January 27, 2025 • 11 mins
This episode challenges conventional views on weakness by presenting it as a pathway to strength and growth. Coach Mikki discusses how recognizing and can embracing weaknesses can foster resilience and success, using his experiences with coaching linemen as key examples.
• Embracing weakness as a vital component to strength
• The central role of linemen in teamwork and success
• The importance of rigorous training and collective effort
• Self-reflection as a tool for personal and professional growth
• Celebrating small victories during the journey to improvement
• Individualized approaches to personal development and achievement
• Facing challenges as opportunities for empowerment
Start Strong - Finish Strong! - Let's Go!
@4thand1Mindset
4th and 1 Mindset with Coach Mikki
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Coach Mikki (00:01):
Hey, come on, bring it in, bring it in, listen up,
listen up, everybody, listen up.
Hey, I'm Coach Mickey, you'rehere on 431 Mindset.
Seeing your weakness is reallythe path to true strength.
And what do I mean by that?
Let's see.
So how many times maybe haveyou said to yourself I can't do
(00:23):
this, I'm not qualified to dothis.
Hey, I screwed it up last time.
Maybe this is something I'mjust not prepared and ready for.
And that's okay to understandand have these elements.
But when you acknowledge thatweakness, you're not admitting
defeat.
It really is the first step toturning the minute.
(00:45):
All your strengths, you know,just like in football, we watch
film and after every game, youknow, we can pick apart each and
every play and each and everyplayer and show them where.
Maybe they missed a block, orthere was the footwork was wrong
, or maybe they ran the wrongroute, whatever, maybe the snap
count was out.
Why did we pull a flag, youknow?
(01:06):
Because we were off sides andeverything is not just to point
out all of the bad things andidentify you as a screw-up.
It's to show you where yourweaknesses are and what needs to
be worked on.
When we recognize ourweaknesses, it really gives us
the upper hand to become better.
(01:27):
You know, the strength isreally built within the gaps.
And what do I mean by that?
If we did everything perfectall the time and everything was
going really well, there's oneor two things happening.
One, you're not growing anymoreand you've stifled yourself to
limitations, because you're onlyfocusing on what can work
compared to what's not working.
(01:48):
And two, you're afraid to stepout of that comfort zone because
you know that if you do, you'regoing to have to relearn,
change and maybe re-evaluatesome of the things that you've
been doing to be able to moveyou forward to that next step,
of the things that you've beendoing to be able to move you
forward to that next step.
(02:12):
And I'll give you an example.
I've come into a lot of teams,or I've gotten teams where
they've been coached through theyears and you know, every coach
has got their own coachingstyle, nothing about that.
But I've also learned thatthere are some elements that
some players just can't docompared to what the coach's
expectations are.
Now, when I come in and I coach, I don't coach people based on
(02:32):
my expectations.
I make them understand whattheir expectations should be.
So now my favorite are thelinemen, love linemen.
To me, in my humble opinion,linemen are the heart of the
team.
Nothing happens without thelinemen, nothing happens without
the center, nothing happenswithout the guards, nothing
(02:53):
happens without the tackles,because if you don't have a
strong line, I don't care howgood your quarterback is, he's
not going to get any pass off orhandoff or anything else if you
do not have a strong line.
Now, with that being said, thelinemen, their job is to give me
110% for six seconds and maybefive yards, and they have to do
(03:17):
it in unison.
They have to know their job.
They have to know exactly whatto do and do it with full
strength, over and over and overagain, while they're giving
time to a quarterback back inthe pocket who's got maybe two
to three seconds to figure outhow to get that ball off and out
of his hands.
(03:37):
But what I did notice is that alot of times when we do our
practices, a lot of times thelin alignment always struggle.
They're not able to run as fastas the skill guys, their
agility, their endurance.
It's a lot different.
And so I've pulled them allaside and I said okay, look,
this is what we're going to do,what I need from you guys is I
(04:00):
need a commitment of strength,speed and endurance for six
seconds every single play, and Ineed you to be able to do that
with everything you've got.
So the last thing I really needfor you to do is know that you
can run up and down this fieldat 100 yards six times.
Skill guys yeah, I need that.
(04:22):
I need that speed, I need thatagility.
So I always like to train andhave the guys push the sled and
I want them not to see theirsize as a weakness.
I want them to see their sizeas a strength, and I'm not
talking about the fact thatthey're 230, 250, 260.
(04:43):
I want them to see that whatthey have and who they are is
one of the strongest assets tothis team.
And when we push that sled, youknow usually there's four.
On a small sled there'sprobably four.
You know there's five slots onthe sled to be able to push on a
larger sled.
(05:04):
But one of the things I've toldthese guys when we're doing this
is I want you to push it.
I'll make them push it like 10yards and they'll go, and I have
them give them everythingthey've got, whether they're
using their feet, keeping theirhead up, using their hands,
using everything they've got.
You know whether they're usingtheir feet keeping their head up
.
You know, using their hands,using everything they've got to
push that sled and the timeframe that they're pushing it.
We'll do it in increments andI'll have them go down, push it
(05:26):
for 10 yards, go down, push itfor 10 yards, we'll go maybe 50
yards, flip it around, come back.
Now.
That in itself is pretty well adifficult practice, but they do
it.
And then, when we're done, Ialways say to them okay, guys,
so think about the person that'sin front of you.
(05:47):
How much do you think they'regoing to weigh?
I mean, when you start lookingat defense, depending on what
they're going to run whetherit's a 3-4 or 4-3, whatever
they've got in front of you,whatever the guy is in front of
you, how much do they weigh?
And like, oh you know, they'reprobably about their size and
I'm saying maybe the D tackles,dns, are going to be a lot
faster and smaller, so you'vegot to really get in front of
(06:10):
them.
However, how much do they weigh?
Like, maybe, you know, whoknows, maybe $1.90.
Some might be in their $200s.
If you're looking at thedefensive tackles.
How much does this slay weigh?
1,500 pounds.
So you're going to tell me thatfive of you if you count the
(06:30):
center, you got the five of youguys that are up on the front
you're pushing 1,500 pounds,maybe a little bit more.
So how easy is it going to bewhen you come off the line and
you just push the guy in frontof you, but you do it together,
and if you're double teaming,man, these people shouldn't even
get through.
So how does this really apply toour everyday life?
You know, proof of strength isyour struggle.
(06:54):
It really is, because there'sgoing to be things that you're
going to do that maybe you'renot good at in the beginning.
However, the more you work onit and the more you focus on it,
the better you're going to getat it, and that takes a lot to
(07:16):
be able to say, okay, let mereflect on what my past
challenges have been and how doI overcome them.
How do I get through this?
You know how do I strengthenthat muscle?
And you have to be able to havethe courage to say, okay, I'm
really not good at this now.
However, if I keep focusing onit, I can get better in the long
run, and it's not about failureor what you're up for or what
(07:37):
you know what these challengesare.
It's about.
What do you take away from itthat you can actually create
these small victories?
You know it's getting up everysingle time and doing something
that's uncomfortable.
It's getting up every singletime and doing something that's
uncomfortable.
It's going and facing thesethings that maybe give you a
hard time.
Maybe it's facing the peoplethat give you a hard time.
Can't tell you how many timesI've dealt with that, but I've
(07:59):
learned not to allow whatthey've got to say and what they
think affect who I am and whatI really, truly believe.
My capability is.
Compared to what everybody elsethinks, my capability is,
you're the only one that's goingto be able to look at your life
each and every day and go did Ireally step up and give it all?
(08:21):
If you know for a fact that youdon't need to run 100 yards
three times, six times, all youneed to do is give it your all
for six seconds, give it yourall for five yards, then do that
and every single time you havethese little small victories you
know, reward yourself.
Show that.
It's evidence of your strength,it's your growth, it's who you
(08:43):
are.
Just because what works forsomebody else doesn't
necessarily mean that is thecookie cutter way that's always
going to work for you.
Each and every player on myfield is an individual and I've
learned over the years that whatmight have worked for some is
not going to work for all.
And it's the same thing withwhat we do.
(09:04):
Everybody's got an opinion,everybody's got an idea,
everybody's got a goal and astructure or a strategy that
might work for them.
But you have to look and seewhat's working for you, and not
only what's working for you, butwhat are the little things that
you can do that is going tohelp lift you up, to make you
(09:26):
this incredible, unstoppableperson.
So you want to celebrate thesmall wins.
Remember, your toughest daysare going to be your strongest
moments.
They really are, and that'sgoing to be the ability for you
to be able to shine and liftyourself up and move forward and
(09:46):
empower who you are.
So don't worry about what yourweaknesses are, because those
weaknesses are really yourbiggest strength.
You know you've survived everybad day.
You might as well take thatstrength and celebrate it and
(10:07):
use it to your advantage and useit to who you are.
You know you are going to beamazing and you've got to be
able to take the little thingsthat are your hardest things and
make them your biggeststrengths.
Bring it in, bring it in, go onout there, let's go.
Let's go start strong andfinish strong and dominate
(10:30):
everything in between.
I'm coach mickey Go get them.
Hey, come on, bring it in, bring it in, listen up,
listen up, everybody, listen up.
Hey, I'm Coach Mickey, you'rehere on 431 Mindset.
Seeing your weakness is reallythe path to true strength.
And what do I mean by that?
Let's see.
So how many times maybe haveyou said to yourself I can't do
(00:23):
this, I'm not qualified to dothis.
Hey, I screwed it up last time.
Maybe this is something I'mjust not prepared and ready for.
And that's okay to understandand have these elements.
But when you acknowledge thatweakness, you're not admitting
defeat.
It really is the first step toturning the minute.
(00:45):
All your strengths, you know,just like in football, we watch
film and after every game, youknow, we can pick apart each and
every play and each and everyplayer and show them where.
Maybe they missed a block, orthere was the footwork was wrong
, or maybe they ran the wrongroute, whatever, maybe the snap
count was out.
Why did we pull a flag, youknow?
(01:06):
Because we were off sides andeverything is not just to point
out all of the bad things andidentify you as a screw-up.
It's to show you where yourweaknesses are and what needs to
be worked on.
When we recognize ourweaknesses, it really gives us
the upper hand to become better.
(01:27):
You know, the strength isreally built within the gaps.
And what do I mean by that?
If we did everything perfectall the time and everything was
going really well, there's oneor two things happening.
One, you're not growing anymoreand you've stifled yourself to
limitations, because you're onlyfocusing on what can work
compared to what's not working.
(01:48):
And two, you're afraid to stepout of that comfort zone because
you know that if you do, you'regoing to have to relearn,
change and maybe re-evaluatesome of the things that you've
been doing to be able to moveyou forward to that next step,
of the things that you've beendoing to be able to move you
forward to that next step.
(02:12):
And I'll give you an example.
I've come into a lot of teams,or I've gotten teams where
they've been coached through theyears and you know, every coach
has got their own coachingstyle, nothing about that.
But I've also learned thatthere are some elements that
some players just can't docompared to what the coach's
expectations are.
Now, when I come in and I coach, I don't coach people based on
(02:32):
my expectations.
I make them understand whattheir expectations should be.
So now my favorite are thelinemen, love linemen.
To me, in my humble opinion,linemen are the heart of the
team.
Nothing happens without thelinemen, nothing happens without
the center, nothing happenswithout the guards, nothing
(02:53):
happens without the tackles,because if you don't have a
strong line, I don't care howgood your quarterback is, he's
not going to get any pass off orhandoff or anything else if you
do not have a strong line.
Now, with that being said, thelinemen, their job is to give me
110% for six seconds and maybefive yards, and they have to do
(03:17):
it in unison.
They have to know their job.
They have to know exactly whatto do and do it with full
strength, over and over and overagain, while they're giving
time to a quarterback back inthe pocket who's got maybe two
to three seconds to figure outhow to get that ball off and out
of his hands.
(03:37):
But what I did notice is that alot of times when we do our
practices, a lot of times thelin alignment always struggle.
They're not able to run as fastas the skill guys, their
agility, their endurance.
It's a lot different.
And so I've pulled them allaside and I said okay, look,
this is what we're going to do,what I need from you guys is I
(04:00):
need a commitment of strength,speed and endurance for six
seconds every single play, and Ineed you to be able to do that
with everything you've got.
So the last thing I really needfor you to do is know that you
can run up and down this fieldat 100 yards six times.
Skill guys yeah, I need that.
(04:22):
I need that speed, I need thatagility.
So I always like to train andhave the guys push the sled and
I want them not to see theirsize as a weakness.
I want them to see their sizeas a strength, and I'm not
talking about the fact thatthey're 230, 250, 260.
(04:43):
I want them to see that whatthey have and who they are is
one of the strongest assets tothis team.
And when we push that sled, youknow usually there's four.
On a small sled there'sprobably four.
You know there's five slots onthe sled to be able to push on a
larger sled.
(05:04):
But one of the things I've toldthese guys when we're doing this
is I want you to push it.
I'll make them push it like 10yards and they'll go, and I have
them give them everythingthey've got, whether they're
using their feet, keeping theirhead up, using their hands,
using everything they've got.
You know whether they're usingtheir feet keeping their head up
.
You know, using their hands,using everything they've got to
push that sled and the timeframe that they're pushing it.
We'll do it in increments andI'll have them go down, push it
(05:26):
for 10 yards, go down, push itfor 10 yards, we'll go maybe 50
yards, flip it around, come back.
Now.
That in itself is pretty well adifficult practice, but they do
it.
And then, when we're done, Ialways say to them okay, guys,
so think about the person that'sin front of you.
(05:47):
How much do you think they'regoing to weigh?
I mean, when you start lookingat defense, depending on what
they're going to run whetherit's a 3-4 or 4-3, whatever
they've got in front of you,whatever the guy is in front of
you, how much do they weigh?
And like, oh you know, they'reprobably about their size and
I'm saying maybe the D tackles,dns, are going to be a lot
faster and smaller, so you'vegot to really get in front of
(06:10):
them.
However, how much do they weigh?
Like, maybe, you know, whoknows, maybe $1.90.
Some might be in their $200s.
If you're looking at thedefensive tackles.
How much does this slay weigh?
1,500 pounds.
So you're going to tell me thatfive of you if you count the
(06:30):
center, you got the five of youguys that are up on the front
you're pushing 1,500 pounds,maybe a little bit more.
So how easy is it going to bewhen you come off the line and
you just push the guy in frontof you, but you do it together,
and if you're double teaming,man, these people shouldn't even
get through.
So how does this really apply toour everyday life?
You know, proof of strength isyour struggle.
(06:54):
It really is, because there'sgoing to be things that you're
going to do that maybe you'renot good at in the beginning.
However, the more you work onit and the more you focus on it,
the better you're going to getat it, and that takes a lot to
(07:16):
be able to say, okay, let mereflect on what my past
challenges have been and how doI overcome them.
How do I get through this?
You know how do I strengthenthat muscle?
And you have to be able to havethe courage to say, okay, I'm
really not good at this now.
However, if I keep focusing onit, I can get better in the long
run, and it's not about failureor what you're up for or what
(07:37):
you know what these challengesare.
It's about.
What do you take away from itthat you can actually create
these small victories?
You know it's getting up everysingle time and doing something
that's uncomfortable.
It's getting up every singletime and doing something that's
uncomfortable.
It's going and facing thesethings that maybe give you a
hard time.
Maybe it's facing the peoplethat give you a hard time.
Can't tell you how many timesI've dealt with that, but I've
(07:59):
learned not to allow whatthey've got to say and what they
think affect who I am and whatI really, truly believe.
My capability is.
Compared to what everybody elsethinks, my capability is,
you're the only one that's goingto be able to look at your life
each and every day and go did Ireally step up and give it all?
(08:21):
If you know for a fact that youdon't need to run 100 yards
three times, six times, all youneed to do is give it your all
for six seconds, give it yourall for five yards, then do that
and every single time you havethese little small victories you
know, reward yourself.
Show that.
It's evidence of your strength,it's your growth, it's who you
(08:43):
are.
Just because what works forsomebody else doesn't
necessarily mean that is thecookie cutter way that's always
going to work for you.
Each and every player on myfield is an individual and I've
learned over the years that whatmight have worked for some is
not going to work for all.
And it's the same thing withwhat we do.
(09:04):
Everybody's got an opinion,everybody's got an idea,
everybody's got a goal and astructure or a strategy that
might work for them.
But you have to look and seewhat's working for you, and not
only what's working for you, butwhat are the little things that
you can do that is going tohelp lift you up, to make you
(09:26):
this incredible, unstoppableperson.
So you want to celebrate thesmall wins.
Remember, your toughest daysare going to be your strongest
moments.
They really are, and that'sgoing to be the ability for you
to be able to shine and liftyourself up and move forward and
(09:46):
empower who you are.
So don't worry about what yourweaknesses are, because those
weaknesses are really yourbiggest strength.
You know you've survived everybad day.
You might as well take thatstrength and celebrate it and
(10:07):
use it to your advantage and useit to who you are.
You know you are going to beamazing and you've got to be
able to take the little thingsthat are your hardest things and
make them your biggeststrengths.
Bring it in, bring it in, go onout there, let's go.
Let's go start strong andfinish strong and dominate
(10:30):
everything in between.
I'm coach mickey Go get them.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com