Former Iowa State kicker Cole Netten put together a video of mean tweets sent to him throughout his seasons as a Cyclone, followed by the post-season awards he won. He captioned the video, “Y’all made me work harder. Thank you.”

Persevering is achieving something despite the obstacles that may have gotten in the way. Instead of focusing on the negative things people were saying about him, Netten persevered and graduated as the school’s best-ever kicker.

Y'all made me work harder. Thank you. pic.twitter.com/GhcijBwBm7

— Cole Netten (@swollnetten) January 11, 2017

Think of a “lollipop moment” in your life in which someone impacted the course of your life. Have you told that person how they impacted you? If not, write them, call them, or text them to let them know how they changed your life for the better. Watch the following Ted Talk on Everyday Leadership.

For more information on how to be a good leader, click here.

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Watch the video and then ask your kids how you can best support them at sporting events (or other activities).

Via www.ILoveToWatchYouPlay.com

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Via youtube.com/channel/UChxIKe_BnVdqu9NvXAz5oqw

Click here to learn more about character education.

Click here to learn more about character education.

The employees of a large company all received an email one morning.  It read,  “The person who has been hindering your growth in this company passed away. We invite you to attend a memorial this afternoon in the conference room.”  The employees were immediately sad for the loss of one of their colleagues.  As the day continued, they grew curious to know who had hindered their growth.

As employees arrived for the memorial, they noticed a large coffin at the end of the room.  Tension in the room grew as more and more employees arrived to see who was to blame for their professional problems.  One by one the employees approached the coffin and were left speechless when they looked inside.

The only things inside the coffin were a mirror and a note that read, “There is only one person capable of setting limits to your growth. It is you.”

We can either assume that our intelligence, character and abilities are largely unable to change or we can believe that our brains and abilities are just the starting point for our own growth.

Here’s more about having a growth mindset, from Carol Dweck.

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Mark and his family were visiting a local zoo.  As they passed the elephants, he suddenly stopped, confused by the fact that these huge animals were being held by only a small rope tied to their front leg.  Mark could see that the elephants could, at anytime, break away from their bonds.  But for some reason, they did not.

He saw a trainer nearby and asked why the elephants made no attempt to get away.  “When the elephants are very young and much smaller we use the same size rope to tie them,” the trainer said.  “At that age, it was enough to hold them. As they grew up, they were conditioned to believe they cannot get away.  They still believe the rope can hold them, so they never try to break free.”

Mark was amazed. These animals could break free from their bonds but because they believed they couldn’t, they didn’t try.  The elephants were stuck right where they were.

How many of us go through life believing that we cannot do something, only because we failed at it before?

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Your values are the building blocks of your character – they are what is important to you.  What does this video have to do with your values?

If you believe in kindness and compassion, this clip will probably evoke some emotion from you.  Not only can we sympathize with the young singer, we are also moved by the compassion and kindness of the gentleman who helped her (Mo Cheeks).   If we don’t value kindness, this video probably has little meaning to us.

What else does your reaction say about your values?

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