Moron (More On) Motivation

(I don't mean the title to be negative... it began as a typo, and I loved it!)

Way back when I played football – a full lifetime ago – I loved a good motivational Win one for the Gipper speech.  A coach would usually pull some Rocky quotes and, in full hyperbole, reference brotherhood, regret and glory just prior to the team hitting the field with adrenaline coursing. In the pre-game locker room there was screaming, banging heads, vomiting (yep), shoulder pad punching and more; all in an effort to motivate and get motivated. I played quarterback, so I tried not to get too hyped, but it was impossible not to get caught up in the emotion and fire of the moment. But here’s something I learned: The greatest motivational speech ever uttered is good right up to the point you get punched in the mouth! Suddenly it’s no longer about what someone said, how hyped you are/were, or the five pregame Redbulls. There comes a point, where something inside has to force you to punch your fists into the dirt and push yourself up; to shake out the cobwebs and head back to the huddle. At those moments you don’t recall the speech or even who the Gipper or (sacrilege) who Rocky was. There comes a point, and always prior to true success, when motivation migrates from the external to the internal.

I remember a coach once yelling at me, “Don’t think!” My reaction? “I’m the quarterback, I’m supposed to think.” He barked, “You see Ricky over there? If I told him to run through that wall, he’d just duck his head and try to knock it down.” I thought, “That sucks for Ricky! But if you give a compelling reason; if you can give me a ‘WHY’ that I believe in, I’ll take a shot at the wall.” He didn't and I didn't.

So what’s Moron Motivation? It’s trusting that someone else’s motives and drive will be enough to gas us up.  I've known motivation junkies. They quote Covey and Ziglar, Maxwell and Robbins - all great stuff, but not enough. They hit the field with adrenaline screaming, “Drago!” and they are soon carried off after being blindsided by a blitzing backer. Forgive the mixed movie/sport metaphor, but you will get blindsided… and the backers are blitzing! (BTW, if you don’t get the “Drago” reference, shame on you… and rent Rocky IV!).

OK, I have a dilemma…  I have five different directions I want to go with these concepts, and lots of applications I want to make. But I can already feel that you’re leaning toward looking at Instagram. So I’m going to leave it right here for now. This one is way incomplete, so more to come!

For now…

D