Live Like a Carefree Child and Thoughts about Learning

Good morning, Live Better than a Billionaire-a-Holics!

Are you feeling motivated this morning? I certainly hope so.

I promised you today my reflections on the first week of practice by the World Champion New England Patriots. I'll try to keep it brief, but I learned so much it's hard to fit it all into one blog entry.

Here's the background. The Patriots are a tough ticket at home. As I mentioned in an earlier blog, the Kraft family keeps a few tickets available for non-season-ticket-holding fans. They do this by releasing a few seats around May 21 for a Ticketmaster buying frenzy and there will be another one in a few weeks for standing-room-only tickets for a few regular season games.

Except for those "bid-for-em" seats, you can join tens of thousands to wait for season tickets . . . or you can pay a premium to a ticket broker. Your chances of getting someone to lend you their seats aren't very good unless you can trade them some good late-season Red Sox tickets.

So what do most fans do? Nothing. They just passively watch on television whenever the Patriots are on.

But those who live better than a billionaire on five dollars extra a day know a better approach: They attend the free training camp sessions where they can watch their favorite stars for two or more hours a day during August.

Now, you might think that anything that exciting would have 200,000 people attending. But the most I've ever seen at a practice was about 5,000 -- all of whom can sit comfortably in bleachers or on a grassy hillside (which I prefer because it's cooler). Now, you might think that people cannot lay off from work to attend. But the weekend attendance isn't much different from Monday through Friday when lots of youngsters arrive in buses from local camps.

As I've mentioned before, there are also great chances to acquire autographs and thousands do throng near the edges of the field at the end of each practice vying for a few precious signatures. Tom Brady and many of the stars graciously spend time after most practices, and many of those who hope to make the squad will spend lengthy periods signing.

If you don't like crowds, there's even an area where only 300 people are admitted. After practice 5 or 6 players go to that area and you are sure to get 2 or 3 autographs with little effort. On a light day (like yesterday), you're sure to get 5 or 6. If you had to buy those autographs, you would probably spend more than the price of a ticket, plus you get to meet some of the top players. Yesterday, those signing included perennial favorites Troy Brown and Rodney Harrison. My wife obtained a free book about the Patriots' first Super Bowl championship season and had that signed. She has a wonderful keepsake now that she treasures. She liked the experience so much she offered to go back next week and to get autographs for me too.

During the entire week, I didn't see any billionaires there. And we have some in New England. I know most of them by sight. If any of them are Patriots fans, you have to wonder why they would miss such good fun. In fact, I only saw the Patriots owner, Robert Kraft, and his wife at one practice. He needs to take more time to enjoy the team.

Just watching the youngsters ooh and aaah over their favorite players was a joy.

As someone who helps others improve their lives, I was also fascinated by what I saw on the field.

You would think that a World Championship team would be filled with big stars who dominated in college. As you go down the roster, there are few names that would be known to anyone other than a Patriots fan. In addition, those names are of people who didn't excel all that much in college. Two-time Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady sat on the bench in Michigan for most of his career and was a sixth round draft pick by the Patriots. Super Bowl MVP Deion Branch was a second round pick from Louisville (do you watch Louisville football?).

Forty-four of those on the roster were signed as free agents. That means no one else wanted them very much. The Patriots don't have much money under the salary cap to spend for free agents, so people come to New England for relatively little money (by NFL standards . . . a lot of money by everyone else's standards). Here are a few of their names and resumes: Adam Vinatieri (one of the greatest field goal kickers in the history of the NFL); Randall Gay (Super Bowl starter in place of Ty Law, the injured All Pro); Rodney Harrison (one of the fiercest defensive safeties of all time and Super Bowl starter who had been released by San Diego); Mike Vrabel (one of the team's smartest players and a great linebacker who had been released by Pittsburgh); Larry Izzo (star of the special teams who had been released by Miami); Roosevelt Colvin (a devastating tackler as a linebacker who had been released by Chicago); Tom Ashworth (starting tackle); and Christian Fauria (reliable tight end who specializes in Red Zone receptions who had been released by Seattle). In most drafts, a team would be thrilled to come up with one player of such caliber.

How do the Patriots do it? Watching practice made it clear. The Patriots hire for potential and attitude . . . and they are good at teaching people how to perform better. A good example is Matt Cassel, a 7th round pick who sat on the bench at USC for his entire career. But in person, he's a younger version of Tom Brady. He's big. He's smart. He works hard. He makes pretty good decisions for an inexperienced quarterback. And he passes well, too. Clearly Cassel is 4th on the depth chart, and the Patriots aren't going to carry four quarterbacks on the final roster. Yet every day, Cassel runs at least 25 minutes of offense on defense scrimmage and head coach Bill Belichick is usually there watching and coaching him between plays. To see this going on, you would have to think that Cassel was the next Peyton Manning. But lots of other lowly candidates with high potential are also getting lots of attention. You see players blossom before your eyes in a few practices.

In fact, some of the top performers in the training camp are people I had never heard of who are free agents. Most teams would make a decision about these players in 2 or 3 days and drop them. Not the Patriots. Each is receiving as much education as they can absorb. For example, the Patriots are deep in wide receivers. Yet unheralded Bam Childress leaves the crowd in awe every day with his ability to get open and make tough catches. You will see other receivers drop pass after pass, and yet they are back the next day . . . and start catching everything thrown in their direction. After one drop, I overheard coach Belichick wander over to the player and comment that he had to better on catching or Belichick couldn't keep him on the team. Belichick sounded genuinely apologetic, as though the failure was his own.

Not only do the Patriots teach well, they display confidence in players. That must be enormously valuable. Offensive lineman Logan Mankins was the Patriots first round draft pick this year. He works out as a starter . . . on Tom Brady's blind side. Now, most teams wouldn't put a rookie on the offensive line no matter how good he is. And no one but the Patriots would put a rookie on the quarterback's blind side. They clearly feel that Mankins will do the job and display confidence in him. He clearly looks confident out there. And where did Mankins play before? Fresno State, hardly a major training ground for the NFL.

Let me tell you two anecdotes that will summarize Bill Belichick's coaching style.

Belichick is serving as his own offensive coordinator this year after Charlie Weiss left to coach Notre Dame. So you might think that he would be in the face of the offense all the time. Not so. He generally wanders onto the field about 25 minutes into a 2 hours practice. I think this is to show that he has confidence in his position coaches who are actually running the practice. Generally, when he does coach the offense, he works with some lowly player rather than the first team. He acts like an extra offensive coach rather than head coach. Now, there are times when he wants to see what can be done and he will direct a scrimmage between the first team offense and the first team defense . . . but that's pretty rare. He's working on fundamentals instead, through his staff. When asked this week what is the most important responsibility of head coach is he replied, "To hire a good staff."

Naturally, it's hot in August for training camp. Everyone complains, but that's what reality is. One of Belichick's favorite replies to reporters who ask him how he will deal with some problem is that, "It is what it is." He clearly sees his job as dealing with reality, rather than emotionally wringing his hands over problems. Just before the height of the heat wave, he commented in a press conference that players were looking forward to hotter weather. Then on the hottest day, Belichick arrived at practice wearing his trademark grey, long-sleeved sweat shirt with hood as though this were late November. Although Belichick didn't have to wear pads and run around in the heat, he was clearly sending a message to his players that it wasn't too hot to work out.

How does this preparation play out during the season? Other teams find the Patriots to be an unpredictable opponent. While most teams run the same offenses and defenses week after week, the Patriots almost totally change their approach to take advantage of their opponents' weaknesses and to offset the opponents' strengths. Creating a learning organization of smart, dedicated people who know their fundamentals well makes that possible. And it all starts at training camp.

So if you really want to learn how to live better than a billionaire on five dollars extra a day, head out for Patriots training camp next week (new dates and times should be posted before next Monday at www.patriots.com) and see Belichick's live better than a billionaire on five dollars extra a day coaching. It's even more valuable than watching the Patriots win all of those regular season games! And it's free.

What are the lessons? First, focus on what's important after carefully considering the facts of a situation. Most people miss opportunities to live better than a billionaire because they don't think about their choices. They just keep doing the same old, same old. Reading this blog every day will help. Second, take a flexible approach that offers you access to the highest potential. Rather than planning to do a certain activity at a certain time in a certain way, wait to see what the weather is like, how everyone is feeling and take the choice that fits best with the actual opportunity. It helps to start with four alternatives in mind that could each be much better than anything else you could do. One of those alternatives will cry out to be taken when you leave your options open.

Tomorrow, I'll share my expanded thoughts on what freedom means and how you can enjoy it responsibly . . . and better than a billionaire.

Sunday, I'll reflect of how to keep your spiritual values strong even in places where God isn't as apparent as He usually is. I will be in the Las Vegas area for a meeting, and this environment should provide plenty of inspiration for this blog entry.

Monday, I'll start sharing some of the lessons I learn at the Jack Canfield Success Principles seminar. Don't miss it!

On Tuesday, I'll continue my report from the Jack Canfield Success Principles seminar based on what I learn on Monday.

On Wednesday, I'll provide more insights from the Jack Canfield Success Principles seminar based on what I learn on Tuesday.

Thursday, I will add information learned at the Jack Canfield Success Principles seminar on Wednesday.

Next Friday, I will reveal key insights that I learned at the Jack Canfield Success Principles seminar on Thursday.

Please feel free to let me know what else you would like to learn, and I'll do my best to help in future blog entries. I plan to address the question of how to be an Amazon.com top reviewer with integrity in a future blog based on kev's comment on my earlier blog entry. I partially answered his questions in a comment that follows his comment to that entry on July 29.

If you are new to this blog, be sure to check out the updated table of contents entry that was posted on August 3. It will help you find earlier entries that may be of interest. I'll update this table of contents every week or so for your convenience. August 4 was the most frequently read blog entry to date. Be sure to check it out!

Thanks so much for your support of this blog. I'm delighted that so many thousands of people have made this blog part of their regular reading habit!

If you like this blog, please let others know who might also enjoy it.

Thank you to my many friends, students, clients and blog readers who are spreading the good word about this blog. If you are visiting today because one of them invited you, I'm delighted to meet you! Let's stay in touch.

May God bless you.

Donald W. Mitchell, Your Dream Concierge

Copyright 2005 Donald W. Mitchell