By Jeff Altman, Big Game Hunter
watch Sir Paul McCartney at Carpool Karaoke A visit to his childhood home in Liverpool, where he and John Lennon wrote some of the early Beatles songs, brought back fond memories. Then, talking about how he wrote several songs based on childhood experiences that reminded me of things going on around me and seemingly fleeting events. However, many people have potential beyond just experiencing a moment.
So I sat in front of the TV (or TV as Sir Paul calls it) and started watching the College Football Championship Game between the University of Georgia and the University of Alabama and started noticing something about one of the players.
If you live outside the United States or are not a fan of American college football, the name Stetson Fleming Bennett IV will not mean anything to you, but I believe his story means something to all of us.
Bennett IV grew up in a small town in Georgia and aspired to play football for the University of Georgia. In high school, he was the quarterback of a team that participated in three consecutive state championship games, threw for more than 3,000 yards, ran for more than 500 yards, and helped the team score more than 40 touchdowns.
One of his football scholarships came from Middle Tennessee State University, which was not a football powerhouse. Others were interested until they discovered he was small by football standards (5-foot-9) and light (185 pounds). Instead of getting angry, he responded. “‘Well, sometimes you have to show them.'”
A better quarterback admitted he was the school’s preferred backup and defended him, saying the No. 1 high school quarterback in the country wasn’t as good as Bennett IV. He has a chance, but not many. He runs the scouting staff and shares a locker, indicating his low status on the team.
He transferred to a junior college in Mississippi after watching coaches recruit another player, Justin Fields, to compete with returning starter Jake Fromm. He was later recruited to play at the University of Louisiana. Eventually, a coach at the University of Georgia recruited him again and offered him a scholarship to come back. Bennett IV told him things needed to be different this time around.
When he came back, he found that the coach kept recruiting other people and giving them more opportunities than he had. It looks like he’s going to be the odd man out again, especially after the new offensive coordinator said the same thing about him in 2019. This time, however, he decided to keep working and be ready for whenever he was needed.
Tenacity, no worries
Two new quarterbacks failed to do that. One opted out of the season due to Covid-19. Another person has not yet recovered from his condition. Bennett IV competed against a freshman and lost to him. You’d think by now he’d take the hint and give up on his dream.
This year, he was overlooked again, and the now healthy, physically cleared quarterback was injured in the first game. Bennett IV led Georgia to a 56-7 victory over its next opponent, throwing five touchdown passes in the first half. The next week, however, Georgia was back to another quarterback until he was injured again in the first half. Then they went back to Bennett IV and never changed again.
Stetson was the quarterback for Georgia in the College Football Championship, and in a close game with his team ahead, he fumbled the ball (a questionable call) and the other team, Alabama, recovered a few plays later to score a touchdown and take the lead.
Without pressure, a diamond wouldn’t be a diamond. Bennett IV decided he wasn’t going to be the reason for the team’s failure.
Suddenly, he was throwing passes and completing passes down the field with more confidence. First, he threw a long 49-yard touchdown. Georgia takes the lead. On the next possession, he passed again. In the end, the defense intercepted the pass and scored the final touchdown. He persisted and won a national championship.
There are many lessons we can learn from his story.
1. Talent is not enough. He is talented and has shown his talent at every opportunity. However, people have preconceived ideas about what they need or want. Sometimes you’re up against people who have preconceived notions of how things should be.
2. Go where you want. You can’t get people to hire you or trust you. But sometimes, they’re right. You need more seasoning/experience. Go to a place where you can get it.
3. follow dreams. Bennett IV returned to Georgia with the promise that he would have a chance. Get a commitment.
4. You may need to prove yourself. It turns out that he didn’t have many opportunities at the beginning and needed to fight for opportunities many times. You may have to do the same.
5. He prepares tirelessly For the first chance to prove myself. And then, when he gets it, he delivers again and again.
6. bad things will happen. In the most important game of his life, he made a terrible mistake. Instead of complaining or criticizing himself mercilessly, he decided not to be the reason for his team’s failure. Bad things will happen. Resilience and recovery are critical.
7. Winning teams and people find a way to win. It’s important to learn from your mistakes, but winning teams and people don’t dwell on or dwell on their mistakes. Instead, they look ahead and look for ways to win. The losing team has a good explanation for what happened.
No matter where you are in your professional or personal life, there are lessons to be learned from the victories of Paul McCartney, Stetson Fleming Bennett IV and their teams. Whether you are a leader or a follower, it is always important to review your situation, current opportunities and the right direction. There are steps, costs, and risks involved in becoming a champion.
If you’re not ready yet, what steps can you take today to drive progress every day? You can see what potentially overlooked details can lead to huge results for you and others.
Yes, if you take a moment to pay attention, you will see some lessons.
Ⓒ Big Game Hunter, Inc., Asheville, NC, 2022
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