I'm A First Round Pick!

Today is Draft Day! For football fans, this is a day that is longed for year after year. Some are rooting for their favorite players to be picked early. The top question to be asked by the choosing team is, "How will player X help our team to succeed?"

Here are also some questions that we must ask ourselves."What makes me valuable to a team that is wanting to select me?" "What am I doing to make myself desired?" "What am I doing to improve my chances of selection?"

In the NFL draft, players are examined, prodded, poked, measured and analyzed in every possible way. They take a timed logic and reasoning test that is used to gauge calm and critical thinking in high pressure situations.

A test that is used and has become one of prominence is the PACE - (Performance After A Critical Error) test. It looks to see what a player does immediately after making a mistake.

It may not be as easy to quantify as how fast the player can run a certain distance or how much weight that player can lift, but it may be more critical in determining who can make the team better. PACE is a silent determiner in examining how the shadow of a past mistake affects future performance.

Players who demonstrate a high quality PACE find themselves as favorites in the front offices just like those who know how to handle difficult moments are highly valued in other businesses.

Imagine you have just made a mistake in a key situation that could be detrimental to your teammates. How will you respond immediately after when you are called upon to deliver the goods? Do you lose focus and compound the problem with additional errors or do you move on and focus on the next play?

If you want to increase your value and potential for success, increase your PACE. It is the ultimate show of that characteristic that everyone wants: mental toughness. Will you play scared, or will you play through? Don't let that mistake cost you another play! Understand that any error you make, the most important thing is your performance on the next play.

“Well, we all make mistakes, dear, so just put it behind you. We should regret our mistakes and learn from them, but never carry them forward into the future with us.” ― L.M. Montgomery

 Blessed,
Dr. Tim

PACE is the silent determiner in examining how the shadow of a past mistake affects future performance.  - See more at: http://www.success.com/blog/the-pace-how-mentally-tough-are-you#sthash.ZWeRdv3X.dpuf

PACE is the silent determiner in examining how the shadow of a past mistake affects future performance.  - See more at: http://www.success.com/blog/the-pace-how-mentally-tough-are-you#sthash.ZWeRdv3X.dpuf

MY TRUCK IS DIRTY!

It is a beautiful day today! I am looking around and admiring the new blooms that some of the plants have already started to develop. Then I see it! My truck. So dirty! No clinging mud or anything like that, just road film and dust from all the dirt roads I have been driving down lately.

My truck is a beautiful "Crimson" color (can you say "ROLL TIDE!"?) when it is clean. But, today it is starting to take on a tan appearance. So dusty in fact, that when you touch it, you leave your mark!

"Wash it!" you say. Well, I want to. It just seems as though every time I tell myself that I need to, something distracts me and takes my attention elsewhere. It has been two or three weeks now since the last wash. The longer I go, the dirtier it gets. The dirtier it gets, the more noticeable it is! The more noticeable it is, the more I am reminded to wash it. I just can't seem to find the time to get it washed!

I think our lives are the same way. We travel down this road called life and get a little dirty. Sometimes it is a full blown mud hole we go through and sometimes just a dusty old dirt road that puts a little "dusting" on us. Either way, we get dirty!

Because of distractions, we put off the washing of our lives. We get dirtier and dirtier. Finally, that dirty life becomes noticeable to us as well as those who have noticed it much earlier!

Isn't it sad that I can find the time to do everything else except wash my truck? An average T.V. show lasts an hour. Surely I could clean my truck in an hour! We could begin with at least an hour a day devoted to "cleaning up" those things in our lives that make us dirty. Bible reading in order to understand the principles of God's Word. Prayer to personally connect with the One who can keep us clean.

I'm sure that those who see my truck would enjoy it more if it were clean! It is so with my life as well. Those with whom I come in contact would enjoy me more if I were "clean". A pleasant personality, non-complaining, happy, caring, and even fun guy!

I am going to enjoy my life! And, in doing so, I will get a little dirty. But, I need to wash my life frequently in order to be presented as "clean"!

Honey, where is the bucket?