A few weeks ago Kaden had the opportunity to attend Notre Dame Football 
Camp and I was able to watch one day of camp. I was very impressed with the camp overall. It was organized, had good skill building drills, and the Coaches and players were very committed to the kids.
I was most impressed with one of the Assistant Coaches that took the time to speak with the campers. He started out the speech by asking if “anyone was hot”? The majority of campers raised their hands. He then proceeded to tell them that “they were not hot, that it was a balmy 80 degrees in South Bend, IN and it was not hot”! He went on to tell them that anyone could convince themselves they were hot and tired but assured them that someone sitting next to them was not hot, and not tired. His point being that the competition starts now and there is someone out there that is willing to work harder than you to achieve their goals. He also lectured the parents a bit for convincing the young campers that they were indeed hot and tired. Of course I am positive (along with the 500 other parents) that he was not speaking to me 🙂
Some parents may have been offended by this speech but I thought it was great. Playing football at Notre Dame or any major college takes a lot of hard work, and those that are consistently hot and tired will get weeded out along the way. Yes natural ability never hurts but most people achieve greatness through hard work along with convincing themselves that they can keep going and fight through the pain. Please be assured that I am not saying you can’t take a  water break, or rest if you need to (and neither was the coach). What he was saying is to push yourself, to be your best, because it’s a guarantee that someone else is already doing so.
by Stacey Atkinson