GAMETIME (Audio) with Andy Zitzmann

"Life's 6 Rules" - Secrets to Success - from Arnold Schwarzenegger:1. Trust YourselfWho are you, not what, but who? Trust yourself, believe in yourself… what makes you happy?2. Break the RulesYou can’t be a maverick, push the boundaries, and be extraordinary if you don't break a few rules. 3. Don’t Be Afraid to FailYou have to be willing to fail in order to be successful. It's part of the process.4. Don’t Listen to the NaysayersSo many people will tell you, "you can't", "it's never been done", etc... be the first to do it, and always remember that you CAN!5. Work Your Butt OffIt’s ok to have fun, just be sure you work hard! There is no way around it; hard work leads to success!6. Give BackNo matter what you do, when you give back, it is more meaningful and better than so many other things you will do in life.

If you have a reactive personality, you need to become aware of the problems that are caused by reacting before thinking. Learn to pause and think before acting; then make a conscious, more informed to decision to act or perhaps to say nothing at all. If you are in a place where you must be proactive, it doesn’t matter what it is, it is so easy to get stuck in thinking without acting. We think and think and think, and don’t act. Sometimes, we must simply act ourselves into right thinking to get unstuck, make progress and let the magic of taking action happen. If you want quick results, think less and act more - be proactive.

As a result, Paul and I came up with this great formula... the 3 R’s for making a comeback:1. Realize - Become aware that you have to do SOMETHING.2. Resolve - Decide, no matter what, you are going to make a comeback. 3. Reboot - Recharge and Ignite yourself to make that comeback using the I am "ABEL" formula:Ask for helpBe gratefulEvaluate all the positive possibilities and outcomesLaunch your comeback, your dream, your new way of lifeThe most important thing in making a comeback is to be consistent. Show up every day and be consistent. There are two joys in making a comeback. First, You get to know yourself in a deeper and meaningful way you never have before. Second, You begin to realize you matter and have impact. It's Your Time. What are you waiting for?? Make a comeback today!

Today, I celebrate my re-birth! Today is my 5 year anniversary of being re-born; awakened to life, to conscious living, to gratitude, true love, respect for myself and others, acceptance, willingness, hope and above all, faith! Today, I celebrate 5 years of sobriety... I don't say this or send this to celebrate me, rather to send a message out to all that have helped me get here and for always being there for me. To let everyone know that now matter how bad it gets, no matter where you are in life, we all have the ability to change. However, we can't do it ourselves. We need to be willing to ask for help, learn humility, accept love and support, and ultimately show up in our own lives like we would for the ones we love! So I ask you to join me today, to show up for yourself in your life, help another out and be willing to take whatever action is necessary to change and be the person you know in your heart you can be! When you're ready to change and willing to ask for help, you'll be amazed at the world and how it will open up to you!5 years ago, I went into rehab. I thought my life was over. How silly I was because my life was actually just starting to begin again! I sit here today 5 years sober! I'm overwhelmed with just how amazing my life is today, how much help I have received along the way, the love I have in my life, and I am just so very grateful, so truly blessed! Thank you to all my friends, colleagues, and family for loving me, for believing in me, and for giving me big and little gifts along the way to help me keep going when times were tough. Every one of you has touched my life and changed me forever! Thank you from the bottom of my heart!!!!!

To Cheryl's students: We at The GAMETIME Movement love you and honor you! You are very special and you have been blessed! You have been given the opportunity at a young age to be challenged and to overcome, and you have also been blessed with an amazing teacher in Mrs. Smoley. Most people will never be challenged and will never have the chance to step up like you do. Each day, you develop strength and courage, you always stay positive and you love with big hearts. As a result, you all are becoming champions much earlier than most people. Keep it up! We are so proud of you and so is your teacher Mrs. Smoley!!

Set yourself up for success in health by telling yourself you are going to do something "more often than not". If you tell yourself, "I will go to the gyn more than I did last week or I will go to the gym more often than not this week", you are setting yourself up for success. Remember, progress not perfection. Most of us expect to be perfect when we start a new healthy lifestyle and as soon as we make a mistake, we give up. Let's be more realisitic with ourselves and set ourselves up for success with taking these 3 easy steps to make for a more healthy lifestyle: 

1. Set yourself up for success.

2. Tell yourself you will do something "more often than not". 

3. And no matterr what and no matter how small, "at least do something" each day deisgnated for working out, exercising or eating healthy!

This week we have an opportunity to make Monday, Today, a Great Day. Let's not wait on the sideline and wait for a tragedy to happen before we kick into high gear on our dreams and goals. We may not be so lucky to make it through or to have a tomorrow. As Paul shared, "There are seven days in a week and someday isn’t one of them." We trick ourselves into thinking tomorrow is guaranteed. It's not! Neither is "one day" or "someday"... we are only guaranteed this moment, Today! So, ask yourself, what are you waiting for???

What would it be like to wake up in the morning and say, "Today, I am going to live with a giving heart"? You would likely spend more of your day looking for opportunities to give of yourself. And when you do just that, it's hard to feel sorry for yourself, be negative or feel bored with life. It helps you and helps another to feel the true joy of living. Try it on. Go out today and just give of yourself to someone else in anyway you see fit. To Give is to Live! Make Sunday, and every day, a great day for giving. 

Discipline weighs ounces, regret weighs tons. Things will take time and you may not always know what will happen. Follow your dreams, Focus On What You Know and Grow Get It! You Know You Can, and that is all you need to know!

In preparing this show, I was reminded that "Champions became champions before they are champions!" It will be great if Lilly, Sophie and South Shore Select win the tournament and become #1 in the country, but what's more important is how they play, how they act and how they work as a team. The winning is done before the game in practice and preparation, in being positive, in working as a team, and during the game... not when the game is over. If we handle our business and life with these same principles, we will win more often and we will become Champions. Here's 3 tips to ensure we and Lilly, Sophie and South Shore Select step up our games and do the work of winners:

1. Focus on your effort, and not the results. The winning is in the effort!

Always, always, always give your best! No matter what. 

2. Stay positive all the time. 

It doesn’t matter what happens as long as you stay positive and be a leader.

3. Soccer and life are both team sports. Stick together no matter what. 

Even with mistakes and challenges, make sure you always stick together. Together We Win!