THE MONDAY LEADOFF

Hi my friend 🫡

He was awful. He threw the ball into the stands, he dropped passes, he dribbled off his foot, he missed shots... But never ever once during that game did he blame an official or point a finger at a teammate. He was always cheering from the bench... and he never flinched. That stuck with me.

Can you guess which NBA superstar this quote was about?

If you guessed 3-star college recruit, Steph Curry, you are correct! Luckily Curry started working with Brandon Payne. They used deliberate play as the foundation for their training. Here are some examples of deliberate play:

• Turn drills into games
• Always have a time to beat
• Always having a number to beat
• Don't aim for perfect, aim for better
• Create game-like situations with pressure
• Alternate between different skills during practice (hundreds of experiments show that people improve faster when they alternate between different skills)

GRAPHIC OF THE WEEK

(Credit: Adam Grant)

RULE OF THUMB

(Credit: Tim Ferriss)

When working with people who have been where you want to go, don't ask to pick their brains, instead ask to retrace their steps.

WHAT'S BEEN WORKING

1.

Asking myself, "How useful am I?"

Status and respect come from usefulness. No one casts aside a useful man. I've become more valuable as I continue to ask myself the above question. I’ll keep asking myself, “How can I be more useful to my athletes?”

QUOTE I'M PONDERING

"People with the most discipline actually use the least amount of it; instead of relying on willpower to push through a strenuous situation, they change the situation to make it less strenuous." -Angela Duckworth

Nothing but the best,

Matt 🎯

P.S. Are there ways that you integrate deliberate play into your practices? If so, let me know! I'd love to integrate that and feature your feedback on a future Monday Leadoff.