The Gift of a Reset

As the calendar turns to June today, I’ve been thinking about the significance of that date. The year is flying by and we are over 40% through the year. By the end of the month, our “days” will start getting shorter….let’s not talk about that!

For students, teachers, coaches, and many families, the pace of life begins to slow down—at least a little. You may be able to get by without an alarm clock and the schedule isn't quite as packed. There is finally a chance to catch your breath and enjoy some free time to focus on what you have maybe been putting off for a while.

Too often though, we think of summer as simply a break from work, school, or activities. But maybe it's more than that.

Maybe it's a chance to reset.

For you, that might mean a chance to spend more time with family and friends, to take a trip, to sit on the deck with a cup of coffee or a cool drink, o to maybe just be where our feet are instead of constantly thinking about what's next.

At the same time, a reset doesn't mean standing still.

Summer can also be an opportunity to grow. Maybe it's improving your health, reading a book that's been sitting on your shelf, developing a new skill, strengthening your faith, or simply becoming a better listener and friend. Growth doesn't always have to be anything major. Often, it's the small daily habits that create the biggest changes over time.

As a coach, I can start working with my team again for the next month and a half and you want to offer opportunities for players to improve but I also realize players have other things going on-other sports, jobs, family trips, and just need time to enjoy their summer.

However, we ask them to focus on the short time we are together and think about ways that they can use this extra time to get better. Everyone has the same amount of time in the summer and prioritizing how you spend that time can be the difference between a player seeing great improvement or they see their level of play go down.

One of the challenges of life is that we can become so focused on getting through the next day, week, or season that we never take time to evaluate where we're going. Summer offers us a rare opportunity to step back and gain perspective.

What's working in your life right now?

What isn't?

What do you want more of?

What do you need less of?

As another summer begins, I hope we all take advantage of the gift that comes with a slightly slower pace. Rest when you need to rest. Spend time with people who matter. Try something new. Take a trip-if you don’t have anyone to travel with, try to find somewhere you can go on your own.

Most importantly, don't let the summer simply happen to you-set a plan to make a change or an addition that makes you better at something you want to improve at. Being intentional now will give you a much better chance to achieve success.

I hope you will use the summer as a chance to reset, recharge, and recommit to becoming the person you want to be.

September will be here before we know it. The question is: what will we do with the time between now and then? Being intentional and doing some evaluating and planning before it starts can get you moving on the right path.

Have a great week!

Coach K