CALIFORNIA AUTOMOTIVE WHOLESALERS ASSOCIATION CONVENTION
DOUBLETREE RESORT, PALM SPRINGS, CA. NOVEMBER 1991

In Olympic gymnastics, routines are ranked from A to E levels of skill. They must include required skills. But that will only get you a 9.4 on a scale of 10. A perfect routine without risk, originality, and virtuosity will only get you a 9.4. Risk, originality, and virtuosity are worth .2 points each. When you have all the elements, you can get a 10, perfection.

You’ll note risk was one of the elements. You have to take chances. There’s always someone else out there who will take chances. They might fall. But if they make it, they’ll beat you.

Never take a skill for granted. Really focus on the things you need to work on to make it better.

Little, extra efforts make a huge difference — if you do them every day.

You win at the Olympics by fractions. You can win by working a tiny bit harder or a tiny bit smarter.

Originality. Do something new someone else has never done before. The key to originality: stop watching the other guy. Know where the trends are but don’t pattern yourself after someone else. Stop playing catch-up. Stop doing things that other people are doing and start doing things that are unique.

It takes patience to develop and diligence to work on it every day.

Sometimes we trip and fall over good ideas. You need to know when to stop and pick them up and use them.

Virtuosity. Skills that everyone could do but you do it better. You’re extending more, faster. You approach perfection. The key to perfection: repetition, repetition, repetition. It’s not fun. It’s really boring. Doing something the thousandth time with the same focus and attention as the first time. It’s easier when you’re having fun, when you’re enjoying what you’re doing, getting instant results. But the best practice when it’s inconvenient, when you don’t feel like it, when the results aren’t there.

How we feel is irrelevant. You’ve got to do it.

Say what if? In practice, imagine what if. What if you’re playing for the world championship? Visualize the situation. It taught us to focus when we needed it.

Place importance on what you’re doing. Don’t say it’s at the end of the day of a long day of practice so it doesn’t matter.