David J.

Pollay

Read David's bio and previous columns

September 1, 2008

Stay in the Game Long Enough to Succeed

Many people give up on their dreams. They face a challenge, or a series of setbacks, and then they question their ability to succeed. The payoff for their effort seems too far away to justify the frustration and disappointment they are experiencing today. But what if they hung in there just a little bit longer? Could the success they are striving for be just around the corner?

Twenty-seven years ago

A high school friend of mine, Big John, recently reminded me of an event that took place 27 years ago in our high school gym. He wrote about it in our high school anniversary alumni program. Big John said it was one of his best high school memories. It’s a simple story about what can happen when you stay in the game.

I was a sophomore in high school when I joined the Saturday morning basketball league. I played on my friend Sal’s team. And we had a good enough season to play for the championship against Johnny Malo’s (all names are changed for this story) team – the team that taunted us all week before the game that they had a big plan to shut us down.

Well, championship Saturday came and their “big plan” was working . . . on me! I was having my worst game of the season – I couldn’t make a basket. It was the rest of the team that kept us in the game.

So, it came down to the last 10 seconds of the game and we were tied. And who had the ball? Johnny Malo.

Johnny Malo took the ball down court, passed it to Frank, who dribbled around two of our guys, put up a jump shot, and with one second remaining, he made it! We were down by two, and Johnny Malo was jumping up and down like he was a contestant on the The Price Is Right.

Our last chance

So with one second left on the clock, we took our last timeout and huddled around Sal to hear his plan. And this was what he said, “Throw it to the open guy.”

“What?” I said. “What kind of plan is that? Throw it down to Big John.” See, Big John was the only one of us over six feet tall and he was a good ballplayer. But, then Sal said, “Nah, throw it to the open guy.”

So we ran back on the court and Earl stood on the side trying to pass the ball in bounds. I ran to the far corner of the court to give Big John as much room as possible; I still wanted him to get the pass. And what do you think Earl did? Correct. He threw the ball to me – the guy farthest from the basket, and the one who only made two baskets all game long.

The shot

So I jumped high to catch the pass, grabbed it with two hands, swung the ball in front of me and let it fly.

The gym was quiet as we all watched the ball arc high and toward the hoop. And then as the ball started descending in the direction of the basket the silence of the crowd was replaced with a rising chorus of “ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh yeaaaaahhh! The ball went in. We couldn’t believe it – a three-pointer to win the game and the championship. The place went nuts.

And 27 years later, Big John wrote about this moment in our alumni program. We both knew that I had wanted to take myself out of that game. I had lost my confidence; I thought I had already taken enough shots. But I stayed in the game and I was given one more opportunity to make one of the most memorable shots of my life.

I learned that you have to stay in the game long enough to succeed.

What game are you playing in? Your shot may be just around the corner.

David J. Pollay’s book, Beware of Garbage Trucks!™, and his CD program, Gratitude Is Everything!™, are due out this Fall. Mr. Pollay is the creator of The Law of the Garbage Truck™ (www.bewareofgarbagetrucks.com). He is a syndicated columnist with the North Star Writers Group, creator and host of The Happiness Answer™ DVD, and an internationally sought after speaker. Mr. Pollay is the founder and president of the personal coaching and seminar organization, The Momentum Project (www.themomentumproject.com).

© 2008 David J. Pollay. Distributed by North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.

Click here to talk to our writers and editors about this column and others in our discussion forum.

To e-mail feedback about this column, click here. If you enjoy this writer's work, please contact your local newspapers editors and ask them to carry it.

This is Column # DJP075. Request permission to publish here.