By Dan Popera
When my teams were pretty decent and competitive, we were the underdogs in a majority of the games. I would have my players memorize the following poem by Walter Wintle.
IT’S ALL IN A STATE OF MIND
By: Walter Wintle
If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you won’t;
If you like to win, but don’t think you can,
its almost a cinch you won’t.
If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost,
For out in the world you’ll find
Success begins with a fellow’s will;
It’s all in a state of mind.
For many a game is lost
Ere even a play is run,
And many a coward fails
Ere even his work is begun.
Think big and your deeds will grow,
Think small and you’ll fall behind;
Think that you CAN and you WILL;
It’s all in a state of mind.
If you think you’re outclassed, you are;
You’ve got to think high to rise;
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before,
You can ever win a prize.
Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster man,
But sooner or later, the man who wins
Is the fellow who THINKS HE CAN!
Along the same lines, something that I heard recently: “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”