Saturday, April 27, 2024

"Toughness"

Many MVB players have read Jay Bilas's Toughness as a group. Toughness, both physical and mental, helps players overcome personal and "professional" crises.

Literature and film celebrate toughness crises. Upton Sinclair's The Jungle depicts the struggles of workers focusing on working conditions in slaughterhouses. The Karate Kid shares an East Coast transplant seeking dignity, balance, and success in California. 

You define how toughness applies to your MVB experience.

1. Toughness is a skill. Sports grow skill and will. Just as you improve your skills, you grow your resilience. 

2. Toughness reveals itself in performance in showing up, competing at practice, and bringing energy to yourself and teammates. 

3. MVB players show toughness under adversity when playing from behind and when not at your best. Sadie Jaggers' playoff match against Billerica coming out of a sickbed was a great example of toughness. 

4. Players show physical and mental toughness during jousts and blocks at the net, going to the floor to keep the ball up, and having the courage to hit when the situation arises.    

5. Green Bay Packer coach Vince Lombardi said, "fatigue makes cowards of us all." The will to condition yourself and the discipline to eat and hydrate properly, to get eight hours of sleep, and 'actively recover' show toughness. 

6. Toughness is a habit. The players who engage every day academically and in their extracurricular activities manifest toughness. "How you do anything is how you do everything." 

Part of the MVB experience includes modeling excellence, setting high standards, and "leaving the jersey in a better place." Make toughness your brand. 

Lagniappe. 

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