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The Right Call
Book

The Right Call

What Sports Teach Us About Work and Life

Sally Jenkins
Gallery Books, 2023
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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Overview
  • Concrete Examples
  • Engaging

Recommendation

Pulitzer Prize finalist and sportswriter Sally Jenkins has observed and written about hundreds of elite athletes and coaches during her more than three decades as a feature writer and columnist for The Washington Post. She’s covered Olympic Games, Super Bowls and college basketball Final Four tournaments. In this enjoyable and astute study, Jenkins reveals the qualities and characteristics that define greatness, offering insights that are applicable to leaders in all fields. She finds that natural ability is only a small part of the formula that enables top performers and their coaches to attain the highest levels of excellence.

Summary

Top athletes and coaches’ success derives from seven factors.

Top performers leave little to chance. Regardless of their physical gifts or mental acuity, winning athletes and coaches share certain qualities – among them, a commitment to thorough preparation and perseverance in the face of failure. The best athletes and coaches incorporate seven crucial elements in their routine. They are:

“Conditioning” – Athletic high achievers make a habit of pushing their physical limits.

American swimmer Michael Phelps rarely took a day off in two decades of training. Whether it was a Sunday, his birthday or Christmas, Phelps swam lap after lap in his unyielding pursuit of excellence. Phelps’ tireless work ethic elevated him above his competition.

Swimmer Mark Spitz set a record by winning seven gold medals at the 1972 Munich Games. At the 2008 Beijing Olympics, Phelps set out to win an unprecedented eight gold medals. To achieve his goal, Phelps would have to race 17 times in nine days, counting elimination heats and finals. It was a Herculean task, considering the grueling nature of swimming and the elite competitors...

About the Author

Pulitzer Prize finalist Sally Jenkins, is a Washington Post columnist and the first woman inducted into the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Hall of Fame.

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