So I heard a talk yesterday where someone referenced a quote from a former NFL player, Dave Wyman. He played with the Seattle Seahawks and the Denver Broncos and now he is a radio personality in the Pacific Northwest. I tried to reach out to him, but no success yet. I wanted to get an exact quote but the idea was cool enough that I will just move forward with the concept instead.
He said something to the effect that success as a lineman in the NFL required a combination of desire, technique, and strength. This got me thinking about those three areas in my own life. Is this the same for me, even though I would not stand a chance playing anything close to football?
Desire. I suppose success in anything requires the initial desire. You gotta want it, right? I have discovered that anything worth obtaining requires a ton of suffering to get it. If you are going to suffer, then you had better really want to succeed. I imagine that an NFL lineman could tell us a thing or two about waking up each Monday morning and hitting the training cycle hard again.
Technique. I was dubious on this one at first. Then I really thought about it. Technique is really important, improves with experience and probably makes all the difference in the world. If you want to be successful, desire alone will not be enough. You have to learn, practice, gain knowledge and determine what the best approach is in a given circumstance. Lineman, pastor, salesperson, or author everyone has to refine their craft. Get better each day and work on their technique.
Strength. Technique will help you on the path of achieving your objectives, but in order to last the test of time you need strength. Strength kicks in when you face resistance and opposition. When two sides both have the desire and good technique the side that wins is always stronger. A lineman’s strength training is probably self evident but for us our strength training might take on many different forms. The important point is that strength training is critical.
As I went through these three concepts, it struck me how most people probably ignore the need to improve their technique and work on their strength. I think most people that are engaged in an endeavor have the desire, but once they are engaged in the pursuit then what? How are you working on technique and strength? It seems that if you are finding yourself defeated or losing in your quest, then you have to ask this question. When was the last time you worked in your technique or specifically focused on becoming stronger?
I imagine that for a athlete these questions are straight forward with practical answers. A runner for example might hire a coach to help with technique. They might do some weight training to build strength. However what about a salesperson? What about a writer? What about a manager or any other modern day task oriented job? Just because the path is not easily determined does not remove the need for focus on these areas – Desire, Technique, Strength.
Guy Reams
