Best advice I got in my 20s: Nobody cares. When you’re winning, nobody cares. When you’re losing, nobody cares. Stop fearing the judgement of people who were never even thinking about you. Nobody is thinking about you. They’re too busy thinking about themselves. Go do the thing. pic.twitter.com/ziTujInNhh
Image from Coach Mike Neighbors via John Maxwell's "Talent Is not Enough"
Legend has it that a chef's toque with a hundred pleats represents the hundred ways to cook eggs. Is the perfect egg the talent or the chef?
Everyone has hardware and software, your body and brain. To become a high performance "thinking machine," upgrade both. There's no secret sauce.
Find mentors
Mentoring is the only shortcut to excellence. Mr. Rogers said, "Look for the helpers." Often we don't know what we don't know. The eager student attracts mentors. Remember that the cornerstones of Wooden's "Pyramid of Success" are enthusiasm and industriousness (hard work).
The mentor makes the mentee better...and vice versa.
Think Like a Boss
Medicine is a hierarchical training program. Early on, students learn the basics, the fundamentals of anatomy, physiology, biology of health and disease, pharmacology, etc. They get exposure to clinical specialties - Surgery, Medicine, Ob-Gyn, and have electives. To accelerate your career arc, think at next levels. As a student, think as an intern. As an intern, think as a resident. As a resident think as a Staff Attending and researcher. As a varsity player, think like a collegian.
As a student-athlete, ask better questions. How do I enhance my process? What are my strengths and weaknesses? What defines excellence and how can I navigate that path?
"The Game Honors Toughness"
Career development is not fair or equal. Coach Dave Smart says, "The best teams play harder for longer." The best students focus, develop 'winning' habits, and a gritty, "growth mindset." The same goes for players. Toughness and resilience translate into commitment, discipline, and higher performance over time.
It's not an easy or a linear process. Even the best players and coaches have setbacks. But they have the capacity to persist.
Plan Your Work; Work Your Plan
What do you want? How will you earn it? Develop your origin story. The ten year-old was dressed in softball gear. Her father said, "I see you're going out to play softball." She said, "No, Daddy, I'm going out to win."
The French have a saying, "Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose." The more things change, the more it's the same thing."
All Things Are not Equal
The same is not equal. “All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others," wrote George Orwell in Animal Farm. Miami Heat Coach Erik Spoelstra said it another way, "There is always a pecking order."
Every position is open, but not to the same degree. At least four players compete for the middles. I couldn't rank them one to four. The designated server spots are wide open. A plethora of players play high level offseason volleyball, paying the literal and figurative price.
Chase perfection and sometimes you catch excellence. The race is on.
Lagniappe. Ask open-ended questions. What did you learn today?
— Coach Ray Ostrowski (@CoachRayO3313) April 6, 2026
Lagniappe 2. Lower body workout. You absolutely can do this.
Every exceptional MVB athlete has been an exceptional athlete. Your new assistant Gia Vlajkovic met that "decathlete" standard...strength, power, vertical jump, endurance, versatility standard. Two others 'sandwiched' her MVB time, Elena Soukos and Sadie Jaggers.
Attention to detail includes physicality. "The magic is in the work." You control your training. Follow the 3-3-3 rule. Here's the key excerpt:
Three strength training sessions. This includes lifting weights, bodyweight circuits, resistance bands, whatever builds muscle and challenges your body.
Three cardio sessions. This includes running, cycling, swimming, jump rope, a dance class—what counts as "cardio" is up for debate, but here, I think of it as anything that gets your heart pumping.
Three active recovery days. This includes light walking, yoga, stretching, foam rolling, and so on.
Lagniappe. Amidst the 3-3-3 principle, strength training is one of the three for power and acceleration.
The goals of technology should be improving the quality and productivity of our work and to do so while lowering friction and cost. Use AI to add value to your development.
Because blocking outside attackers is a priority, let's have an AI conversation with ChatGPT: (note - I do not hold myself as an expert...rely on your coaches who are experts.)
Because volleyball blocking of outside hitters is a priority, let's start there. “Act as a Socratic coach for blocking the pin hitters. Do not give me answers. Only ask smart questions that lead me to the answer. Start by asking what I already know and where I’m confused. After each reply, ask the next best question. At the end, summarize what I discovered in 5 bullets.” - The "bold, italicized" print is a created prompt to start a Socratic conversation. This could be used to discuss volleyball topics or the Periodic table.
Great—let’s start there.
First questions:
What do you currently believe are the 3–5 most important factors in successfully blocking a pin (outside) hitter?
Where do you feel least certain or most inconsistent when teaching or evaluating pin blocking?
Performance starts with attitude. "Get to" starts with "want to." 1) Anticipation -Reading the play comes first. 2) Don't ball watch. Get to the spot. Having crossover footwork is critical. 3) Timing. Late becomes "not at all." 4) Penetrate the airspace over the net. I'm not confident about teaching how best to read the setter.
Good—there’s a lot there.
Let’s focus where you’re least certain.
First question:
When a setter is about to set to the outside, what information is available before the ball leaves their hands that could help a blocker anticipate where the set is going?
See the setter's body position. If there's "lean," especially backwards, the set is likely going 'right side'. What is the opponent's strength? "Cheat" to the likely target. Does she "habitually" and statistically target the pins or the middle? Does she set high giving blockers more time to position themselves?
Good—now we’re getting somewhere.
You’ve identified setter body lean, tendencies, and arc/tempo.
Let’s sharpen it.
Next question:
When the pass is off the net vs. perfect, how does that change what the setter can do—and how should that change what the blocker expects on the pin?
It's an imperative that to succeed against "the best" that we react to tendencies and reality. Off the net, does that mean their OH likely goes roll or tip? Does the hitter more often hit cross court or do they use line and cut shots?
When the set goes outside and is off the net, what specific visual cues from the hitter’s approach and arm tell you whether it will be:
a full swing
a roll shot
a tip
What are you looking for before contact?
Does the hitter's arm go back into "archer position" or is it more vertical suggesting a tip? Do their feet come up with an arched body, looking to generate more power? Do they seldom attack "off the net" balls, suggest a roll shot?
Good—now you’re reading the hitter.
Let’s connect that to the blocker’s action.
Next question:
If you recognize—before contact—that the hitter is likely to roll or tip on an off-the-net set, how should that change:
your penetration over the net
your hand positioning
and your relationship with the back-row defense?
We should communicate (talk) ASAP if we have a clean read on intent. Aggressive penetration will fail versus roll or tip. Getting more height may combat that some. Make the hitter's life hard.
Good—now you’re adjusting behavior based on the read.
Let’s sharpen the trade-offs.
Next question:
If aggressive penetration is no longer optimal against a likely roll/tip, what is the risk of staying too vertical or passive—and how do you avoid giving the hitter an easy, uncontested swing if your read is wrong?
"The enemy gets a vote." Sometimes we 'read wrong" but we don't want too soft a block that ends up dribbling down over our side off our hands.
Excellent—now you’re balancing read vs. risk.
Let’s tighten it to decision-making.
Next question:
In that moment—when you’re not 100% certain—what is your default block behavior on an off-the-net outside set that:
protects against the hard swing
doesn’t overcommit to the tip/roll
and still works with your defense behind you?
What does that look like in terms of hands, press, and positioning?
I think that 'max effort' and maintaining "stiffness of the block" against the attack are the best options. Can you summarize the conversation now?
Here’s what you discovered—not told, but built:
Your Key Takeaways (5)
Blocking starts before the set
You emphasized reading the setter—body lean, tendencies, and pass quality—to anticipate where the ball is going before it leaves the hands.
Reality (pass quality) shapes options
Off-the-net sets reduce the hitter’s choices and often shift them toward rolls, tips, or predictable swings—which should change blocker expectations.
The hitter tells the truth early
Arm path, approach, and body shape give clues:
“Archer” → full swing
More vertical/controlled → tip/roll
You can read this before contact.
Blocking is a decision under uncertainty
You recognized the balance:
Over-penetrate → vulnerable to tip/roll
Too soft/passive → give up easy swings or deflections
“The enemy gets a vote.”
Default = disciplined, max-effort, firm hands
When unsure:
Maintain strong, stable hands (“stiffness”)
Avoid being soft or late
Stay connected to team defense
Communicate early if you have a read
Bottom Line
Read early.
Adjust to reality.
Trust your eyes—but respect uncertainty.
And when in doubt, be strong and decisive at the net.
Wikipedia describes it, "The planning fallacy is the well‑documented tendency for people to underestimate the time, costs, and risks involved in completing future tasks, while overestimating the benefits. This bias persists even when past experience clearly shows that similar tasks took longer or were more difficult than expected."
It applies to businesses, students writing a thesis, and to people training for sports. Systemic overoptimism leads us to believe we will do what we say we will in the time specified. Mostly we're wrong.
"A word means what I say it means." - Humpty Dumpty
Vertical jump improvement? "I'll raise mine at least three inches by working out three times a week."
Conditioning? "I'll be able to jump rope for five minutes or run a mile in under eight minutes."
Serving? "I'll be able to serve 18-19 in out of 20." What about, "If you don't, everyone will run two fullcourt up and back."
Habit formation. Student-athletes can meet their goals through deliberate practice and tracking. Habits from with this combination:
Pick (the activity)
Stick (do it over a prescribed schedule)
Check (track with a calendar, spreadsheet, or notebook).
Commitment and consistency. Public commitment can help. When we tell our friends and family that we'll do something, we're more likely to fulfill our promise.
"Winners are trackers." - Darren Hardy in The Compound Effect
Lagniappe. Confidence is earned not given.
“Earning and deserving the confidence that you play with because of the work that you put in and then not being afraid of failure,” Steph Curry
Confidence isn’t something you feel, it’s something you earn with relentless will and practice. pic.twitter.com/PFAlPrGJpH
— The Winning Difference (@thewinningdiff1) April 16, 2026
I used ChatGPT Plus to scan for Gia Vlajkovic highlights. Here are some representative highlights:
Gia gets a long "runway" into attack. She's well behind the ten-foot line and gets a lot of 'air':
She's also an elite defender. Here she makes two tough digs to extend the play (keep the ball up) for Elena Soukos (another All-State player) to clean up the point. Successful play involves 1) positive scoring, 2) preventing opponent scoring, and 3) avoiding physical and mental errors.
At the time, Gia was number two in Melrose history for single season kills and had over 500 in her career, despite spending considerable time as a setter. There's a legitimate argument for her inclusion on the MVB "Mount Rushmore." When she's teaching young players at any position, listen.
One play illustrates the toughness and tempo of the match. Melrose trails 17-18 in the fourth set, leading the match 2-1. The longest point of the match highlighted set-saving plays by Gia Vlajkovic and multiple from Sadie Jaggers and libero Emma Desmond.
On the penultimate point of the set, Melrose poaches a pocketful of miracles with exceptional defense by Chloe Gentile, Ruth Breen, Sadie Jaggers, and an on-the-line winner from Gia Vlajkovic. Gia shows several tricks from "the bag" on this point. This was one of the greatest and longest points in regular season history.
