Hard Core

It was a rainy day in DC today, although not too cold. I decided to go for a run, of course. In shorts and three tee-shirts, I was off... and I started to get wet. It reminded me of a day back in maybe 1994 or '95, when I was coaching soccer:

My girls had played poorly the day prior - and it was raining - so I made them run around campus instead of on the field. At first, they couldn't believe it; I know the varsity squad thought I was the devil, as they got to go home. However, my team knew I was serious... and I was. We ran and ran, and did our push-ups and sit-ups; everyone was unusually quiet - high school girls are never quiet at soccer practice. What I wanted for them to understand, and I think they got it, is that no matter what your station is in life - to win, you have to be hard-core. You have to go beyond what is normal, and you have to surprise people; you even have to surprise yourself. You have to do not only what others don't, but what others won't. That's hard-core.

I sometimes have to remind myself, so pardon my reminiscing. It's a nice memory to have, and so important a lesson to remember.