Breakthrough Basketball

Here is a very common mistake when it comes to choosing dribbling drills for practice or workouts. And the results can be colossal if not remedied as soon as possible.

This can lead to more ball handling turnovers and ineffective dribble moves!

This mistake is near and dear to my heart…

As a player, I made this mistake. As a coach, I made this mistake at the beginning of my career.

(We also have recommended solutions, tips, and drills below.)

The mistake is…

Continue viewing… A Colossal Mistake with Dribbling Drills (For Every Coach)

The Happiness Hypothesis - One Book I’d Recommend for Every Single Person… Even Helps with Coaching!

I was in a bit of a rut the last few months. I was a little more anxious than normal and I wasn’t sleeping as well. So I picked up this book that was recommended, believe it or not, by an investment newsletter that I read.

Well, this book was pure gold in so many more ways than I could have ever imagined!

The first few chapters would have been more than enough for me.

Here is what Blinklist (app for quick summaries of books) wrote:

In The Happiness Hypothesis, Jonathan Haidt examines the ideas of famous ancient thinkers in light of modern knowledge and uses scientific findings to answer the question, “What makes person happy?” The book will provide you with a better understanding of human social behavior and enable you to increase your own happiness.

Personally, I don’t think the summary does the book justice! Here are some of my thoughts on the book...

The Happiness Hypothesis really connected well with me because it also explained the evolution of the human brain and how different areas of the brain function. And why we behave the way we do.

Haidt’s description of your brain really put things in perspective for understanding behaviors. Haidt says there are two parts of the brain which are the “rational rider” and the “inner elephant”.

Basically, the “rational rider” is your logical, sensible part of your brain used for decision making. And the “inner elephant” is your intuitive, emotional part of your brain.

Or if you’re a nerd like me, the rational rider is associated with the neocortex part of the brain. The inner elephant is associated with the limbic system part of the brain.

Most people think the rational rider is what drives our choices in life… however, Haidt argues that the inner elephant steers a lot of our choices!

So our brain works more like a rational rider on an elephant. If we don’t constantly train the inner elephant, it’s going to run wild. And you’re going to do things that might not be best for you in today’s age.

It takes constant daily rituals and practices to keep the inner elephant under control.

And maybe most importantly, recognizing when your inner elephant is trying to drive your choices.

Have you ever rationalized why you should eat another piece of chocolate, skip another workout, or watch another tv show rather than doing something productive? Or you just lose your patience over something so trivial or make false assumptions? I know that I have.

That’s not the “rational rider” at work. That’s the “inner elephant”!

As explained in the book, from an evolutionary standpoint, having the inner elephant function the way it does actually helped us survive as a species. But now we live in a different world, so now we need to adapt.

That’s why your “inner elephant” can be very negative and view many things as a threat. It helped us survive in a more dangerous world!

So if you’re finding yourself getting in a mental state of self-victimization, negativity, or rationalizing for a behavior that you know isn’t good for you, just recognize that it’s happening. And don’t give the thoughts any weight. Don’t dwell on it at all. Don’t do any self-shaming. It’s just the way your brain was designed. So observe it, maybe even laugh at it, and move on.

Here are a few interesting things from the book as well…

We are ALL hypocrites to some degree and all experience an immediate reaction of inner denial when our flaws are pointed out by someone. Unfortunately, our neocortex or “rational rider” even rationalizes why these aren’t flaws. It works hard to protect our ego. This causes a lot of conflict among people.

Instead, it’s recommended to try to recognize what you could do better in conflicts rather than demonizing the other person or victimizing yourself. Ask yourself, “How can I improve?”

We tend to place people in categories of good and evil… In reality, it’s almost always somewhere in between.

Our genes have a big influence on our natural disposition to happiness. Some studies show that 50% to 80% of our average level of happiness is based on our genetic makeup. However, our routines and thinking habits can make us happier.

Good ole’ nature versus nurture.

Having a job that you enjoy and that you’re skilled at makes you happier.

This is so obvious, but how many of us actually follow through with this?

However, the book doesn’t advise to quit your job immediately with no backup plan. That could be slightly reckless, especially if you have others that depend on you.

Your happiness only increases up to a certain amount with wealth. Of course, you get happier as you get out of poverty. However, once you reach the middle class according to US standards, more money has minimal impact ,if any, on your happiness.

Surround yourself with healthy social relationships. People that make you happy. This sounds rather obvious, but I think it’s a mistake we can often overlook.

I read a book (can’t remember if it was this one) that stated this is part of the reason that older people are on average happier, even though their health is failing and they can’t physically do things as well. They just eliminate things from their life that don’t make them happy.

I guess there is a reason for the saying, “I’m too old for this.”

Too many people focus on passionate love and this is why relationships fail. When the passionate love simmers away, which it almost always does, people think the relationship is over. Instead, the author argues that you should transition to focusing on companionate love. I would summarize it as being with someone you admire and enjoy being around.

He also analyzes some political and religious beliefs. So if you’re sensitive to that, I’d advise to focus on the message of the book. The only reason I mention this is because I saw some reviews critiquing that.

So to summarize, being happy and understanding behaviors of others and yourself seems like a good thing to understand. It can only improve your life!

And even if you don’t care about personal development and just want to learn more about coaching… if you better understand why your athletes and parents react a certain way, it’ll help you better understand the situation and how to remedy it. You can observe it rather than getting emotional about it, responding poorly, and causing more tension and conflict.

This leads to more enjoyment with coaching and makes you less likely to get fired. Remember that winning doesn’t guarantee that you keep your job in today’s world. State champion coaches have been fired the next year.

I know this book helped me and if you check out the Happiness Hypothesis, I hope it helps you!

All the best!

- Joe and Jeff Haefner
Breakthrough Basketball