From Mic Toss to Trailblazing—Lessons from the Court

Let me set the scene: I was honored to emcee a celebration marking 50 years of Title IX in women’s sports at my wife’s high school. Now, public speaking? I’ve done my share. But coordinating a room full of athletes who can still outrun me, despite my shiny new knee? That’s a different ball game.

Between jokes, microphone mishaps (yes, it’s "mic drop," not "mic toss," in case anyone else was wondering), and hearing the stories of trailblazing coaches, I learned a few things. The most surprising? My wife’s coach didn’t start out wanting to coach basketball—she thought she was there to teach swimming! Imagine that curveball.

The Story:

One of the true highlights of the weekend was staying with my wife’s former coach—a pioneering woman who thought her career would involve swim lanes and goggles, not basketball courts and conditioning drills. Fresh out of college, she was handed a basketball and told, “Here, figure this out.” What followed were stories of double-booked gyms, no athletic trainers (YouTube wasn’t around to help her self-train!), and a level of resourcefulness that makes "MacGyver" look like an amateur.

They made it work. The obstacles they faced—no gym access, limited experience—were handled with perseverance, grit, and a focus on the fundamentals: conditioning and simple, effective strategies. While I joked about my own "struggles" as an emcee, it paled in comparison to the challenges they overcame.

By the end of the weekend, after hearing my wife’s stories of drills that would have left most of us gasping for breath, I was reminded of something bigger: Trailblazers rarely realize they’re making history in the moment. They’re too busy figuring out how to solve the next problem.

The Takeaway:

Here’s the kicker: What started as basketball lessons turned into life lessons. These coaches didn’t just teach how to run plays—they taught perseverance, resilience, and teamwork. My wife’s coach told her to "stop eating sandwiches in the lane" (it turns out, moving is important in basketball!), but those words echoed years later in boardrooms and family dynamics.

The challenges we face on the court often prepare us for bigger ones in life, even if we don’t realize it at the time. Sometimes, we’re just too busy figuring things out—whether it’s a mic toss or a half-court press.

So, the next time someone tells you to give 110%, don’t worry about the math. Remember, it’s the perseverance, the teamwork, and the laughs that get us through.

Here’s to all the coaches who led without playbooks and all the players who ran without precedent. And here’s to passing the torch—or the mic—just a little better than I did that day.

Looking for an emcee or keynote speaker who can bring storytelling and humor to your event? Feel free to reach out to me—I’d be thrilled to make your next event memorable with a story or two and maybe even a mic drop!"