Inspiring TJ Football Players

Last weekend was my 15-year high school reunion, which coincided with TJ's Homecoming. I was honored to be asked back by the football coach to talk to the team before the game. I've done this twice before and both times the team has followed up with its first win of the season. I can't claim any responsibility for that but hopefully I at least helped!

This year the TJ football team was in a different situation. They had started off the season very strong but, as the result of several key injuries, had lost their last several games - and lost them very decisively. So I decided to focus my brief time with them on overcoming adversity:

"As Coach said, I was TJ Class of 1997. I played football for four years at TJ, three years as a two-way starter on varsity, and one year as Captain. After TJ I studied computer science and electrical engineering at Rice University, where I played fullback for the Owls. Professionally I have spent my career starting up and leading cleantech companies. I've had some successes and some failures - just as at TJ I had some wins and some losses.

What I recall, though, is that it was losing winnable games that hurt the most. All games are winnable, of course, but some are more winnable than others. For example, my senior year we were beaten pretty badly by a Chantilly team that went on to win the state championship and produced multiple D-IA / NFL players. That loss didn't hurt too much. However, we also lost to a Centreville team that would could have - should have - beaten. That one stung even more because I was injured and had to watch my teammates struggle out there on the field without me. Is anyone here injured? [A scary number of hands shot up into the air when I asked this!] Yeah, you know what I'm talking about.

So help me out, guys, is tonight's opponent / game more or less winnable? [lots of agreement that this was a very winnable game] OK, then we all agree that

We CAN win

Is there anyone here, though, who believes that ability is all it takes to win a football game? [no hands] Good. Then let's talk about what else it takes.

With the benefit of 16 years of hindsight, it's clear to me that you get much more out of TJ football than just playing a fun sport with your friends. I have four degrees from some of the top schools in the world in computer science, electrical engineering, and business, but the skills I rely on most every day didn't come from those academic experiences; they were developed up there on the TJ football field. Skills like leadership, teamwork, discipline, determination, and, perhaps most importantly, the ability to overcome adversity. [brief discussion about what "adversity" means to them]

Life is adversity. Whether you don't get into your top choice for college, you get dumped by your girlfriend, or - something that resonates with me personally - you're running a tech startup and one day Google launches a product that competes directly with you, life is constantly knocking you down. The question is, what do you do about it? There are two types of people: those who roll over and take it and those who bounce back up fighting even harder than before.

The ability to overcome adversity is the most important life skill to develop and it can't be taught in the classroom or learned in a book. There is no AP exam for it. No, the good news is that the best place in the world to develop that skill is up there on the TJ football field. The bad news is that you're running out of time. Seniors, I'm especially talking to you. You have three hours of game time left in your TJ football careers. Three hours to prove to the world - and yourselves - that you have what it takes to overcome adversity.

This team has seen its share of adversity this season. You've lost some key players and come up on the wrong side of some close contests. In the world of corporate strategy we talk about "must-win battles." I believe that tonight's game is a must-win battle for TJ football; tonight's game will define the season for you and even your entire TJ football experience. Out on the field tonight you will show that you're not boys who will lie there and take it but men who will stand up and fight. Can we all agree on that? [murmers of consent]

We MUST win

Is there anyone here, though, who believes that necessity is all it takes to win a football game? [no hands] That's right; it's not the team with the greatest ability or necessity that wins; rather it's the team that executes on the field of play when it counts. So close your eyes; I want you to visualize yourself executing perfectly tonight.

QBs, see yourself making the right read and firing a tight spiral right on target. RBs, see yourself taking the handoff, securing the ball, and making a good cut. Receivers, you're running a tight route, turning around, and looking the ball into your hands as you catch it. Linemen, you're dominating the man across from you, putting him on the ground and moving downfield to pick up a linebacker. Defensive players, you're squaring up on the ball carrier,wrapping up, and driving through him as you take him to the ground. Kickers, you're pointing your toe and seeing the ball splitting the uprights perfectly.

Now fast forward to the end of the game. The seconds on the clock are ticking down. You're looking over at your comrades in arms and smiling. You're beaten and bruised but the euphoria of victory is upon you. You know that tomorrow's Homecoming dance is going to be a lot more fun now - but you're not ready to think about that just yet. Right now you just want to savor the feeling of victory. What does it feel like? How does it smell? How does it taste? [As I had not closed my eyes, I could see smiles creeping onto the faces of all the players - visualization is such a powerful tool!]

OK, open your eyes. You've all just seen the future, so I think we can all agree that

We WILL win

We CAN win
We MUST win
We WILL win
[got them to say it with me a few times]

And why? Because you deserve this. You've worked for this. And tonight in the stands there will be 25 years of those who've come before you, previous TJ football players who've shed blood, sweat, and tears out on that same field and we all believe in you. But you are the ones who have to go out there and get it done tonight. So get out there and make us proud, gentlemen."

This one was pretty long and the visualization exercise might have seemed a little hokey but hopefully it all helped. Long story short: they went down 12-0 quickly but rebounded (overcame adversity!) to win 42-12. It was cold and rainy but there is nowhere I would rather have been!

The rest of the reunion was great, especially introducing Katie to my classmates. The highlight by far for me, though, was the football game. Congrats to those young men; I hope they'll all build on what the accomplished and use it for the rest of their lives!

Hassinspiration

This weekend I had the honor of talking to my former high school football team before their Homecoming game. Three years ago I was asked to come in and do the same and it turned out to be the only game they won all season. As the mighty Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology Colonials were winless so far this season, we all hoped that my talk this year would have the same effect.

There are so many things I know now that I wish I had known back then, but I only had a few minutes with them before the game so I just focused on the two themes that I thought would be most worthwhile for them. Following is a rough transcript of how the pre-game talk went (subject to my memory, which isn't getting any younger!):

"Gentlemen, I am truly honored to be back here in front of you today. As Coach said, I was TJ Class of 1997. I played football for four years at TJ, three years as a two-way starter on varsity, and one year as Captain. After TJ I studied computer science and electrical engineering at Rice University, where I played fullback for the Owls. Professionally I have spent my career starting up and leading clean technology companies. It has been 14 years since I sat where you're sitting right now and it is clear to me that, even though I got a lot out of TJ football during the four years I played, I've gotten so much more out of it in the 14 years since. I'm hoping that, by sharing some of that with you today, you'll be able to get even more out of your own TJ football experience.

So what do you get out of TJ football? Lifelong friendships, certainly. Matt and I (Note: my classmate and TJ quarterback, Matt Young, came too, reinforcing this point very well.) are at the age when everyone's getting married and it's amazing how, when a TJ football player gets married, there are invariably many other TJ football players there at the wedding--and often some standing up there beside the groom. We went to different colleges, took different jobs, and are now scattered around the globe . . . but there is a bond that is forged when you stand together on the field of battle, united against a common foe, and that bond is not easily broken. So look at the player on your left, look at the player on your right, and understand that, for better or for worse, you'll be stuck with each other for quite some time!

But you get so much more from TJ football than just relationships. You see, what happens up there on the football field is really a manifestation of that which happens to you in real life. Think about it: every day billions of people and organizations and businesses and teams set out to achieve some goal or overcome some obstacle or conquer some foe--just as you do on the football field. And, just as happens on the football field, it's not the team with the most resources that wins. It's not the business with the most capital or the athletes with the most physical prowess. No, it's the team that executes on the field of play when it counts. It's the team that demonstrates the greatest teamwork, leadership, discipline, and heart when it matters most. This is why startups are able to go up against Microsoft and win. This is why PhDs from schools you've never heard of are able to win the Nobel prize. It's not about what you have; it's about what you do.

Teamwork, leadership, discipline, heart . . . these aren't subjects you can learn in a classroom. These aren't traits you can read about in a book. These are intrinsic characteristics that you develop up there on the football field. So you think you're out there playing a game but you're really training yourself for the rest of your adult lives. I certainly didn't realize that when I was playing football here but it is so abundantly clear to me now.

The greatest lesson that I learned from this TJ football training ground is how to deal with failure. The world's greatest leaders are defined not by how they deal with success, rather how they respond to failure. This is because the path to success invariably winds its way through many failures first. Some people--most people--accept these and give up. Others learn from their failures, growing stronger, better prepared and even more motivated for success. These are the people who become truly great.

Sounds easy, right? But failure is hard. When you really set your heart on something and then fail to achieve it, it hurts--it hurts bad. I know. Lord knows we experienced plenty of failure in my TJ football days. And I know you guys have had your share of failure so far this season too, so I can imagine how you guys must be hurting right now--maybe a little frustrated, maybe a little downhearted.

A natural response to repeated failure is to stop caring. If you don't yearn so much for victory, it doesn't hurt so much when you don't achieve it. If that's how you feel right now about tonight's game against Marshall, I won't think any less of you. As I said, it is a very natural defense mechanism that saves a lot of people a lot of pain. But, if that's how you feel right now about tonight's game against Marshall, then don't you dare set foot on our football field. Decades of players before you have shed blood, sweat, and tears on that field--often against very long odds--so, if you're out there with anything less than 100% commitment to and belief in victory, it's a dishonor to yourself, to your team, and to everyone who's ever worn the uniform.

There is so much I'd like to share with you through the benefit of 14 years of 20/20 hindsight, but I just have these few minutes. I hope you will at least take away from this that what happens out there tonight will be more meaningful for the rest of your lives than you can possibly realize right now. The question is: are you going to let it be just some silly pastime? Or are you going to take it, own it, and ensure that is a source of strength and pride for you that pays dividends throughout your professional and personal lives?

I can't answer that question; only you can. I would give just about anything to be out there fighting alongside you tonight, but I can't. My time is passed; now it is your time. I will be cheering hard for you and sending you every ounce of strength and energy I have but, at the end of the night, it's you guys who have to get it done on the field.

Seniors, I'm especially talking to you. You have less than three hours of game time left in your TJ football careers. Three hours! That's a blink of the eye in your lives. Every play, every minute, every moment counts; you'll never get a second chance. So get out there tonight and get it done. Don't let up for even a second and leave it all on the field. Do it for TJ, do it for the fans, do it for your coaches. Hell, do it for me; I flew halfway across the country because I want to see you win! But most of all, do it for yourselves. You are Thomas Jefferson Colonial football players and you deserve victory. Go out there and take what's yours."

Wow, written out like that it seems really long but I don't remember it taking more than a few minutes. Regardless, the team fought a hard battle and won the game at the last moment. I don't know if my words "reached" anyone but I hope those young men found them beneficial.

The rest of the weekend was spent enjoying Fall weather and catching up with family and friends in Northern Virginia. Now I'm back in 90-degree Houston but still glowing from a wonderful weekend.

The Big Lebowski

I can't believe that June is almost over already; it has really flown by! It began with (although technically this was the end of May) dogsitting our friend's awesome chocolate lab. We took her on long walks around the neighborhood and frequent visits to Houston's many dog parks. Some couples are described as "baby crazy." Katie and I are definitely "dog crazy" and we intend to rescue one of our own this Fall.

The next weekend was a beach volleyball tournament in Galveston. My favorite men's 2s partner and I reunited for the first time in three years and had a great time. We lost two games by a little and won two games by a lot but that wasn't enough to advance to the playoffs. We played well, though, and one of our wins handed the top team in our bracket their only loss so we felt good about the day. Leaving early afforded us the opportunity to listen to Rice baseball win on the way back from Galveston, take a nap, and then Katie and I enjoyed dinner and a movie in the evening.

Rice baseball unfortunately did not advance out of the regional tournament hosted by UT. It was a really weird year for Rice; we lost many more games than usual and just didn't seem to have the dominant pitching for which we are known. The upside is that our offense was pretty awesome this season. Led by player of the year Anthony Rendon, we won several games by mercy rule. Offense comes and goes, though, so you can't rely on it alone in the post season. Oh well, at least football season is now right around the corner!

The following weekend Katie and I went to St. Louis for the first time for the wedding of a middle/high school classmate of mine. He had been another captain on the football team so many of our old teammates were there for the occasion. It was great fun to catch up with all the old guys; we tried not to spend too much time reliving the glory days and Katie was a great sport about it.

Last week I was up in Chicago (also for the first time) on business, which presented a great chance to catch up with some Rice folks I hadn't seen in some time. I made it back on Saturday, just in time to prep for The Dude Imbibes, a Big Lebowski trivia night. Katie's sister, Kelly, was in town with her boyfriend, Mike, who had never seen The Big Lebowski before. So, in order to prepare our team, we watched the movie with some white russians. Watching it again reminded me why it is still my favorite movie; every time I watch it I notice some new, subtle nuance.

The pub quiz was held at Little Woodrow's in the Rice Village. Although there were only nine teams (many fewer than we had had for the Seinfeld pub quiz a few months ago), the competition was spirited and we had a great time. Geeks Who Drink, the organizers, put on a really good event.

We aced most of the rounds of questions, although we fared poorly in the audio round, in which we had to identify obscure artists of music heard throughout the movie. Fortunately, everyone else fared poorly on that round too so we spent most of the event in second place. Some rounds featured bonus questions for which free beers were awarded to the individual who presented the first correct answer. We won all but one of those and the team next to us insisted that my speedy writing be tested for doping. :-)

We outperformed the top team in the final round to secure a tie for first place. This meant we had to settle it with sudden death overtime. The DJ played "The Final Countdown" to get us in the spirit and then we won by correctly answering the next question while the other team did not--amateurs! The DJ played "You're The Best" and the Quiz Master gave us our winnings. It was a good night! We paid $20 to enter, $20 for beer, and $40 for food. We won $70 plus four free beers so I think it worked out pretty well. To celebrate, we went home and watched Tombstone, which also features Sam Elliott.

Sunday we arose early and traveled out to JD Organic Farms to pick blueberries. If you're a blueberry lover (I add them to my cereal whenever possible.), it's a great deal. You pay $2.50/lb for whatever you pick. They're organic, local, cheap, not wastefully packaged, and easily frozen for future use. Between the four of us we picked 17 lbs in about an hour--AND the proprietors had a six-week-old golden lab puppy who was worth the price of admission all by herself.

After blueberry pie, scones, and pancakes, we froze the rest and participated in a vegan cooking class at Indika. As always, the results were delicious and it was so cool to cook in the kitchen of a major restaurant with the chef and sous chefs flitting about to help and advise.

It was a great weekend and a great month! Now I need to buckle down before heading off to Switzerland!

Poken One-Year Anniversary

December 8th was the one-year anniversary of my start with Poken. I can't believe it, that really seems lifetimes ago. What a roller coaster ride it was: arriving just as we launched the product commercially, working feverishly to update the product to meet the massive surge of initial demand, building a team quickly to keep up with the scale of growth, and--ultimately--making the heart-wrenching decision to leave Poken to lead a company that is working toward a better energy future. Poken is still doing well, growing and expanding every day. I wish the team all the best there and I look forward to the day when everyone else has a Poken!

Also in the news recently, my high school was selected as the top public school in the nation for the third year in a row. Once again I am humbled by the company I am in and can only strive to live up to such a standard. I feel very, very fortunate to have had the opportunity to attend TJ and I must make the most of it!

Mixed Media

Last week marked several milestones for me regarding different forms of media:

1. I finished listening to the entire Jimmy Buffett discography chronologically and am now well prepared for the July 5th concert in London. Speaking of which, I still have an extra ticket for that show if any Parrot Heads are looking to join.

I've made my way through the "K"s and I'm now in Led Zeppelin, having just finished I and II. What a strong start they made onto the music scene!

2. I beat all the Military Madness levels as both the good Allies and as the evil Axis, so I now hold the title of Grand Strategy Pooba--at least by 1989 video game standards! If history is any evidence I probably won't play any video games again for a long time but this was a fun diversion for the last few weeks.

3. I watched The Kite Runner in lieu of reading the book. I'm sure the book was better but most reviews I read indicated that movie was pretty faithful to it. It was interesting--pretty well done.

4. I finished Malcolm Gladwell's Outliers, his third in a string of engaging, thought-provoking books. I question some of the causality in the cases he makes but they are interesting nonetheless and I would recommend this book. Reading it gave me pause for thought about the opportunities I have had and especially about the unique high school environment created for us at TJ. Fortune has definitely smiled on me throughout much of my life and I'm not sure I deserve it. All I can do is my best and hope that I live up to the extraordinary opportunities with which I have been blessed.

On another note, things are absolutely crazy at the Poken office these days. We have flown in our new Web interface development team for "war room" style productivity. This has effectively doubled our headcount--but of course we haven't increased our office space at all. Result: high entropy! "Chaos" might be a better word, but it seems to be productive. The new team members are nice and smart and a good addition to our existing uberteam.

TJ is #1 Again

For the second consecutive year my high school was selected by US News and World Report as the top public school in the country (article). This year two of my alma maters have been ranked #1 and I am, once again, humbled. It is a great honor to have been selected for such institutions and not a day goes by that I am not thankful to have had the opportunity. Now, at the cusp of my next stage in life, I hope to be able to live up to the high standards set by my peers. While I can't promise results, I can promise to do what I've done throughout my academic, professional, and athletic careers: my best.

Beach Volleyball in the Rain

After an incredibly productive several days of work for deskNET, my group's startup client, I was chomping at the bit to get outside and enjoy the beautiful weather. Most of the class gathered in the auditorium to watch The Constant Gardener, one of 10 movies we must see in preparation for our Discovery Trip to Kenya. Having already seen it, I snuck off with Tomas, the Super Slovakian, to get some volleyball in while it was still light out.

At almost exactly the moment that we played our first point, it began to rain, just a sprinkle at first. Then it came down a little harder. And then harder. By the time we finished our second game, it was pouring. But hey, we were already there so we might as well play. Our opponents had the same attitude so, while the rest of the courts cleared, we managed to squeeze in four games before Tomas had to leave. Sure the conditions were suboptimal, but it was still a blast.

On an unrelated note, I've finally returned to my journey through American pop music and have now made it to 1993. It takes me back to my 8th grade graduation dance at Lake Braddock and the beginning of my freshman year at TJ--great memories!