Angela Duckworth is a former teacher and psychologist. She has studied West Point Cadets, teachers, students, spelling B contestants and salespeople. Her main research question is, “Who is successful here and why?” She discovered that success had little to do with a person’s IQ, looks or personality. Her finding is that “grit” is the factor that determines the level of …
The Rule of 100 states that if you spend 100 minutes a week focused on one thing, you will be better than 95% of the world at that one thing. That amounts to 18 minutes a day for one year. It doesn’t matter if that is learning a foreign language, playing the guitar or playing a sport. Joe’s Perspective: My …
There is a high school in Dubuque, Iowa that provides PE credit to students who do yard work for senior citizens and disabled people in the community. Instead of playing sports or doing laps in gym class, these students volunteer 2 hours a week to help those who could use the help. Joe’s Perspective: Some people love PE class, others …
This is a simple 60-second video that captures the truth about life, delivered by Coach Saban. He contends that “Life owes you nothing. Nobody owes you nothing.” Every day you must earn it. If you have talent, but you aren’t disciplined or your don’t focus or pay attention to detail, you will end up with nothing. So, it is incumbent …
Hello and welcome. If you are reading this blog, this means that you are in a class where a teacher is using the Character Development and Leadership Curriculum. This program is designed to help you develop who you are as a person and to improve your leadership capabilities. This program should be fun and engaging. The blog post is one …
This is the first blog post of the 2024 school year. Typically, this is about a current event related to sports, but today I just want to hear from you. I also want to introduce you to this program – an app-based program we call the Student Athlete Program. This program is designed to improve the character, sportsmanship and leadership of …
I have to be honest. I have no idea who this guy is. My guess is he is a special forces guy in the military. My guess is he is part of an elite fighting force. My guess is he has had more training and leadership development than any of us will ever receive. Given all that, he says there …
This is a short blog with a simple message: Opportunities are all around you, but you have to be looking for them in order to take advantage of them. Here is a 30-second video that illustrates this point. Joe’s Perspective: I can’t state it any better than she did. “That’s how opportunities work. When you go through life and you …
In almost every high school across the country, athletes sign their national letter of intent to celebrate a scholarship with a particular school. It’s usually a big deal. Schools set up a table with the college colors. Athletes wear a shirt or hat to indicate where he/she will attend college. Family and friends attend the event to support the athlete. …
Kansas City Royals pitcher Brady Singer used part of his $4.25 signing bonus to give his parents a special Christmas gift. In an effort to thank his parents for all of they did for him, he paid off the mortgage on their house and all other debt they had. Brady also wrote a beautiful letter to his parents, thanking them …
