In 1974, Digger Phelps, the Notre Dame basketball coach, was preparing his team to meet the perennial national champion UCLA Bruins in a basketball game. UCLA was the overwhelming favorite. The gamblers had "taken the game off the boards" because everyone knew Notre Dame did not have a chance. Everybody, that is, except Digger Phelps and his team.

He prepared them in an unusual way. On Monday after practice, he had his team go to the ends of the courts and cut down the nets. If you know anything about basketball, you know that the only time that action is taken is when there's been a very significant game involving the winning of a championship or a victory over a heated rival. On Tuesday, at the end of the practice session, they went down to the ends of the courts and cut down the nets. They repeated that action on Wednesday, and by Thursday, those players had gotten to be downright good at cutting down the nets. By Friday, the nets were brought down with true professionalism. Saturday afternoon, when the game was over and UCLA had gone down in defeat, the Notre Dame players cut down the nets with even more passion. They had accomplished their objective.

Obviously, I'm not going to hint even mildly that cutting down the nets was the reason they won the game, but consider this: They were able to cut down the nets because all week long, they had planned to win. All week long, they had prepared with exciting, hard-working practices to win. All week long, as they cut down the nets, it was being more and more firmly established in their minds that yes, they really were going to win, and this is what would happen when they did. That's sound preparation.

Whatever your objectives in life, plan to win and prepare to win, and then you can expect to win — which means I really will see you at the top!

The Issue Is Character

What you do off the job ultimately plays a major role in how far you go on the job. Every athlete, singer, dancer, entertainer, attorney, physician, speaker and professor clearly understands this fact of life. When everyone, regardless of occupation, understands this basic fact, we will make more progress in our personal, family and professional lives.

Having been in the personal growth, development and training business virtually all of my adult life, I'm convinced that most training is effective and will increase productivity at least temporarily. However in addition to improving performance between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m., what those individuals do between 5 p.m. and 8 a.m. will determine their long-term success. A good night's sleep versus staying up all night on a drinking spree will produce different results the next day. Extend it over a long period of time, and it will produce dramatically different results in the careers of those individuals. I frequently point out that the few minutes people spend the night before the day before a vacation, planning their work for the next day, substantially increases their productivity. Obviously, what they did off the job (planning the next day) is what I'm referring to.

Over the long haul, however, it really does become a question of character. Do you accept responsibility for your own performance? Are you studying, reading, learning and listening for new ideas and information that will ensure your employability for the future? Do you accept responsibility for your performance on the job?

On the other end of the scale, if planning and preparing improves your performance on the job, doesn't it make sense that if you plan your family, exercise, recreation and vacation time that you will have better family relationships, which, incidentally, have a direct bearing on your job performance? In short, all of life works together. Develop your character by developing your knowledge and skills, and I definitely will see you at the top!

To find out more about Zig Ziglar and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com. Subscribe to Zig Ziglar's free e-mail newsletter through [email protected].