Once again, a “tip of the hat” to Pastor Bob Gass and his staff for writing about such an important topic in The Word For You Today. He states that “You don’t get to choose the moment of your arrival and departure here on earth, but you get to choose what your legacy will be, what you will be remembered for.”
Powerful!
I have a friend who once shared a talk with my players that he titled, “Take Care of Your Dash!” huh?? His point was similar to what Pastor Gass is saying: When people look at your tombstone, they’ll see the year you were born on the left… and the year you died on the right. But, between the two dates is a “dash.” That dash represents all of the time between those 2 dates! That dash is your life and your legacy! What are you leaving behind? When you change jobs… what are you remembered for? If you go to a different city, what will people say about you after you’ve left? Most importantly, as a coach, what kind of impact are you making on your player’s lives?
Gass concludes his remarks by saying, “When your life’s sole focus is self-interest, you won’t be missed when you are gone, or missed for the right reasons.” That’s sobering! When your players look back on their time with you, what are they going to remember the most?
Yes, winning games is important. Guys lose their jobs because they’re not winning enough games. But, I just had a friend dismissed from his coaching job because the administration said, in essence, that it “wasn’t a good fit.” In other words, his philosophy and goals did not match what the AD and Principal felt were what they wanted in a football coach.
It ‘s why I always had as an objective that we wanted to earn the “Double Victory!” We wanted to win ON the field but… how our players conducted themselves away from football was important too! It’s why I spent so much time pouring into their lives the values that I felt were important in making them successful in life-— not just football. That’s the other victory.
