Deciding if you want individual coaching is sometimes a tough decision for a player. It is definitely a time commitment and financial investment. But even more so it is a mindset you need to take on if you are going to get the full value out of it. No skills trainer can make you a great player. With individual player development, you have someone pushing and coaching to get you to another level, but it’s still you that must do the work.

This may seem obvious, but it is important to understand. Deciding to train means you have decided you want to work harder than and do things you haven’t done before. Working on your game can be a fun, fulfilling, and habit forming endeavor. And frankly, no player at any higher level of play (college/pro) got there without working on their game A LOT. Players that want to be great work on their own too. 
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If you seek that outcome, and need some help forming the habits of what to work on and how, or you need the expertise and feedback, then personal training can be very beneficial. But, please, understand fully the added work required, and that grinding on your own is still always very necessary.

As always, GET BETTER!

This is a huge pitfall for many people and a thought provoking topic that I love. What I mean by this is compete with yourself to get better and grow, but don’t compare yourself to others. And when you compete with others, use it as a opportunity to better yourself, not as an avenue to comparison.

As we work on ourselves, it is so important to compare ourselves to where we used to be, not to those around us. Do not get caught comparing or seeing just how you measure up. This breeds resentment as well as unhappiness. For example: “Why did he get an A on his paper and I only got a B+?” Or “It’s not fair that she gets to start, when I showed up to every practice on time.” If we allow ourselves to think this way, we often lose sight of what we had control over in the situation, as well as make ourselves a victim.

When I walked on the basketball team at Carolina, I had the opportunity to compete every day against players who were better at basketball than me. I could have compared myself to them and probably lost self confidence or played scared. Instead, I knew that practice was a chance for me to get better against the best, and that comparing myself to them was not going to help me. It works if you’re the best on the team as well…comparing yourself to others will stunt your growth, because you’re already “good enough” to be the top guy. Compete with yourself, stop comparing to the guy next to you.

There is no hidden, secret recipe to improvement. Mostly it is discipline and focus, and if we continually compare ourselves to those around us, we lose focus quickly. Instead, compete with yourself and chase growth and self improvement with a hunger.

“Comparison is the thief of joy.” Theodore Roosevelt

Basketball is a great game. It’s competitive. It’s a never ending pursuit of improvement. It develops character. It teaches adversity. It builds confidence. But most of all, it’s fun. 

It’s fun to play with friends. It’s fun to seek improvement. It’s fun to hit a game winner. It’s fun to get a big defensive stop. It’s fun to celebrate with teammates. It’s a game, and yet it is also so much more than that. 

Make sure Basketball remains fun, even as it becomes so much more to you than a game. The passion and love for the game is ultimately the most important!