Big Asks

Players define their minutes, roles, and recognition. Coaches add value and validate what they see from players. Numerous players earned opportunities to impact winning as freshmen rotation players - Paula Sen, Hannah Brickley, Victoria Crovo, and Emily Hudson to name a few.   

Make "Big Asks" part of your character. Here are some from which to choose: 

Commitment. Each day has so many minutes. If you invest 100 hours a year in a domain, you will likely become one of the top few percent. 

Priorities. Coach Sonny Lane taught three priorities: family, academics, basketball. In John McPhee's A Sense of Where You Are about Princeton's Bill Bradley, displeased Coach Van Breda Kolff told his players their priorities were girls, food, and then basketball. 

Coachability. Great players listen. Great players want to be coached. Great players translate coaching into high performance.  

Professionalism. Professionals have systems and elite habits. Those include attention to detail, punctuality, self-care, and 'deliberate practice'.  

Teamwork. Elite players serve teammates, collaborate, and make players around them better. Work out with teammates. 

Self-care. This includes sleep, nutrition, hydration, recovery, and avoiding chemical dependence. 

Skill development. Every volleyball skill is perishable. The less you do, the less you will be able to do. 

Game understanding. Study the game - game video, teaching clips, exceptional players. 

Physical training. Award yourself athletic explosion with strength, conditioning, and plyometric training.  

Gratitude. Find ways to be grateful for the MVB experience including your families, teammates, and coaches.  

Lagniappe. Find the embedded lessons in the Karch Kiraly story.