John Maxwell on why people are successful

"Over the years as I have watched and listened to successful people, I have discovered a common thread: They know WHY they're here. Knowing their purpose in life gives them stability. Someone once said there are two great days in life—the day you are born and the day you discover WHY.

"I'm here to tell you, highly successful people have discovered WHY." ~ Dr. John C. Maxwell

Coaching ideas posted by Duane Silver

A friend of mine has a email blast that goes out to around 7,000 to 8,000 coaches. He asked me for some coaching ideas and I gave him some things that we do here at Belhaven that I thought worked well for us.

Here is a portion of his email:

Thought for the Day:




"We put up pictures (action if possible) in our offices and locker rooms of our current players. I want them each to feel good about themselves and have ownership in our team. My opinion is that everyone wants to feel important and that may seem like a small thing, but to the kids it can be a big thing to see their picture on the wall." (By Tom Kelsey Head Men's Basketball Coach Belhaven College, Jackson, MS)

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Christian Thought for the Day:



We share a Proverb verse that corresponds with that day (November 11th a verse from Proverbs 11 or Bible verse) with our team each day and relate somehow to our team or everyday life. We do this before practice everyday. On game days, we will use it during devotional time. Got this idea from Lorenzo Romar (now at University of Washington) quite some time ago. I usually text message the verse each morning to our guys. (This too was given to me by Tom Kelsey of Belhaven College) (I think this is an awesome idea! DS)

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"TEAM DRILLS PLAYBOOK FOR SALE"

By Duane Silver



“24 Team Drills“: that will cover everything you need for the whole season. We have fast break drills, dribbling drills, rebounding drills, plus offensive and defensive drills, drills to keep you from turning it over too. These drills will make your team better. If you need a drill book this will be the best one you could ever buy. If you will use these drills often and be demanding your team will make great imporvement in the course of a season. (If you buy the playbook I will send you Free our Shooting Drills ebook (25 shooting drills) (Cost $20 by E-Book) to order go to www.coachsilver.com and clinic on playbooks. You can pay for it by Paypal with a Credit Card or mail me a check. Mail to Duane Silver, 821 Ft Gates, Waco, TX 76708 *Hard Copy is $25.00 and I'll mail it to you ASAP!

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"FREE SET PLAY BY EMAIL"

*If you would like to get a great man to man set play (called UCONN), please email me. To get the free set you must tell me where you coach, city, state, school and if you coach boys or girls. It was given to me by BJ Hair of Shawnee Mission, Kansas. Thanks BJ....This is an awesome set!!

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40% TEAM DEFENSIVE DRILL

By Tom Kelsey (Belhaven College)

We play a 40% game. If we keep teams shooting under 40%, we have a great chance to win the game. In this drill, we will give the offense 5 possessions or 10 possessions depending on time of the year and amount of time we have that day in practice. If the offense scores more than 40% of the time (above 2 out of 5 possessions and above 4 out of 10 possessions), the defense runs. If it comes out even, which is most often the case with 5 possessions? If they score twice, you go into “sudden death”. One possession. Whatever happens, that is the end of the drill. Put pressure on the defense. Offensive rebound or shooting foul is just like a score. If your teams are even, you can play 10 possessions. If they are uneven and you need to make it more competitive as a coach stick with 5 possessions, it goes quick and keeps everyone on their toes. You can use this with all your defenses (Zone, Press, Half-court man to man, etc.) *This Drill is normally done half court.

Calvin Coolidge quote

“Nothing in the world can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts. Persistence and determination are omnipotent. The slogan 'press on' has solved and always will solve the problems of the human race.”

Calvin Coolidge
President of the United States 1923-1929

Blazers off to 4-0 start

Blazers off to 4-0 start

Catch up with the game action. Click here

The life of John Kimbrell

John was my college teammate and friend who Thursday morning passed away at the young age of 46. For those that came in contact with John you did not forget him. He was definitely a one of a kind as a person and a player. (You can read more about his playing career statistics on the Lipscomb University website click here)




I was privileged to play four years of college basketball with John. When he started his playing career it would have been difficult for anyone to predict that John would become a two time NAIA All American and the MVP of the NAIA National Championship Tournament.



Everything did not come easy for John. He didn't have the strength or basketball skills when first arriving at David Lipscomb College (now Lipscomb University) in the fall of 1982 to be an impact player. By the time he left he had become a force. I was able to witness one of the most amazing improvements of any player I have been around. He did it by sheer will power and hard work. Anyone that was around the Lipscomb program during that time period will tell you stories of how hard John would work on his game in the off-season. Each year he steadily improved. By the time his junior year came around he started to gain confidence and it all started to come together.



More impressive is that John was the consummate teammate. He thought about the team first and then about himself. He knew as he his game improved he still had to work harder than anyone else and he didn’t lose that edge. Coaches will tell you that when your best player works the hardest you have the chance to have a very good team. With John being our best player and our hardest worker we were able to win the NAIA National Championship in 1986.



Each year as a coach I try to get my players to think team first. It is an extremely difficult concept to instill into players and to get a group of individuals to care about each other. With John that was simple. He had no ego. That is why it was so easy for him to be around. John just wanted to compete and have fun. Playing on a National Championship team was a thrill for us as players. Playing with John was exciting because there were times during that championship season where he literally carried us on his back and led us to victories. As you see teams on television or in person you can watch how one star player can sometimes carry a team. That was how it was with John that one special season.



When I first learned that John was in critical condition in a hospital in North Carolina I started to think about John’s life. It made me think of what a privilege it is to be around certain people that are good in their craft and we take it for granted. I have been in the coaching profession for 20 years and to find someone that could be an All American for two years is not easy. On top of that someone that could lead their team all the way to a National Championship is even more difficult. Only one team gets to cut down the nets at the end of a season. It is an amazing accomplishment athletically what John was able to do on the court.

What has impressed me even more over the course of time is the humility that he had. I don’t ever remember it ever being about himself. Not a chest thumper. Not a “showboat” guy. He was just down to earth from Loretto, Tennessee. If you ever read anything about Coach “Bear” Bryant you would understand that Coach Bryant would have said about John, “his momma and daddy raised him right.” John got it. He understood what it meant to be part of a team. He was old-school in the sense that he enjoyed playing and competing just for the sense of being out there to play and compete. He didn’t need anything else. Not the gear or the bright lights. Just the purity of the game was what John was about. John is what we are missing in sports today. He is what every coach wants on their team and wants out of every player. If a coach gets it out of his or her best player then you have a chance to have a special team.

The Lipscomb family lost a special member this week. For those of us that got to play on the court with John we lost a special teammate and friend. Anyone that came in contact with John lost someone they would not forget. The Kimbrell’s lost a son and brother. We all lost someone special.

Thank you John for blessing us with your special life. We thank you for all the great memories. They are not sure if John had a seizure or heart attack when. Whatever the case he was in a coma for over a week before he passed away. Following his status with updates from family and friends every day made me think about his life. Over that period of time John you taught some things. You taught me why I like to coach and you taught why I like to have a chance to develop young men to grow up and become men. You also taught me to forget about myself and think about others. You also taught me to enjoy the simple things in life. You will be missed, but not forgotten.

Not many people are willing to give failure a second chance

"Not many people are willing to give failure a second opportunity.  They fail once and it's all over.  The bitter pill of failure...is often more than people can handle. ...if you're willing to except failure and learn from it, if you're willing to accept failure and learn from it, if you're willing to consider failure as a blessing in disguise and bounce back, you've got the potential harnessing of one of the most powerful success forces."-Joseph Sugarman

Blazers win opener vs. Wesley College

Blazers win opener vs. Wesley College click here

A lot of players made big contributions.

This week we head to Blue Mountain College on Thursday night (Nov.5) and play Pensacola Christian College Sat. night (Nov.7) for Homecoming at 6:00pm.

Also check out the link about our Free Basketball Clinic here Saturday Nov. 7 9:00am to 10:30am. click here

Stop thinking negative thoughts

"If you realized how powerful your thoughts are, you
would never think a negative thought."
Mildred Norman,

Check out the article in Mississippi Sports Magazine on the 2009-2010 Blazers

Click here 

The Power of Habit

The Power of Habit

You may know me.

I’m your constant companion.

I’m your great helper , I’m your heaviest burden.

I will push you onward or drag you down to failure.

I am at your command.

Half the tasks you do might as well be turned over to me. I’m able to

Do them quickly and I’m able to do them the same every time if that’s what you want.

I’m easily managed , all you’ve got to do is be firm with me.

Show me exactly how you want it done; after a few lessons I’ll do it

Automatically.

I am the servant of all great men and women; of course, servant of the

Failures as well.

I’ve made all the great individuals who have ever been great.

And, I’ve made all the failures too.

But I work with all the precision of a marvelous computer with the

Intelligence of a human being.

You may run me for profit or you may run me to ruin, it makes no

Difference to me.

Take me. Be easy with me and I will destroy you.

Be firm with me and I’ll put the world at your feet.

Who am I?

I am Habit !

Guidance

GUIDANCE

"Regard your soldiers as your children, and they may follow you wherever you may lead.

Look upon them as your beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death.

If, however, you are indulgent, but unable to make your authority felt; kind hearted but unable to enforce your commands; and incapable, moreover, of quelling disorder,

Then, your soldiers must be able to liken to spoiled children. They are useless for all tactical purposes."

Sun Tzu Wu, Art of War 450 BC