a Detour - S2E7

Success isn't a linear journey; instead, it's marked by unexpected detours that can lead to growth and resilience. Coach Mikki shares personal stories from coaching and life, emphasizing the importance of mental preparation and embracing uncertainty to overcome challenges. 

• Overview of the challenges faced by Coach Mikki's team 
• Importance of mental preparation during setbacks 
• The significance of resilience and teamwork in sports 
• Life lessons drawn from unexpected detours 
• The value of stepping outside comfort zones to grow 
• Embracing uncertainty as part of the success journey

Start Strong - Finish Strong! - Let's Go! 
@4thand1Mindset

4th and 1 Mindset with Coach Mikki 

Chapters

• 0:21 Mentally Tough Through Adversity
• 9:06 Embracing Uncertainty to Grow Stronger

Transcript

Coach Mikki: 0:21

Okay, come on, bring it in. Bring it in, listen up, listen up. Hey, I'm Coach Mickey and you're on 4thin1 Mindset. Success doesn't come with a GPS. How many times have you been traveling whether it is in life, whether it's on the field, even just taking a trip and all of a sudden you are hit with either a detour or five lanes go down into one lane and everybody's trying to merge in and it just slows you way down, or, better yet, you get detoured way off the highway and you're going 20 miles out of your way before you can merge back on.

Coach Mikki: 0:58

I've had this happen many, many times, not only traveling across country, but also even on the field. I've even had it within my life that all of a sudden, things are going really great. You think you got it all together, you've got this game plan and everybody's on the same page, until something else is presented to you that you're like okay, wasn't ready for that one. So we were getting ready to play. This was with my Okchoff team. These were I had 17 players. Every other team we played was packed with a lot of other players, anywhere between 30 to 40 players. And here I walk onto the field with my 17 guys and 17 guys with heart. So let's start with that. And during this timeframe because I just happened to be doing really well and winning quite a few of our games and it was all on my guys they really had the passion, the drive to do this and I have to give them credit because they didn't care what was thrown up against them. They still would go out there and do their job and make it happen and they didn't allow things to get in their way.

Coach Mikki: 2:09

So we showed up on the field to this one game that we were going to play and when we arrived, usually they give you an area that you can go and warm up on and usually it's some field off the main field and it's usually a grass field or maybe a practice field or something along those lines. But when we arrived, we were informed that they had no place for us to warm up. However, their team was out on a grassy area. That was well. It was big enough to be able to fit two teams. We could have each taken a side and usually when you do that, you just make a wall of guys, you line up so you can't see what the other team's doing as you're doing your warm-ups. But we were told no, we had to warm up on the sideline, where we were on the track and the bleach. We were right up against the bleachers. Now, the other thing too is they did not want us wearing our cleats on the track, and rightfully so, because you know it tears up their track and out of respect, you know, we don't do that anyway. So you know you walk from the field and that's it, and usually the sideline. You've got more room anyway and they have to worry about it.

Coach Mikki: 3:21

So we found a patch of grass that was between the very, very end of the track and it was fenced in. So we had a very small area and then you had the track and then you had the main field. So I told my guys to go down there. I said go ahead, just grab a ball, let's go down there, we'll break it up. So what I did was I ran through, called in my teams. I said, okay, you know, called in everybody. So everybody knew who was starting and where we were.

Coach Mikki: 3:47

And then, once we got them lined up, I said everybody sit down, just sit down. I said this is the deal. They're not going to give us a place to warm up. This is it, this is what we get. And they were like oh man, blah, I can't believe it. And I said you know what? Forget it, I don't care what they want us to do, let's focus on what we need to do. So I said this is just minor, this is just an obstacle that we're just going to have to address and look at.

Coach Mikki: 4:11

So this is what we're going to do, guys, I said, since we don't really have the room to even put a line and we don't have a room, we can't throw a football because we can't be throwing it on the field because there was another game going on. I said everybody sit down. I said I'm going to go through the playbook. I said I want everybody to close your eyes, take a deep breath. I said we're going to run through all of these plays in our head and then I'm going to call each one of you and tell me exactly what you did. What does that play mean to you? What did you do? Where are you supposed to go? How are you supposed to block? And we went through every single play and as we went through, I called out each one and I called out my receivers, I called my running backs when we got to defense. We got to punt, we got to professional teams, all of it. We went through the whole thing mentally and then I said, okay, we can't throw a football, so let's do this. I said everybody, just give me the line. I said pretend like you have a ball. We're not even going to use a football. I said I'm just going to call out the play and I want you guys just to walk through it, just take one or two steps and then know exactly what you're supposed to do. So that's what we did.

Coach Mikki: 5:18

So it was our time to play. We got out there. I brought in the guys. I'm like you guys got this, you guys have we got you coach. We got you coach. I brought in the guys. I'm like you guys got this, you guys have it. We got you coach, we got you coach. I said that's right, just go out there and do your job, do exactly what you need to do and you'll be fine.

Coach Mikki: 5:34

So we got out there and we played, and my guys played their hearts out. We won, we won and they celebrated and I celebrated them and it was a little bit more of a celebration of a win than just a win because they threw something at us. They gave us a detour, they took us off our path and they really thought it was going to hurt us and instead my guys played the best game they've ever played. I say that they played all their games. We got to our Super Bowl. That was the best game they ever played. I say that they played all their games. We got to our Super Bowl. That was the best game they ever played. But during the season, that was a really good game for them and I was really proud of them and I was so proud that they were able to step up and they didn't get frustrated and they didn't get discouraged based on a setback that somebody else threw to them.

Coach Mikki: 6:24

And you have to look at this and I've learned so much over the years, especially working with kids and seeing what they do and how they deal with stuff and again they're looking to me as a leader and a mentor. So however I react is how they're going to react, and I came in with a game plan. I overcame a challenge. I try to teach them how to be mentally tough, how to be adaptable, how to see things from a different perspective. So when we're going through these obstacles and we get hit with this crazy thing where these twists and turns and detours. We have to look at it and go okay, what do I want to do with this? How do I want to deal with this? Because you are in the driver's seat. It's still your choices.

Coach Mikki: 7:16

You know, for example, I've driven cross country many, many times and I can't tell you how many times I'd get to a city I'd never even been through or even knew about, and I knew about it but I just never been there. And there'd be a detour, be like this construction, and it'd take me way off. I'd go through these little tiny towns that I had never seen before, had no idea they even existed, and I can tell you there were times it was the coolest thing because, you know, if I had to stop and get gas, if I wanted to stop and get a cup of coffee, I'd end up in these little towns and I'd discover some really cool stuff and I met some really cool people and it was really, really fun. And I would have never discovered that if I had stayed on the I-40. If I'd stayed on the I-40 and never got off onto any of these other little towns, I would have never met some of the people or maybe tasted some of this different food or discovered some of the fun things. I've picked up things here and there that I've found and I would have never found it if I hadn't had that opportunity.

Coach Mikki: 8:21

Now, detours and roadblocks sometimes they're annoying. We do get frustrated and we get slowed way down. You know, what I've learned from this is don't be in such a hurry. Take the time, step back, try to learn from it, get creative, try to figure out what can you do with this. Sometimes, when I'm stuck in traffic and I get that a lot here in LA, I live in Southern California and if I have to go north many, many times it's a long trip and I can guarantee I'm going to get stuck in traffic. Matter of fact, I live on a highway called the 405, and we call it four or five because it takes four or five hours to get to LA, when it's really like an hour trip.

Coach Mikki: 9:06

But I use that as an opportunity. A lot of times I go through my head. I make it an opportunity for me to regroup. Sometimes I listen to things to help me move forward in some of the stuff I need to do, whether it be game plans. Sometimes I call my coaches, sometimes I just come up with stuff Just because something sets you back and you have to slow down. Use it as a gift. Think of it as an opportunity to actually grow a little bit more and maybe decide something different.

Coach Mikki: 9:37

And so what if you're facing a little bit of uncertainty? If you're facing uncertainty, that's okay, you know. Use it to grow. Choose that other action over fear, or choose that growth over your comfort. You know being in our comfort level and being in our comfort zone is not a good place to be all the time. Anyway, a lot of times you got to step out if you're really going to grow as a person. That's another podcast, another time Wrapping this up. I just want to leave you with this. Success just isn't linear. It's not. It's going to be full of detours, and detours are going to make you stronger and your choices are going to determine how you grow. So embrace the uncertainty and use it as part of your journey and give yourself an opportunity to just take what you have and grow from it and become stronger and then celebrate. Celebrate that moment where you got thrown something that you didn't expect and you overcame it. So bring it on in. Bring it in. So start strong and finish strong and dominate everything in between. Let's go.