Did you set your alarm?

Thank you for the warm welcome back!

Since I have been delinquent for over 2 weeks, I will try to start at the beginning...

March 25-27 I was in Orlando, Fl for work.  We were shooting Dwight Howard of the Orlando Magic for a promotion we are doing in the back-half of this year.

Our shoot was scheduled for Saturday, so on Friday...we went to the Orlando Magic - NJ Nets game.  It was my FIRST ever NBA game!  A fan of Detroit, I have seen the Red Wings, Lions, and Tigers live...but never the Pistons.  It just never worked out.

Guess what?

I LOVE NBA basketball.  I may have found a new favorite activity!  The action kept going...no long pauses...there were dancers and cheerleaders...and wow - Dwight was awesome!

That is Mr. Dwight Howard at the basket...

He is always at the free throw line...

On Saturday, we went into production for Dwight's shoot.  He was right on time, extremely easy to work with, and highly entertaining.

He even brought one of his dogs...Puffy...

I was so excited, I tried to channel his awesomeness...

As part of our shoot, we conducted an interview, asking him questions about how he got started, what was important to him, and how he became a professional basketball player. One of his answers really impacted me...

As a kid, Dwight said he had his sights on 2 goals: 1) To play in the NBA someday, and 2) To be first round draft pick when he did.

So he got up every morning at 5am.  He went straight to the gym to shoot hoops. Then he went to the weight room.

Then he went to class.

In high school. 

I don't know about you, but I didn't have that kind of drive in high school.

And he said, it didn't matter what time he went to bed the night before.  Or how he was feeling.  Or what was going on in his life.  He just set the alarm, pulled himself out of the bed, and did the work.

In the 2004 NBA draft, at age 18, Dwight was first overall pick by the Orlando Magic.

What struck me is that sometimes I let my mind play tricks on me - I think professional athletes are lucky or possess better genetics or that things just come "naturally" to them.  Sure, it helps Dwight that he is 6'11".  But he could be that height and do anything else in his life...playing professional basketball wasn't a foregone conclusion.  He actually wanted it - and he really worked for it.  He made his dream come true by setting that alarm every night and getting out of bed every morning.

It reminded me that we each have special contributions to make in this world, but if we aren't willing to dedicate ourselves to our passions or devote ourselves to our dreams and goals...if we are just waiting for luck to be on our side...or if we just lament what we don't have in the face of what we want...

We are throwing our talents and our dreams and our goals away.

What it really boils down to is this: We have to do the work.  Even if you're Dwight Howard.  You have to do the work.

What a great ending to a memorable shoot...