Rebounds and Three Pointers

In the last two weeks, I’ve offered a whole lot of high fives and three pointer fade motions to people I have met. In the vulnerability that I have shared, I see the honesty being returned - at least in most circumstances.

The experience while going through something can be ugly. We can cling to our stories of “oh this will just get better” or “just wait, something will save us.” What I’ve found in releasing the cords and being able to step back is the simple fact that even through the roughest of patches, resilience, resistance, and self reliance are what work.

What does this have to do with basketball? Darn good question. I don’t play, and my very short tenure on my junior high school team doesn’t count. I’m a closet March Madness college ball watcher and occasionally watch the Celtics. Basketball is a metaphor of how this game (life) has to be played. It’s the long game, it’s the set up, it’s the rebounds, it’s the team dynamics, the down and dirty, and it’s the three pointers.

We don’t always have a good game. The opposing team reads our signs and puts us on the defensive. We drive down the court and drain a three, only to be run back up the court double time and on our heels at the same time.

The long game is where we focus. What seeds are we planting today that will reap harvest in the next season? What ideas can we pitch now to solicit feedback on, lob at the wall like spaghetti, and see what sticks?

So what will you plant this season? What does your strategy look like? What tactical steps are you taking to move that forward? Is it a dream? Speak it out loud. Share those scary ideas. It may resonate, or it might need to be refined. It is the concept of sharing ideas at the right time with the right people with the right amount of detail. A three pointer.