PROGRAM SUCCESS – JANUARY 2010
PAGE 39
The 2010 Winning Team
“The world is such that what appears to be an end is only a
new beginning.” As we close out another year, we begin a
new one with a fresh start and the ability to do better and be
better. This New Year may prove being better a tall order
with the many obstacles our economy presents. Yet it is still
our goal to make 2010 the beginning of the best of our life.
As a nation we just closed out another college football year
and a new National Champion was crowned. Hundreds of
teams from all across the nation competed but only one
received the crown and appeared to succeed. However,
success comes in many forms and to many people. In the
sport of college football, not only one, but many are winners
and many succeed.
The national title game presented two teams, to get to that
game was a success – both teams are winners. There were
over 32 bowl games of which over 64 different teams with
over 5,000 players from 64 different colleges participated
and each received from $3 million to $16 millions for
education - each of these teams succeeded and their colleges
are winners.
Of the 240,000 athletes who participated in college football
this year, all came out winners because of the various goals
they set and fulfilled. One’s goal was to set their college’s
rushing yards record. Another’s, their college’s passing yards
record. Yet another, the field goal points record. It was an
honor for one to adorn the college jersey as a team member
for the first time. Some times we are tempted to see only one
winner in life’s contests; however, all those who compete
find themselves winners in many ways including self
fulfillment and countless inspiration to others.
This New Year 2010 like all others embarks on us setting
new goals. To many, getting a job tops their list. Our nation’s
unemployment rate is 10% and in some areas as high as
15%. This does not seem like such an enormous problem
when analyzed by the simple number 15 out of 100 not
having a job and viewed by someone who does have a job.
However, when equated in actual life figures of 1 million
people, for whether we live in a major metropolitan city, a
large county, or even a large region of our state, there is 1
million people in your given area. Consequently, when your
unemployment rate is 15%, 150,000 people are unemployed
in your area, and that means 150,000 families are adversely
affected.
This number of 150,000 should bring the magnitude of the
problem into perspective, but just in case not, here is a
different perspective. If the average church membership is 300
people, then can you see the entire memberships of 500
churches without jobs? If you can place 10 churches to an
average community, that would means 50 communities in your
area would exist with not a single person employed. When we
see a small percentage number diminish a major calamity it is
easy for those of us to carry on with no empathy until the
problem knocks at our door…
Hello, it’s 2010 and 150,000 people in your area are without
jobs. This is a problem that affects us all, one way or another.
Therefore, when a person sets their goal for 2010 to get a job,
this is a goal we should all support. It takes a village because
it affects a village. This is not a “personal” goal; it is a
“person” goal. To make it through, we will all need to be more
humane and become members of a Support Team, which in
2010 is the Winning Team!
We can learn a lot from a football team. We can learn the value
of working together for a common goal. We can learn the hard
work of rudimental practice of drills, realizing that practice
does not make perfect, but perfect practice makes perfect, not
just doing, but doing it right. We can learn how supporting and
making another person strong can lead to your own personal
success and accomplishment. We can learn that it does not
matter how little you contribute nor how much another
contributes over you, when the team wins, everyone stands on
the mountaintop of success and receives the prize…
We Are All Winners!