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This morning’s reflection is one of those moments where you look at your routines and your habits and you evaluate them with honesty. You get to see if they are habits of excellence or habits that quietly pull you in the opposite direction. Every one of us has daily routines. Some sharpen us and some dull us. Some pull us toward mastery and some drift us backwards if we are not paying attention. The truth is that champions rise to the level of the systems they have in place.

As I reflect on today, it is a game day for Bella. We have bowling and she gets to do her thing. One of the greatest joys in my life is getting to watch Bella bowl. There is something powerful about seeing her walk in with her jersey on, looking confident and ready, knowing who she is and what she is capable of. It fills me with gratitude every time. Her mind is like a muscle and she continues to strengthen it. When she steps onto the lanes, she becomes her own coach. She wor

Simplicity and Focus Move the Needle As I reflect on today, I am reminded of how powerful simplicity really is. When I am in a routine and things are almost on autopilot, life feels lighter. I do not have to constantly think about every decision because the system carries the weight. That freedom in my mind allows me to give my attention to what truly matters. But when I scatter my attention in too many directions, things get complicated fast. My focus starts splitting, and t

One Track. One Standard. One Commitment. In my morning reflection I kept thinking about what it means to commit to the best version of myself. I imagine a train riding along a single track. Most trains come to a fork where the lever can be pulled to switch directions. Most people live that way. They keep options open. They drift from track to track. They want progress without choosing a direction. They want results without choosing an identity. But when you decide who you wan

Commitment, Definiteness, and the Power of Process As I reflect back on this morning, I think about what it means to be committed… to be definite. Commitment is not based on feelings. Commitment is greater than feelings. And if your commitment is greater than your feelings, you will see results… whether it is in the weight room, your job, or your athletic performance. Bella was talking about how there are times she doesn’t feel like cleaning her room, but she has a commitment

The Bamboo, the Equation, and the Spartan Way This morning I listened to several podcasts that reminded me of what true growth really looks like. One of them told the story of the Chinese bamboo tree. I have heard it before, but today it reached me in a deeper way. When you plant a Chinese bamboo seed, you have to water, nurture, and fertilize it every single day. But nothing happens the first year. Nothing happens the second year, or the third, or even the fourth. For four y

The Commitment Gap This morning I listened to a story about an athlete who tore his ACL and faced over 200 days between injury and returning to the field. During that time, his body could not do what his mind wanted. He did not feel like doing rehab. The pain, the frustration, the slow progress, it was all there. But his commitment was stronger than his feelings. He kept showing up. He focused on the small daily wins. When his body could not bend the way it used to, he worked

Be Where Your Feet Are In my reflection today, I was reminded of something powerful about releasing. I have heard it described like venting a volcano, letting the steam off so it does not erupt. We all have emotions and energy that build up inside of us, and sometimes we find calculated ways to release them. These releases might look different on the outside. Maybe it is making a fist, crumpling up a piece of paper, or even throwing a piece of equipment in frustration during

Awareness is the light. Focus is where I point it. That is what I was thinking about this morning. I can have all the awareness in the world, but if I scatter it across everything I cannot control, I lose my power. My awareness is like a flashlight. The light itself is my awareness. The direction I point it is my focus. If I wave it around and shine it everywhere, nothing gets lit up clearly. If I narrow the beam and point it at one thing, I see what matters. That is the begi

Identity Before Intention As I travel this morning with my family to watch Bella’s future college bowling team, I find myself reflecting on what it truly takes to arrive at a destination—not just physically, but in life. We’re heading to support Jacksonville State, imagining Bella’s future there as a college bowler, but my mind drifts back to the long road it took to reach this point. When you set out on a journey, it starts with intention—knowing where you’re headed—but befo

Definitive Purpose and the Firewood of Commitment This morning I reflected on what it means to live with a definitive purpose. Whether you are practicing a sport or working toward personal growth, the mindset is the same. You are either competing against others or against yourself. Someone somewhere is practicing, and when competition comes, they will be ready. But even more important is when you wake up each day and choose to compete against the version of yourself from yest

Climbing Ladders and Solving Problems Today during my reflection time, I thought about a podcast I listened to about following your passion and another one about being a problem solver. When I combine those two ideas, I think about Bella Love. From the time she was young, Bella Love has always had a deep passion for so many things. Her love for bowling is one, but lately, I have started to notice a new kind of passion emerging. It is the passion for solving problems. Bella Lo

Self-Discipline and Directed Focus Today I reflect on the power that lives within self-discipline and directed focus. When adversity comes, it becomes a teacher. Some people fall short a few times, and through those failures, they lose their sense of discipline. Their intentions might be good, but without a strong why, they drift like leaves in the wind. We only have so much time, and that time calls for urgency. Urgency in our intention. Urgency in our direction. Urgency in

The Power Behind Your Why Every person has a why. It’s the reason we wake up early, push through obstacles, and stay committed when life gets tough. For years I thought success was 90 percent physical and only 10 percent mental, but I learned it’s the other way around. The mind is the driver. The mental game determines how far you’ll go and how well you’ll handle what comes your way. So today I reflect on the question: What is your why? Bella has her own why when she steps on

Moving Upstream: The Habit of Focus This morning, as I watched the sunrise and took my dog Bazil for a walk, I noticed how easily the mind drifts when it isn’t anchored in focus. The warmth of the rising sun reminded me that light always reveals direction, but it’s up to us to keep moving toward it. Focus, I realized, is like paddling upstream in a river. The moment you stop paddling, you start drifting backward. In life, the same is true. Whether leading a family, guiding st

Gratitude After the Game A father’s reflection on composure, growth, and gratitude after the game This morning at the bowling alley, I found myself watching Bella in a different way. Not as a coach or a competitor, but as a dad standing in quiet gratitude. The matches were over, the sound of pins had faded, and the morning light filled the lanes. That’s when I saw her slip on her Team USA backpack — calm, composed, and at peace. In that small moment, I saw how much she’s grow

Feeding the Right Wolf Today I reflected on the Cherokee story of the two wolves. Inside each of us there are two wolves that constantly battle. One is good and one is bad. The grandson asks his grandfather, “Which wolf wins?” The grandfather replies, “The one you feed.” That story speaks deeply to me because I know that same battle exists inside me every day. I get to choose which wolf I feed. Faith or fear. Love or bitterness. Truth or lies. For me, that choice always comes

The Power of Reframing and Reinvention There are days when I wake up with clarity and purpose. I train my mind, claim the morning, and start the day strong. But even on those days, challenges come. Somewhere between sunrise and sunset, I might lose focus, fall short, or slip into old habits. That is part of being human. The truth is, failure is not final unless we stop. It might come in the form of a broken relationship, a tough moment as a husband or parent, or a setback at

Preparation: The Confidence Before the Day Begins Each morning when I wake up early, I feel like I’m giving myself a head start on the day. It’s more than just getting up — it’s designing a coordinated plan of attack. Preparation is where confidence is born. When I prepare, I’m intentional. I start with my arsenal — cold showers, exercise, reading, study, and writing. These small acts build momentum. They sharpen my body, clear my mind, and strengthen my weaknesses. People of

Do It Now Today’s reflection comes from a podcast I listened to about procrastination. It helped me see that procrastination is not about being lazy. It is about avoiding discomfort and the negative feelings we connect to certain tasks. We delay things, not because we do not care, but because we want to avoid that emotional weight. The solution is to build a simple mantra that lives inside of you. A commitment that reminds you to act when the temptation to wait starts to whis