Fishers High School

JOYFULLY DELIBERATE Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel has become a rising star in professional football by reinvigorating what had become a somewhat floundering franchise. His youthful and energetic approach, his unique and innovative coaching style, and - maybe most importantly - his refreshing brand of authentic leadership has changed Miami’s culture and performance for the better. In a recent press conference, a reporter asked McDaniel what words he would use to describe his current team. After a little thought, his initial response was “deliberately joyful.” I thought that answer made sense. As professional football players who’ve devoted pretty much their entire existence to that grueling experience, it must be difficult at times to maintain a genuine sense of joy. If you are someone who’s fully immersed in the grind of your own grueling experience, you can probably relate. Sometimes finding joy in the journey is an intentional decision we have to make. When the reporter asked McDaniel to expand on what he meant by “deliberately joyful,” the coach paused again, furrowed his brow, and wrestled momentarily with a response. “Maybe it’s joyfully deliberate,” he replied and then expounded. “They enjoy the process of really being critical of their technique, of having a high standard with which they try to practice their craft, and enjoying hard work.” “You hear about great players and their unique practice intensity," he continued, "and you hear about great teams that have that mindset of controlling what they can control and really getting everything out of the day. This 2023 version of the Miami Dolphins really enjoys working on things that will prepare them for game day…They’re able to find that happy balance of enjoying what they’re doing, but taking it very serious at the same time.” Coach McDaniel’s expanded response offers some insight into the mindset of those teams and those individuals that achieve greatness. They are joyfully deliberate. That winning approach requires a unique perspective that’s so important if we’re serious about performing at a high level, about reaching our potential, and about finding success in the important areas of our own lives. Like any winning mindset, that combination - joyful and deliberate - is uncommon and unnatural. Most of us can do one or the other pretty effortlessly. It’s not that hard, for example, to be miserably deliberate. That is, to resent the difficult and often unnoticed work that achieving something big and important requires. Even if we’re fully committed to the work, it can easily become a burden instead of a blessing. Something we endure instead of embrace. An obligation instead of an opportunity. It’s also not that hard to be joyfully oblivious. That is, to show up and have some fun while neglecting the focus and the attention that embodies our very best effort. It’s easy to have a great time doing mediocre work. But it takes someone special to show up both joyfully and deliberately. That is, to show up as someone who's committed to giving their very best effort and their full attention to the challenging but important responsibility that’s in front of them today, and - while they’re doing all that - equally committed to bringing a positive, infectious energy that elevates their own performance and the performance of those around them. It takes someone special to make their work both intentional and enjoyable, and to simultaneously bring some focus and some fun. I’d ask you to consider today where striking that winning balance requires some intentional improvement from you. Some of us are naturally pretty good at bringing the joy, but we aren’t so good at being deliberate. For others, the opposite is true. We’ve resigned ourselves to working in misery. Today’s a great day to make the difficult decision to chase excellence in both of these important areas. It’s a great day to make your work both intentional and enjoyable. To bring some focus and some fun. It’s a great day to be joyfully deliberate. SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHAMPIONS 101 NEWSLETTER HERE. Copyright Champions 101. All rights reserved.