Take Nothing For Granted
One Idea
A violinist inside a D.C. Metro stop, wearing a ball cap and baggy clothes, stands and plays his heart out for an hour–mostly Bach. He garners $35 in tips, while most pedestrians rushing by don’t seem to notice him.
If only they’d stopped to listen. The performer is acclaimed violinist Joshua Bell, one of the best in the world. A grammy winner–who’s concerts regularly sellout performance halls the world over–Bell’s plays beautifully on a $3.5 million violin, and no one cares.
This stunt was a 2007 collaboration with the Washington Post highlighting a psychological phenomenon called inattentional blindness.
Inattentional blindness, also known as perceptual blindness, is failing to notice fully visible, but unexpected realities because attention was engaged on other tasks, events, or objects.
Inattentional blindness isn’t a bad thing; it’s a necessary byproduct of focused attention. That said, there are some things we best not allow ourselves to be blind to or ignore. Doing so too easily leads to taking things for granted.
Two Quotes
“We often take for granted the very things that deserve our gratitude.” - Cynthia Ozick
“Stopping at third adds no more value to the score than striking out. It doesn’t matter how well you start if you fail to finish.” - Billy Sunday
(More Than) Three Takeaways
1. Of the 365 days in a calendar year, only 13 will we get to compete against another FBS opponent in an actual game.
2. There are nearly 17,000 amateur football programs in the US. Most of these are youth, middle, and high school teams. Only 130 are FBS collegiate programs; that’s less than 1%.
3. Oh, and you get to be a part of one of these FBS programs. You. Whether coach, support staff, or student-athlete, this unique opportunity is afforded to you.
4. We’ve likely less than one month–give or take a few days–as the 2019 California Golden Bear football team. All the people, the relationships, the work, the impact we’ve had on one another, the investment we’ve made in this effort together–there’s only about a month left.
5. In a long journey, it’s easy to take the last few miles for granted. But if the journey’s a competition, then the last few miles are when we’re supposed to turn it up–to sprint through the finish line. Leave nothing in the tank, hold nothing back, and seize this day.
6. The last chapter, the final scene, and the closing argument. The bottom of the ninth, the fourth quarter, and the final play. I don’t have to say anything more: these are the moments we give it our all. This is where everything we’ve been working for comes together and fulfills its purpose.
