Why Being An Underdog Is Great
By Cheval John
Being an underdog can be at times frustrating because many people do not believe that you will succeed.
We see it almost every time in sporting events, especially in championship games where a team is heavily favored to win while many write off the other.
Of course, being an underdog happens in real life outside of sports as well.
Like when people label someone as not having a chance to succeed in life if they drop out of school and not obtain a college degree.
The truth of the matter is if you are an underdog, you are in a prime position to prove the doubters wrong.
Here are two examples of those who overcame the odds to be successful:
THE 2014 SAM HOUSTON STATE FOOTBALL TEAM
The Bearkat football team had a huge turnover in personnel leading up to this year’s season.
Most of the players who were apart of the most victorious team in program history had graduated.
The architect of the team who led the squad to two consecutive Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) National Championship appearances, Willie Fritz, accepted the job at Georgia Southern.
With a new head coach in K.C. Keeler and a majority of the squad being new including 17 Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) transfers, the Kats were selected to finish third in the Southland Conference (SLC).
It seemed as if the predictions were going to come true as the Bearkats had a 1-3 start, including a loss to the eventual Division II National Champion, Colorado State-Pueblo, which ended a 22-game home winning streak at Bowers Stadium.
Even I gave up on the team for this season.
However, the Bearkats kept a positive mindset, believed in each other and won seven out of the final eight games in the regular season to clinch a share of the SLC title and the automatic bid to the FCS playoffs.
Sam Houston kept their momentum going with three consecutive victories over three-top 10 ranked teams before falling to three-time FCS National Champion, North Dakota State at the FargoDome in Fargo, North Dakota during the semifinals.
The Bearkats are more optimistic about their chances at making it back to the playoffs and even winning a national championship.
DARRIN BENTLEY
Darrin Bentley is someone everyone should pay attention to in 2015.
I had the opportunity to interview him on my show, “What’s The Word?” earlier this month.
Mr. Bentley is the founder and host of Big Wig Nation, a weekly show that showcases highly successful people in different industries.
The podcast has been on the air for five months.
But it already has close to 100,000 downloads.
What is really amazing about Mr. Bentley is that he is very transparent and authentic.
He shared in his bio of the podcast’s website that he is a high school dropout.
Now if a person don’t graduate high school and move on to college, they have a slim chance at having a successful career according to a report by The Atlantic.
However, Mr. Bentley overcame the odds and worked his way up from the mailroom to a 6-figure salary on Wall Street and now as an entrepreneur.
So if you feel that everything is not going your way or feel like no one believes in you, celebrate.
Because once you achieve success, the ones who doubted you before, will all of a sudden applaud you for overcoming the odds to be successful.
Have you ever felt like an underdog? You can share your comments below.
Video courtesy of The Bearkat Sports Network
Photo Courtesy of www.fm-base.co.uk
Twas The Flights Before Christmas
By Cheval John
Twas the flights before Christmas and everyone is trying to get home.
Some to see their family.
Some to see their friends.
Some people are going to distant places to escape the cold winter
While others are going to just recharge their batteries from a productive year.
If a person is flying to a different time zone like China and Japan, they made the decision to leave two days before Christmas.
Now if they decided to leave a day before Christmas, they will have the unique experience to celebrate the majority of the holiday on a flight with wi-fi and first class.
However, if they are flying to Europe to see the different cultures and the way of living.
They will have the luxury of celebrating Christmas with Belgian waffles in hand.
If you are living in one of the greatest cities in the United States like the Houston, Texas area, your Christmas present arrived early with the opportunity to see the arrival of Emirates’ A380.
Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.
SHSU Defeats Prairie View 61-44
Courtesy: Paul Ridings, Jr., SHSU Sports Information
Jabari Peters went 5-of-7 from the field to score 12 points to lead Sam Houston to a 61-44 non-conference men’s basketball victory over Prairie View A&M Saturday afternoon.
After the Panthers scored the first basket, Sam Houston never trailed, building a 23-point lead in the second half.
Jayrn Johnson and Karim York each scored 10 points to lead Prairie View. The Panthers dropped to 1-10 for the year. Sam Houston, undefeated at home this year in five games, is 7-4 for the season.
The Bearkats out-boarded Prairie View 42-26 with DeMarcus Gatlin, Michael Holyfield and Aurimas Majauskas each pulling down seven rebounds.
The Panthers kept things close during the first nine minutes of the game. Sam Houston led by only two, 14-12, with 10:58 left in the half.
A layup by Aurimas Majauskas started a 14-1 Bearkat run. A jumper by Majauskas put Sam Houston up 28-13 with 3:38 left. The Kats went into the locker run with a 17-point lead, 34-17.
Sam Houston State now breaks for the Christmas holidays. Next action for the Kats is Monday, December 29, when the SHSU men play host to Howard Payne in a 6:30 p.m. contest at Johnson Coliseum.
The Bearkats open Southland Conference action Saturday, January 3, with a home matchup with Incarnate Word.
Five Books That Will Make Great Christmas Presents
By Cheval John
Disclaimer: I am an Amazon Affiliate and receive commission for each sale from their website.
I will only recommend items that I have personally used or in this case, books I have read for myself.
Christmas is right around the corner.
That means many people will be doing some last minute holiday shopping before the big day comes.
You might be wondering what type of gifts should you get your family and friends.
One suggestion I can make is to buy them some books.
“What buy them some books?” you might ask.
Yes, buy them some books.
The cost of a book will be in your price range if you are on a budget.
And books have the power to change people’s lives for the better if they apply the lessons they have read.
To give you a head start on researching for books, here are five books I believe will be a great Christmas present for your friends and family.
1. What Just Happened? by Jimmy Burgess
This book really is inspirational because Mr. Burgess was very transparent about his success and also his failures in business and life.
It is an easy read and once you start, you will not want to put the book down.
I finished the book in one day.
2. ReWork by 37 Signals
Rework was written by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson in 2010.
The book is the polar opposite to what business schools have been teaching for decades on running a business.
Though it is 288 pages, the book is an easy read as well because each chapter is about 3 to 4 pages and the message get straight to the point.
3. The Happiness of Pursuit by Chris Guillebeau
This book is a masterpiece by Mr. Guiullebeau because he showcases others who had their own personal quest to achieve.
He shares about his journey to visit 193 countries in the world and also documents the challenges that he faced in achieving the quest.
The book will make you laugh, make you cry and also make you contemplate about fulfilling a personal quest that you had always dreamed of for many years.
4. The FabYouList by Susan Campbell Cross
The FabYouList is one book that everyone should read because Mrs. Cross shares her personal story of how she achieved all of her list.
You will be amazed by the grit and determination of Mrs. Cross in accomplishing her goals.
Once you read this book, you will be inspired to create your own list and achieve them.
A fair warning: Some of her list may not be suitable for anyone under the age of 18, so be very cautious of who you share the book with.
5. What If And Why Not? by Jen Groover
If you ever had a desire to start a business and you are afraid of failure, then this book is for you.
Jen Groover showcases her journey to be successful with her business, “The Butler Bag” and the obstacles she faced.
The one thing that pushed Ms. Groover to succuss and helped her to overcome failure is having the regrets of not pursing her dream of being a business owner.
One of the important messages that is detailed in the book is that “everyone has a story to share.”
So there you have it, the five books that you should get this Christmas season.
Really believe that they will change your live and jumpstart the New Year with hope and optimism.
What other books would you recommend? You can leave a comment below.
Photo Courtesy of www.thebooksamaritan.com
Social Media “Rock Stars” To Watch In 2015
By Cheval John
As we are about three days away from welcoming in the New Year, one might have to wonder what the future holds for social media?
We can follow the trends of where social media is going and how businesses needs to adjust their marketing strategy to be successful.
Even though, it is important to look at the evolution of social media, one thing will always remain: SOCIAL MEDIA IS ALL ABOUT BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS.
Companies are slowly realizing that if they want to be successful with social media, they have to engage with their audience, especially with the Millennial population of 80 million.
According to a statistic that was brought up by Rebekah Radice, digital marketing strategist, in a Twitter Chat held by Buffer regarding millennials, “63% say they keep up with companies on social.”
The old way of doing business, “putting ads in front of prospective customers to close a sale quickly” is long gone.
If companies do not engage with their audience, they will end up losing valuable customers, which will affect their bottom line.
One suggestion I would make for businesses who want to get social media right is follow these people who are either rising or established “rock stars” on social media in 2015:
TAMARA MCCLEARY @TamaraMcCleary
Tamara McCleary is one lady I believe is using social media the right way.
Mrs. McCleary, who is a national speaker and the creator of the RelationShift method, grew her Twitter followers to over 36,000 since joining the platform about a year ago.
Tamara understands the importance of building relationships and engaging with your audience.
That is why she is someone everyone should be paying attention to.
BRIAN FANZO @isocialFanz
Brian Fanzo is a person who is probably the king of multi-tasking.
Fanzo, who is the Chief Digital Strategist and Partner at BroadSuite, attends so many twitter chats (some at the same time) that he understands the importance of building a community.
He has written a lot of guest posts for Daniel Newman’s Millennial CEO blog and recently launched and cohost a podcast called “iSocialTalks” with Mr. Newman.
RACHEL MILLER @RachelLouMiller
Rachel Miller is the Chief Listener for Pipeliner CRM, a next generation software that uses distinguished visual tools to help salespeople interact with and improve their sales pipeline.
Ms. Miller is the co-host of the Social Selling Hour #sshour (now #SBizHour), with Mr. Fanzo.
The Twitter Chat showcases the right ways to interact with your audience and also brings in guests from different industries who have been successful with social media.
The unique thing about the chat is that people can also listen in on the conversation because it is hosted on Google Hangouts in addition to Twitter.
That is why it has become so popular since it was launched seven months ago because of the innovation by Ms. Miller and Mr. Fanzo.
LORRIE GUERRIERI @MovyStream
Lorrie Guerrieri is the Community Manager at Joyce Co.
She helps build relationships with industry experts, investors and consumers for the company.
What is really amazing about Lorrie is her authenticity and willingness to share valuable information that will make other people lives better.
One of the ways she has made their lives better is with the product, Movy Stream.
This platform allows anyone to send personalized video messages to friends, family etc.
Also, Movy Stream can help co-workers or entrepreneurs to collaborate on different work presentations.
Lorrie is a person that everyone should keep an eye on in 2015 because she is going to take her career and Movy Stream to the next level.
So hopefully, businesses will follow these people that are listed here in this post to learn about building relationships with their audience.
One thing is for certain, I am learning a whole lot from them and also getting better everyday with social media.
Who will you follow on social media to learn more about building authentic relationships in 2015? You can leave your comment below.
Photo courtesy of www.smrockstar.tumblir.com
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