Sunday’s Takeaway: Do The Work Before The Work Starts

“Practice–We talking practice?!”

Beating a teammate during a foot race on a Wednesday morning in June just doesn’t carry the same weight as beating an offensive lineman around the edge leading to a tackle for loss during a game in September.

However, it’s that work in June and July, and team practices, that make the actual games during the fall easy.

For too many athletes, being asked to go through the motions and practicing repetition is a chore. For some, it’s boring because it’s too easy.

Others, eventually learn that nothing comes easy.

We’ve heard from former Trojan players over the years who played for Pete Carroll that the competition during practice was tougher than the game itself. But in the same sentence, those players also said the work during practice was fun.

Is work supposed to be fun? No.

Although work can be fun with the right mentality. If you love what you’re choosing to do, then having a job is not a chore or an inconvenience. Going to work is part of life’s process of learning how to be your best version.

Going to work, much like going to football practice should be competitive. If the practices aren’t more competitive than the game itself, then you’re doing it wrong.

Is becoming your best version easy? No. However, it can be accomplished with the right approach.

But it takes practice, discipline, and the desire to be the best. The reward is rest and relaxation, but that is the reward for the hard work.

When you create your own competition, then going to work is fun. In my case, being early for practices or for a game provides me the chance to not only prepare and get my mind focused. However, being first in the office and getting there before my peers gives me an advantage over the competition. While I’m set up, and ready for work, my peers are walking in an hour later asking how the team looks.–That’s an advantage to Team WeAreSC.com.

The same concept applies to USC football players who have a practice schedule.

When the schedule says practices start at 6:00 AM, then the work actually begins well before Bennie Wylie blows his strength & conditioning whistle.

USC Strength & Conditioning Coach Bennie Wylie

Becoming the best version of yourself means waking up early so you can focus on the task ahead.

The work starts well before the player takes that first wind sprint warmup or lifts that first set of weights. The discipline for work begins with waking up early enough to get the necessary nutrition for the mind and body to succeed.

Before the competition starts, the work continues with getting the body taped up by the trainers so you can stretch, train, and loosen the muscles properly.

Maintaining consistency and challenging yourself to do something you don’t want to do during practice makes the actual job easy. For example, if part of the practice routine includes running 10 wind sprints, then do those 10 sprints.–And then do another 10 when practice is over and the games in November will feel easier.

Doing enough to get by, or doing what’s being asked isn’t enough to be successful if you want to win and be the best.

Sure, you can cram a semester’s worth of work into one study week and pass the Final. But that’s just getting by and it’s more challenging.–Trust me I know from experience!

Life isn’t fair. Some people are born with advantages like being born into money. Some people are created with physical or intellectual advantages like Caleb Williams or Stephen Hawkings. However, the people who use those advantages rather than take them for granted are the ones who become the best at their jobs. They don’t rest on their accomplishments and accolades. They look for the challenge to conquer.

If things are too easy, then challenge yourself. Find out what’s not easy and then make that task the next challenge in your life. Being the best takes hard work and it’s something that needs to be embraced.

Heading into Year 2 with Lincoln Riley as the Trojans’ head man, things have changed.

In his first year, practice, discipline, player accountability, and changing the culture produced an 11-win season. But it wasn’t enough. And the guys who were on the roster in 2022 want more in 2023.

It means the veterans are in charge of making sure the new Trojans understand that the work in June and July is just as important as the work during spring and fall camps.

And the job starts before the 6:00 AM whistle blows to start the work day.

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