Watching the NCAA National Championship Tournament basketball games over the the month of March, I couldn’t help but be captivated by the raw emotions with which the players play. It’s as if the emotions become the players superpower fueling their undeniable skill to yet another level!
Winning each game means the world to each team, and every player. But it’s more than that. Their drive and determination to win is so clearly visible, and palpable, and awesome to watch! Their effort on the court is unrelenting from buzzer to buzzer. They are all in and playing to win, with the heart of champions. None of the players back down. Not one player apologizes for fouling, trash talking, or playing too hard – because there is no such thing. They all give it everything they have, and they all believe they can win.
This is interesting to me because there are at least a couple of ways to look at winning – either you expect to be there, or you never thought you would be there. In the former, you feel exhilarated and redeemed when you win – because you planned, trained, and made sacrifices to be there. In the latter, you’re surprised, even shocked – for example winning the lottery, which is based solely on luck.
I have noticed a trend in the social media to say, “my seven-year-old-self would have never imagined I would be ‘here’ today.” But think about that – none of the now-Champion players would ever say that. Take a look at what they said instead:
“The group had a lot of confidence for how we played the majority of the season,” Dan Hurley (U Conn Men’s team coach) said on the court after the game. “We knew we were the best team in the tournament going in, and we just had to play like it.” (New York Times)
“Every player dreams of being on a big stage like this and having the game of your life, and for it to come to fruition – it meant a lot,” she (Jasmine Carson, guard for LSU women’s team) said. (CNN)
“Man, it’s truly amazing because I just remember just being in D.C. with her (cousin Angel Reese, forward on LSU women’s team),” Jordan Hawkins (U Conn guard) said. “We (were) just kids, just dreaming about this moment and look at us now — two national championships, one family. That’s pretty cool.” (USA Today)
They dreamed of winning – they envisioned winning, they planned and trained to win.
At Breaking Limits, we also plan to win. We expect to be successful because we believe in our approach. We plan strategically for our clients and create championship level success by designing marketing strategies and executing flawlessly. We train to win for our clients – and when we do win, we are exhilarated and redeemed (not shocked!).
When we say our agency is Built on the Shoulders of Champions, we mean it. Both Bobby Labonte and I believed, planned, and trained to win in our sports just like the NCAA basketball players believed. We brought that belief to Breaking Limits and we leverage it for our clients everyday.