“If it’s important to you, you will find a way. If it’s not, you will find an excuse.”
“While you are thinking about doing it, you are getting passed by someone else who is doing it.”
There are so many great quotes about motivation, and these are two of our favorites. Everyone needs motivation and inspiration in life, whether it’s for school, work and of course training to become a better hockey player. While sayings and quotes can help keep you going during times when you aren’t really in the mood to shoot pucks, stickhandle or go for a run, it takes a deeper, burning desire to become successful.
I’ve talked to so many parents who ask the same question about how to get their child to ‘want it’ more. They wonder why their kids are staring at their phones on the couch rather than at the shooting tarp in the garage. They wonder how their kids are going to get better over the summer and make the team next year. They wonder where the motivation is.
I can tell you from years of training players and having played professional hockey that the true motivation has to come from within. Motivation just isn’t something that can be taught. Motivation is something that each and every player has to learn on their own, and through dedication and discipline, condition their habits and behaviors in a way that will lead them to the success they desire.
Parents can do their part by providing the tools that are necessary to train, but demanding that players spend a certain amount of time doing exercises can actually have a negative effect. Rather than insisting that your son or daughter shoot 100 pucks every day, simply make sure the pucks are in the garage or basement ready to be used. Rather than ‘making’ a player stickhandle for 15 minutes, provide a fun and motivating area for them to use.
The old saying that you can lead a horse to water but can’t make it drink is true in hockey training as well. The best motivation is that which comes from within. And for the players that want it the most, that burning desire will create motivation and the rest will take care of itself. Which reminds me of another great quote: “If it’s going to be, it’s up to me.”
Remember, work hard and dream bigger than everyone else!
