Six months down — six more to go.
It’s time to look at your status report and see where you are on path to accomplishing the goals you’ve set for this year.
Are you on track as planned or are you behind needing to make an adjustment to get back to a place where you can win?
That’s what halftime is about.
In a football game, halftime is not just a time to slow down and rest; it’s much more than that.
Sure, the athletes have a short time to remove their pads, replenish their hydration and catch their breath, but there’s a lot of work that goes on during that 15-minute break.
Halftime is an opportunity to spend few minutes to reflect on the happenings of the first two quarters, make adjustments to the team’s original game plan, and prepare the players for the second half of the game.
Coaches will look at the good, the bad and the ugly. They will see what worked and what didn’t all in an effort to make significant changes that will put their team in a position to win.
So the question is, what are you going to do at your halftime this year?
Are you going to just relax and catch your breath or are you going to take the time and make the effort to set things up so that you finish strong and put yourself in a position to win?
Here’s how you can use this halftime to build your game plan to win:
Reflect On The First Half – Look at what’s happened from January through June. Did you do the things you said you would and did that work out the way you hoped?
Did something unexpected happen that took you off course?
Reflecting on what has happened and seeing what worked and what didn’t will show you what you need to adjust or change in your game plan to guarantee your victory.
Look at your current situation and then ask yourself how you got here. Make a list of what worked and what didn’t, then plot out a new strategy that will take you from where you are and move you closer to your ultimate goal.
Make Adjustments – There are always adjustments to make. Even if you feel that things are going great and maybe even ahead of where you though you’d be, if you look hard enough you’ll find that there are things that can be done better.
Making adjustments is nerve racking for sure, but it’s something that has to be done. Knowing what has to happen and not doing anything about is a sure fire way to fail.
Look at the data collected from the first half and adjust or rewrite your game plan or create a whole new strategy if necessary. Add what needs to be added or do away with the things that aren’t working.
It can sometimes be hard to do, but adjustments need to be made.
Prepare For The Second Half – Gear up to move forward. You have your newly adjusted plan, but nothing will get accomplished if you don’t take action fast.
The important thing to remember is you don’t win or lose in the beginning. You can get off to a slow start and fall behind or you can come out in January like gang busters and by June be well on your way to success. Either way, things can always turn around and the end result could be dramatically different than you expected.
One of the most memorable football games I ever coached exemplifies this point perfectly.
Our opponent scored their first touchdown just two minutes into the game, putting us behind 7-0.
On our first offensive possession, our Quarterback threw an interception for a touchdown, and we were down 14-0 in the first four minutes.
The rest of the first half was more of the same and at halftime we found ourselves down 28-0. We were shocked to say the least. Everything we had planned to do went out the window and immediate changes were needed.
I gathered the coaching staff and we evaluated the first half and made the necessary adjustments to our failing game plan. Then we got the team together and worked on lifting the player’s spirits. As you can imagine, falling behind that fast can destroy a team’s confidence.
Once we got them back into the proper state of mind, we quickly went through the new plan. Just before halftime ended, I challenged the players like never before.
I told them to forget about the first half, the damage was done and nothing was going to change that. Instead, it was time to play the second half the best we could possibly play.
I challenged them to come out and perform with heart and pride and to play as hard as they could. I challenged them to show our opponent, the fans and most importantly, themselves that even though our start was dismal, we could come back and perform to the best of our abilities.
The second half was dramatically different. Our team got the ball first and scored on the opening kickoff.
Our defense came out playing better than they had all year. Not only did we hold our opponent scoreless in the second half, but their offense gained ZERO positive yards.
To make a long story short, our final touchdown was scored with 32 seconds left on the clock to win 32-28.
See, it’s never about how you start; it’s always about how you finish.
So use this week as your own halftime. Reflect on the first part of the year and then make adjustments to your plan as necessary and prepare yourself to finish the year strong and LIVE LIFE!