Robert Cooney

Husband, Father, Leader. Passion for leadership and raising up the next generation of leaders.

[Coach Ray Ostrowski @CoachRayO3313]

Your Habits 🟰 Your Future

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

"The information you consume each day is the soil from which your future thoughts are grown."

-@JamesClear

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Teams can soar to great heights of achievement because of great vision, talent, alignment and commitment. They can also crash because they are fully human.”
4 Vital Components to Transform Your Team from Ordinary to Extraordinary https://t.co/XHSsnyde8J via @danreiland

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Talk first, most, and longest.” @Leadershipfreak
https://t.co/klpDQhIc69

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Me, my, and I are words that speak loudly about the identity of a leader.” @James_Albright
https://t.co/YhTvSMeFKe

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Just before you pull the trigger on that change you want to introduce ask yourself this question; “It this worth cashing in my chips?”” @WScottCochrane

[Scott Cochrane @WScottCochrane]

Leading change is never easy.

But it can be impossible if you commit this classic leadership blunder. If you're struggling to lead change, perhaps this explains why...

https://t.co/pcgpVQgaoR

#Leadership

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Hope is the vision of a better future and faith is the belief you can get there.”
5 Pathways to Life-Changing Unity over Destructive Division https://t.co/DAfFlxFPId via @danreiland

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Creating rituals that provide meaning, solace, and enjoyment at the start and end of the day creates a foundation from which leaders can find the stability and consistency they crave.” https://t.co/3V1XuVasFf

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“While falling short feels like losing, I have learned way more in seasons that I fell short than I ever did in seasons I was perfectly executing.” @James_Albright
https://t.co/BgVmXnG6aU

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“When meeting someone new, try to find out what formative experience occurred in their lives before they were seventeen.”
Long-time investment market strategist Byron Wien shared some important lessons from his decades as a leader. https://t.co/Iescso4spc

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“The key is not for leaders to get people to “own” their poor performance and to stare it down. Rather, the magic is in asking what they are going do differently to achieve a better result.”
https://t.co/cTh0JhsucE

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Everyone stars in some role, and your character shines when you give your best. Good character isn't just a trait, it's a choice that leads to a life worth living.”

[Coach AJ 🎯 Mental Fitness @coachajkings]

In 2017, Austin Ekeler went undrafted and signed with the LA Chargers.

He was the 6th-string RB.

His only goal was to make the team, but it was a long shot.

He was an undersized D-II RB that wasn't drafted and wasn't getting practice reps.

He told his family, "Don't call me. I don't want to be distracted."

Austin was getting 0 real reps in training camp. The only reps that got him noticed were special teams and scout team.

So those opportunities are what he would take advantage of.
✅He ran every special teams rep as hard as he could, flying down the field.
✅He "over studied" to make sure he was in position and consistent.

And the hard work started to pay off. One day, head coach Anthony Lynn noticed his effort on special teams and asked who that was flying down the field.

The results weren't immediate. He kept working hard and being consistent, but he wasn't moving up the depth chart.

He was still 6th-string and barely getting reps. He even broke down crying in front of his position coach because nothing was changing, until it did...

During the preseason, he started to get more opportunities and stand out. He made some tackles and plays on special teams. He was always in position and he continued to get noticed.

Ekeler's effort ultimately paid off when he made the roster.

That year, Ekeler led the NFL in tackles on punts. He realized that was his opportunity, that was his role, and that was his job.

That was just the beginning for him because then his role and job would continue to evolve.

Austin Ekeler is now the starting RB for the LA Chargers and led the NFL in total touchdowns from 2021-2022 with 38.

Takeaway 1: Control what you can control
Focus on what matters and control what you can control. In the face of adversity and long odds, Ekeler focused on maximizing his efforts in areas he could influence. He worked on his special teams skills, doing work in the weight room, and learning the playbook. He even removed distractions from family and friends to focus on getting better.

The most resilient people know that "you can control what you can control." This mindset promotes ownership and a proactive, solution-focused mindset.

Takeaway 2: Do Your Job To The Best of Your Ability
Austin Ekeler's story teaches us the significance of seizing opportunities and performing your role with passion, energy, consistency, and attention to detail. Little details make big differences. He made the most of his limited opportunities by giving A+ effort on every play. People notice when you are consistent in your mindset and actions. Passion and energy can't be faked.

Everyone stars in some role, and your character shines when you give your best. Good character isn't just a trait, it's a choice that leads to a life worth living.

"In my mind where I'm trying to progress, just getting by is never good enough. You owe it to yourself and the people around you to try to maximize your capabilities because that is why you're on this Earth." - Austin Ekeler

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Follow @coachajkings for more content like this!

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

Love this quote:

“People come to me all the time and tell me they're stuck,” Cuban explained. “They're stuck in a job they don't like. They're stuck working for a boss they don't like. They're stuck on a team they don't like.”

“I just tell them, 'Be great.'”

[Billy Oppenheimer @bpoppenheimer]

After his second year at Michigan, Tom Brady wanted to transfer.

He wasn't playing in games, and he was so low on the depth chart that he only got 2 reps in practice.

Brady met with his coach to express his frustration, “The other quarterbacks get all the reps.”

Coach replied,

“Brady, I want you to stop worrying about what all the other players on our team are doing. All you do is worry about what the starter is doing, what the second guy is doing, what everyone else is doing. You don't worry about what you're doing.”

Coach reminded him, “You came here to be the best. If you're going to be the best, you have to beat out the best.”

And then he recommended that Brady start meeting with Greg Harden, a sports psychologist who worked in Michigan's athletic department.

Brady went to Harden's office and whined, “I'm never going to get my chance. They're only giving me 2 reps.”

Harden simply replied, “Just go out there and focus on doing the best you can with those 2 reps. Make them as perfect as you possibly can.”

“So that's what I did,” Brady said. “They'd put me in for those 2 reps, man, I'd sprint out there like it was Super Bowl 39. 'Let's go boys! Here we go! What play we got?'”

“And I started to do really well with those 2 reps. Because I brought enthusiasm, I brought energy.”

Soon, it went from getting 2 reps to getting 4 reps. Then from 4 to 10, “and before you knew it,” Brady said, with this new mindset that Greg instilled in me—to focus on what you can control, to focus on what you're getting, not what anyone else is getting, to treat every rep like it's the Super Bowl—eventually, I became the starter.”

Takeaway 1:

Greg Harden telling Brady to just focus on being great during his 2 reps reminded me of a piece of advice from the entrepreneur Mark Cuban.

“People come to me all the time and tell me they're stuck,” Cuban explained. “They're stuck in a job they don't like. They're stuck working for a boss they don't like. They're stuck on a team they don't like.”

“I just tell them, 'Be great.'”

“The reality of life is that you can't just always quit your job. You can't just always go to your boss and say, 'Give me the promotion, or I'm out of here.'” You can't just always go to your coach and say, 'Give me more reps, or I'm transferring.'

“So when you're stuck, you've gotta find it within yourself to say, 'Ok, this is where I am. And if I'm going to be here, I'm going to be great.'

Because if you're great at your job, typically other people and companies find out, so it creates opportunities.”

Takeaway 2:

I've written before about “lead measures”—the actions and behaviors that predictably drive success.

The core characteristic of a lead measure, the authors of The 4 Disciplines of Execution (4DX) write, is that “a lead measure is influenceable; it can be directly influenced by you.”

To achieve your goals, they recommend (echoing what the Michigan Coach told Brady), apply a disproportionate energy to the things that are in your control.

Starting at Michigan and for the rest of his career, that’s what Brady did, that’s what drove his success.

In his first media call after he was selected by the New England Patriots with the 199th pick in the 2000 draft, Brady was asked: “Are you aware that [along with starting quarterback, Drew Bledsoe] there’s another quarterback here that they drafted last year?”

Brady said he was aware of that. “And I know he’s a heck of a player,” Brady said. “But I’ve always really concerned myself just with the things I can control. I don’t put a lot of thinking into the other guys because I know I’m not at my best when I’m not just thinking about playing as well as I possibly can.”

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“I never once in my life ever said I wanted to be the best of all time. Ever. I wanted to be the best I could be, period. I learned that in college. It didn’t matter what the other guys were doing. It mattered what I was doing.” — Tom Brady

Follow @bpoppenheimer for more content like this!

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“There is no problem that has ever landed at the feet of a leader that has been solved through worry.” @WScottCochrane

[Scott Cochrane @WScottCochrane]

You start each leadership day with a tank full of energy. Don't waste that precious energy by unnecessary worry.

Here are 4 proven strategies you can use to win the war on worry...

https://t.co/bSXGMJqUWL

#Leadership

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Create a date rhythm in your marriage.”
5 Ways To Strengthen Your Marriage Amidst The Demands Of Leadership https://t.co/rjcz36gK24 via @JosephLalonde

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“[C]ulture is created at the top, sustained from the bottom, and eroded in the middle of an organization.” @samchand

https://t.co/9FXEbs61Yo

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Only wisdom energized by a vibrant walk with God makes godly leaders.”
⁦@TheJohnCMaxwell⁩ (Leadership Promises for Every Day)

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

"Your reputation is your most important asset. It precedes you before you walk into the room and lingers long after the work is done."

-@JamesClear

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Our jobs as leaders are to make those around us understand, not remember.”
https://t.co/T1quC2xGT1

[Robert Cooney @widgetengr3]

“Human leaders have moved from quarterback to coach. “Their job is no longer to handle the ball and score points; it is to inspire and support the players to give the best of themselves and make sure they play as a team so together they can score points.””
https://t.co/tPS3bRO8gh