“Gentlemen, this is a football.” – Vince Lombardi to professional football players on the first day of practice every year.
“Men, this is how you put your shoes and socks on.” – John Wooden to his college basketball players every year.
Two of the greatest coaches of all time focused on the basics. They won a lot. We should probably pay attention to a few of the things they did.
Few people are masters of the basics. Few people ever take the time or have the patience and focus to build an unbreakable foundation by laying bricks made of essential skills. Yet, this is the most direct and certain way to win.
Let other people spend their time learning advanced plays while you master dribbling, passing, and shooting.
Let other people waste time learning about how to trade stocks while you spend your time mastering making money and saving money.
Let other people worry about what type of pre-workout they should drink and the intricacies of the newest diet fad while you focus on eating whole foods and drinking sufficient water.
Let other people bounce from workout to workout trying to find “the best one” while you focus on proper technique and getting stronger in the basic movement patterns: push, pull, squat, bend, and pillar.
Instead of making things more complex or looking for the next best thing (which rarely is) or chasing fads focus on the tried and true basics. By focusing on the basics not only will you get better results faster but if at some point you want to jump into more complex and advanced things you will have a firm platform on which to stand and launch from.
Brett “Back to the Basics” Denton