Kansas just became the latest victim of the Cinderella Story from this years NCAA tournament, and by that I mean low-ranked teams rising up and moving past their high-ranked opponents. Kansas was the heavily favored team to win it all this year, presumably on their way to the Final Four through every team they faced (even Obama picked them to win it all. He picked UNC a few years ago to win during his presidential run, and they did. Maybe it was coincidence??). Too bad no one told Northern Iowa, the 9th seed team ran through Kansas and pulled off a big upset.
Now the reason I am writing about this is to illustrate the point that nothing is ever determined before the actual event. We see this time and again in sports, which is why the game is played in the first place. We see all the pundits and “experts” making their picks as for who they feel should go on to win (coincidentally, many of these pros tend to get the answer right about 50% of the time, might as well flip a coin), and then the unthinkable happens as the underdog gets a healthy injection of heart and moxy and pulls off the upset. History is full of contests involving the little guy defeating the big guy, and while it doesn’t happen all the time, the biggest difference between the victors and victims is typically summed in in one word: “HEART.”
Ask yourself a simple question: “When was the last time I tried something that I almost knew I would be unsuccessful in, and to my suprise I managed to get the job done?” I’ll bet you have a few scenarios playing through your head right now, so remember these times, remember the underdog victories, and remember to play each and every game (or life situation) with more heart than anyone else. It doesn’t matter who’s better, or who’s stronger, but what matters is who wants it more.