Keep getting up

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xSth007n_vw&feature=youtu.be

Richie McCaw is the most successful rugby player of the professional era and probably the greatest player all time.

There are many players with greater physical abilities and greater ball skills, and it is difficult to pinpoint exactly what makes him great ... but it is to do with his character, strength of mind, and a deep burning desire inside to win no matter how badly or how many times he is injured, knocked down, or written off.

A farm boy from rural New Zealand, he avoids hype, refuses to be idolized, and has, amongst other things, turned down a knighthood.  A perfectionist, he pushes his body to the limit again and again.  A student of psychology, he understands that before he can lead his team, he must first understand and lead himself.  He never tires of learning how to extract the best from himself and others, and how to out-think and out-will his opponent when the pressure is on.  He channels his emotions, and doesn't allow them to control him - realizing that each time he steps onto the battlefield he must be willing to start again, no matter what happened before. 

Before every game, he sits quietly in his hotel room and reduces his thoughts to simple one liners with the same pencil in the same notebook, conditioning his mind over and over with the same messages: 

Start again

Get involved early

Link - run hard

Work rate - keep getting up

Clarity to boys

Trust me, back my instincts

Just play

In a combative and dynamically changing game that is very much like life in our unpredictable world, he has led his team to victory year after year, over and over and over again.

When considering the mindset required of a champion ... and what is required to navigate teams through uncertainty, adversity and doubt ... consider the mindset of Richie McCaw.