THE PSYCHOLOGY OF EXCELLENCE
A very interesting piece is out there today, on the mindset we need to succeed in life. And really it's all about doing our best every day, and keeping our minds focused on that.  But how?  Here's a good explanation:
"My son, who is 9, shared his homework with me a few days ago and asked, “Am I done?”

I looked at it and smiled. He’s really a very good kid (my extreme prejudice, of course). He’d answered every one of the questions on the sheet of paper. The answers were pretty short, but they would have been just fine. I considered congratulating him for finishing and leaving it at that.
That would be the easy road, and it would reassure him that he had followed the written directions and had, in fact, completed an assignment. And that’s no small thing for a 9-year-old just starting to get real homework.

If I’d done that, though, I wouldn’t have been doing my homework as a dad. Because what I intuited that my son was really asking wasn’t so much whether he had left any blanks on the sheet, but whether homework required anything more of him than that.

It was more of a discussion, but it was one worth having. “You’re done if you think that the answers you wrote are the best answers you can possibly write,” I said. “If that’s true, you’re set.”

He looked at the sheet, then looked at me.

I tried not to look judgmental and I really didn’t feel like passing any verdict, anyhow. The answers he’d written were good. But that wasn’t the point. The point was whether they were his best effort.

He smiled and shook his head. “I could make it better.” He took back the paper.

The edit didn’t take more than fifteen minutes or so, but the work was, indeed, better. And my son looked proud of putting more into it.

“Your teacher will appreciate you trying as hard as you can,” I told him.

There’s a lesson here for all of us—myself included.

Among the immeasurable and miraculous traits that human beings possess is an inherent capacity to resonate with quality and excellence. Some sort of scale of purity or truth or devotion—call it what you will—is hardwired into our brains or souls or both that can distinguish when someone is committed to, and passionate about, delivering his or her very best and when someone is settling for anything less (and asking us not to notice).

This scale of quality, excellence and commitment operates unconsciously. People may not even know exactly why they gravitate toward a particular work of art or a business plan or a professional sports team or a candidate for office. But one of the ingredients we humans can assess is that mystical, immeasurable, miraculous element of love for one’s work and oneself and one’s audience or customer or electorate. We know inherently, instinctively whether it is present in a person and that person’s creations and work product—or not."

Exactly.  And so much of it has to do with our mental focus.  How many times have we heard or seen acquaintances of ours admit that a job they'd done had not been the best--and then blame it on others, or make excuses about not having enough time, or just admit that they don't care?  Even worse, how often have you in reality done the exact same thing?  I think we all know that we have.  Really, what it comes down to I believe, is this:  really, deep down, when we've done a job, we know deep within us whether we've truly done the best job we could.  When we haven't done our best, we know it almost immediately.  I guess the key is--when you know you haven't done your best, one needs to act on it and do something about it. 

AND NOW...

THE RETURN OF FRIDAY FOOTBALL PICKS!!

Here we go, the football season has returned!

COLLEGE PICKS

I'll pick just two:

Alabama at Penn State.  PICK:  CRIMSON TIDE.  They don't rebuild; they reload.  They've been recuiting better athletes than JoePa for years.  The Nittany Lions will battle.  But in the end 'Bama will prevail.

Notre Dame at Michigan.  PICK:  WOLVERINES.  I know, most say the Irish have more talent than Michigan; and they probably do at this point.  And no way will the Irish make as many mistakes as they did last Saturday against South Florida.  But...I dunno...I just have a sense that Denard Robinson has ND's number.  Last year he rolled up 500 yards of total offense against them in South Bend.  The first-ever night game in Michigan Stadium--look for the Maize and Blue's quarterback to seize the moment.

NFL PICKS

Carlina at Arizona.  Line:  AZ favored by 7.  PICK:  CARDINALS.  Cam Newton is a raw, rookie QB, opening on the road.  AZ's Kevin Kolb isn't.

Atlanta at Chicago.  Line:  ATL favored by 3.  PICK:  FALCONS.  Stories out of Chicago suggest the Bears are a disgruntled, distracted team, angry at losing long-time center Olin Kreutz, LB Lance Briggs demanding a new contract, etc.  Meanwhile, the Falcons are back intact from last year, and Matt Ryan is a year better.

Pittsburgh at Baltimore.  Line:  BALT by 2.  PICK:  STEELERS.  The Ravens are aging a bit on defense, and they've made a number of changes--no more Todd Heap, Willis McGahee, etc.  Meanwhile the Steelers have most of their squad back from last year.  I think that favors them.

Cincinnati at Cleveland.  Line:  CLE by 6.5.  PICK:  BROWNS.  They're at home; Colt McCoy is improving.  The Bengals look to be a mess, and while Andy Dalton will some day be a good NFL quarterback, it'll take a while.

Indianapolis at Houston.  Line:  HOU by 8.5.  PICK:  COLTS.  My upset special.  Why?  Yes, the Colts have no Peyton Manning.  Yes, that's extremely tough for them.  But remember they have a lot of other good players:  Reggie Wayne, Joseph Addai, Dwight Freeney, etc.  I also suspect that the Texans may mentally relax, knowing there's no Manning to face.  Meanwhile the Colts know everyone has to step up.  That gives Indy a mental edge.  I suspect Houston wins this game, but look for it to be closer than some expect.

Tennessee at Jacksonville.  LINE:  JVILLE by 2.  PICK:  TITANS.  Seriously, Jacksonville?  Just dump David Garrard to the curb and argue Luke McCown gives you the best chance to win?  I doubt it.  Tennessee wins the QB comparison, with their starter Matt Hasselbeck.  They'll also win the game.

Buffalo at Kansas City.  LINE:  KC by 6.  PICK:  CHIEFS.  Some are saying that Kansas City played poorly in the pre-season, while the Bills showed more flashes, so this a trendy upset pick.  Not me; can't pull the trigger on that.  It will be tough to break Buffalo's long custom of losing; I doubt Chan Gailey will be the one to do it.  This is the kind of game in the last several years the Bills have usually lost.  I expect KC and Matt Cassel to make it happen again.

NY Giants at Washington. LINE:  NYG by 3.  PICK:  REDSKINS.  Upset pick.  Simple:  looks to me like Mike Shanahan has that Redskins offense playing better than many expected.  Meanwhile, the Giants have so many injuries in the secondary that even Rex Grossman can exploit them.

Dallas at NY Jets.  LINE:  NYJ by 5.  PICK:  JETS.  The Cowboys just have too many injuries and issues--in their offensive line, in their defensive secondary.  How will the Cowboys' now-young and inexperienced O-line pick up the Jets' blitz packages?   Tony Romo is a good QB, but he may be running for his life Sunday night.

Philadelphia at St. Louis.  LINE:  PHI by 4.5.  You sense the Rams and Sam Bradford improving.  You wonder if the Eagles have been over-hyped.  But I still think Michael Vick, DeSean Jackson, and the Eagles offense will socre a lot of points in this game, and get the Eagles off to a winning start.

Minnesota at San Diego.  LINE:  SD by 8.5.  PICK:  CHARGERS.  That's a big spread, but by all accounts Philip Rivers and the Chargers offense look to be in very good shape, and can score enough points to cover.  Meanwhile, given last year, Donovan McNabb and the Vikings offense is a question mark.

Seattle at San Francisco.  LINE:  SF by 5.5.  PICK:  49ERS.  Seattle think the way to go is to start Tarvaris Jackson at quarterback?  Seriously?  The Niners have issues of their own with Alex Smith, but they'll have enough to get by here.

Detroit at Tampa Bay.  LINE:  TB by 2.  PICK:  LIONS.  I I know--dangerous to get on the Lions' bandwagon, given their past luck.  But with a healthy Matthew Stafford and a tough D-line, I think the Lions are finally ready not just to talk about being improved, but to show it.

Oakland at Denver.  LINE:  DEN by 3.  PICK:  BRONCOS.  This team has a better coach now in John Fox, they've made the right decision in starting the very capable Kyle Orton, and they're at home vs the Raiders, whose defense may take a step back from last year.

New England at Miami.  LINE:  NE by 7.  PICK:  DOLPHINS.  Just a feeling--the Patriots may win this game late, but it'll be closer than 7.  It's in Miami, Chad Henne has a year more of experience under his belt, they have a new weapon in Reggie Bush, everybody's picking the Pats and Tom Brady, so the Dolphins have much to prove...I thionk that gives them a mental edge.  Look for a tight game.

"You are never given a dream without also being given the
power to make it true. You may have to work for it, however."-Richard Bach