Attitude Is Everything: Part 2
I wrote an article last year titled "Attitude Is Everything" where I introduced you to three members of my "all-star attitude" team. These individuals have left a huge impression on me and are examples of the ironsharpener attitude that makes indviduals and teams successful. Matt and Sam are two guys who have been added to the team whose old-fashioned hard working attitudes that have a huge way of affecting others. I hope their stories will resonate with you as much as serving them has influenced me;
Matt - The Glue Guy: Every team needs that guy who does whatever it takes to keep the team together. My man Matt is that dude! In a recent article,(click here for article) his coach described him as his "glue guy". He has the ability to play whatever role his team needs. Whether it is dropping 27 points in agame to locking down the other team's scorer, Matt does whatever is asked of him. Matt knows that it is not all about him, but it's about them, his team. His attitude is simply doing whatever it takes to make his teammates better is going to lead to the "W"! That is what a leader does! The leader doesn't have to be the best guy on the team, he needs to be the guy who goes out there and does his very best and allows the team to follow his lead.
Sam - "Optimist Prime": I am a fan of the Transformers and one of the characters I love is Optimus Prime. I looked up a description of him and it described him as a "brave, powerful, wise and compassionate leader who puts his talent to use improving the universe around him" That is a good way to descibe my guy Sam. He is not only well respected on his varsity team, but the underclassmen in his school's program look to him not only as that baller who will throw you shot into the cheap seats or drive the lane looking to dunk on you (yes he does that) but as someone who inspires them to be better ballers and men. He always sees the potential for good in everyone and wants to help them reach their best.
Both of these dudes are great examples of what it means to be Ironsharpeners. I get the privilege of investing in these men but sometimes I feel like they are inspiring me. I remember the first time I met each of them. The first time I met Matt we both showed up at the gym to get some shots up and I saw his shot and thought it would be fun to workout together so we went at it. It was some pretty good 1v1. He came at me pretty hard and gave it his all. Right there I knew he was the kind of player that I would enjoy investing in. As for Sam, I remember picking him up on my team at the gym and what I saw was raw player who never stopped smiling but went at his opponents pretty hard. I was impressed and decided to challenge him to some 1v1. Not only did he accept the challenge, he stepped right up to me and told me that he was going to beat me. That is all it took for me to know he was a fearless leader and we went at it and that was the start of a great ironsharpening relationship.
It's been a fun two years working with both of these ironsharpeners. Both of them are seniors getting ready to transition to the college life. I know that they have what it takes to be successful in life. Seeing the way they have worked hard to improve themselves and the influence they have had on the people around them have inspired me to continue to strive to be the best that I can be. It's all about the attitude!
Stay Forever Strong!
