THE GAME…
This phenomena shows up in the game of football as it does in real life. I don’t know how many times I’ve corrected a player on something I know that he knows he knows what he was supposed to do. I have witnessed this numerous times when dealing with guys that would not go through their A’s.
• Alignment
• Assignment
• Adjustment
Players have their base assignments when a play is called in the huddle. The information gives them their base alignment, their basic assignment and based on what happens after the snap…an adjustment. When you see players running back and forth behind the line of scrimmage, most of the time they didn’t get the alignment. They were in the huddle but not really mentally present…Absent minded
Sometimes you see someone running Scott free to the QB. When that happens, you may see someone clap their hands or look back over their shoulder and holler “look out.” Assignments are being missed.
When you see a QB throwing a ball to a receiver that is not where he was supposed to be, the adjustment may have been missed by him or the QB.
This is very elementary to say but, either one of these three being missed is a degree of absent minded playing of the game. Within the game they are called MA’s… Missed assignments. Miss any part of the A’s and miss enough of them then games are loss.
It leads to a stressful and harmful football existence.
LIFE
Now in real life. Not that the life of the player is not real. How does this play out?
How many times a day is this going to happen? I walk out of the door and dang it… I have to go back into the house to retrieve my phone. How about this one… There is a special key I need to get into the gate. I need to keep this with me at all times. I’m about to turn into the place where I have to swipe. I reach down to the ash tray to get it so I can proceed and SHIGGADDEE! The key is not there. So I gotta go through a process of where was it the last time I had it. Did I use it yesterday to get into the gate? Did I take it out if the car to get into the door as well? Shoot!!! How much time have I lost or will I lose each day with this absent minded living.
Living absent a mind is fricking nerve racking. The pressure starts to build when you have misplaced your keys, wallet or purse. The nerves start to get a little rattled until… until… Whew! There it is. I knew I put it there.
After I find what I was looking for, it’s no telling how much other productive things I could have been doing as opposed to losing the time and getting rattled. The time is not the only thing I lose with this type of living. As you know, time is money. I feel some life force is drained as well.
So what is the cause of this type of living? Is it due to the concussions I suffered while playing the game. Is it the natural aging process or can it be that I have not trained the mind to do its work?
There is no telling how much life is being taken out of me due to the poison that is being released when the nerves get frayed. I can feel the heart pumping when I get upset with myself and then…well the negative talk that I have with myself. The kickin my own ass mentality.
How about this. Let’s get a bit more energetic about our moments. Walk in a new light so we keep the spirits up. There has to be a willingness to exercise the mind, so as to build the mental muscle…Focus takes effort as much as absent mindedness does. But, it is a preemptive strike and puts us in a better frame of mind. It keeps us away from the energy that can do us harm.
Focusing, breathing and as much as you can, stay in the balance. This will help with staying present when the inevitable absent minded self shows up, and it will, help you minimize the damage that the system can do to itself. Hmmmm… SHIGGADDEE… I just misplaced my name tag. I swear it was just in my hand… Now it’s nowhere to be found… Well, it will show up or I’ll have to foot another… Time and money the absent minded way.
Be Blessed
