If it's easy, you are wasting your time!

This is a message I relay to every athlete I work with!

For example, most somewhat experienced players can bounce the ball from hand to hand (commonly referred to as a crossover) without much difficulty and rarely ever lose the ball. However, if you pound the ball as fast and as hard as you can, to the point of discomfort, then you will lose the ball far more often.

Which method will allow you to dribble the ball faster and improve your ball handling? The method that requires less effort and results in less mistakes (losing the ball less) or the method that requires maximum effort and results in more mistakes (losing the ball more)?

After failing again and again, you will begin to succeed and you will now be able to perform a faster and stronger crossover dribble in practice, but more importantly in games.

Just like LIFE in basketball you grow more in those times you push yourself outside of your comfort zone.

As you can imagine this lesson fits any situation. To make my point I will list a few:

 1. Would you become a better reader if you always read the easy books that were effortless and didn't push you outside your comfort zone?

2. Would you get stronger if you always lifted the light weights that were easy and comfortable?

3. Would you get faster if you jogged at a comfortable pace that didn't cause you any discomfort?

Those are just 3 basic examples, but there are infinite examples.

This is an important lesson for any basketball player to learn, but more importantly for anyone to learn!

As Vince Lombardi said “To achieve success, whatever the job we have, we must pay a price.”