I was reading a magazine yesterday and they were interviewing a former soldier. The subject of war (not surprisingly) came up and what the soldier said was very interesting. He told the reporter that war is ninety percent waiting and ten percent action. As I sat and pondered those words this blog immediately started forming in my mind.
Preparation before the moment determines your success once the moment arrives. Just like war that moment is unpredictable, and it could come at any time. Imagine how many people miss opportunities every day because their not prepared. A soldier can’t say “maybe tomorrow I ll practice shooting my gun”, because their might not be a tomorrow.
The very first pro basketball tryout I went to was in Atlanta Georgia. I didn’t know I was going until about a month before the camp. By that time my senior season (in college) was already over but I was training everyday. I was putting in a ton of time working on my game, but I only started actually running three weeks out from the tryout. I figured I was in good game shape, and it’s not like they were going to make us do sprints at a pro camp right?
After the directors of the camp introduced themselves they went into a long speech about the importance of being in shape. One of these guys was about 5ft 5 and had to be at least two hundred and fifty pounds. As I smiled at the irony, my new fitness guru barked for us to get on the baseline. There were about seventy players in the gym and all of us had the same bewildered look on our faces. Partly due to the fitness speech from the most unqualified person in the world, but mostly because there wasn’t a single basketball waiting on the baseline for us when we arrived.
For the next hour all we did was sprints. I would look to my left and my right and guys were dropping like flies. The “before” picture in any workout magazine in America was berating our conditioning. As he drank from a big gulp he informed us that no one was in game shape. Players were faking injuries just so they didn’t have to run. My lungs were burning, I could barely feel my legs, and I was pissed. Not pissed at the poster boy for Sonic yelling at me, but pissed at myself for not being in shape. As hard as I was training I still wasn’t prepared for what I was going through. It was the only thing I learned from the tryout, but it proved to be a great lesson for me.
After the tryout I made sure that running was part of my routine, so I would never be blindsided again. Seizing the moment all comes down to how hard your prepare for it. Abraham Lincoln had a famous quote that goes: “Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the ax”.
Your level of preparation could mean your life on the battlefield or off it.
I loved the touches of humour here, Cornell, and your point remains strong. Preparation, in all its forms, mental, emotional, physical – is crucial, and so often overlooked. Though I am from ‘across the pond,’ I am familiar with some of the esteemed Mr Lincoln’s words, but have never heard of the very well chosen quote you use – I love it! Thank you for bringing it to my attention and thank you, as ever, for your astute analogy and insights!