From the Founder, Brian Mazza 3/2
The Sun Rises and Short Memories Are the Winning Formula
Let me explain.
This weekend we were at the SUSA Soccer Tournament. The best clubs in the Tri State area. High level. Competitive. No excuses.
We did not have the weekend we wanted.
Two games. Both winnable. Both lost. And both because of mistakes.
After the second loss I gathered the lads. Eight years old and frustration on their faces.
I told them something simple.
Life is about mistakes. Especially sport. Especially football. We paid for ours this weekend. That is part of the deal.
But here is the great thing about life.
The sun always rises.
We get to come back tomorrow.
They looked at me the way eight year olds do when you say something that sounds philosophical but feels confusing. Perplexed. Slightly annoyed. Probably thinking about snacks.
Then today happened.
New day. New game. New energy.
They looked like completely different athletes. Light. Free. Aggressive. We won 4 to 2 against a quality side from Long Island.
It almost felt like they did not remember yesterday.
And truthfully, they probably did not.
On the way home Leo and I broke down the weekend. He looked at me and said,
So if I make the least amount of mistakes in life I will win.
That is where the lesson deepens.
I told him there are two parts to this.
First. You will make mistakes everywhere you go. You will make them often. That is not weakness. That is growth. As long as they are not catastrophic, they are tuition. You are paying to learn.
Second. The biggest mistake you can ever make is not showing up the next day ready to fight. Ready to compete. Ready to be a dawg in life.
Because the sun always rises.
It does not care if you lost yesterday.
It does not care if you embarrassed yourself.
It does not care if you missed the penalty.
It does not care if the deal fell through.
It rises anyway.
The only question is whether you do.
What separates people is not perfection. It is recovery. It is emotional discipline. It is the ability to have a short memory when it serves you and a long memory when it comes to lessons.
High performers do not eliminate mistakes.
They eliminate hesitation the next day.
This weekend I learned something again from a group of eight year olds. They feel the loss for about ten minutes. Then they move on. They show up. They play free.
No ego.
No baggage.
No narrative.
Just opportunity.
As I continue my own pursuit of greatness in business, in fatherhood, in leadership, I realize something powerful.
The formula is simple.
Make the mistake.
Extract the lesson.
Wake up.
Compete again.
The sun always rises.
