#99: NOT HERE TO FINISH SECOND

~5 min

HUMILITY isn’t a feeling. It is a posture.

TRUST follows vulnerability, transparency, and humility.

A Challenge: Think of one person you don’t trust. How many of those qualities do they have?

Exactly.

VICE PRESIDENT J.D. VANCE recently published Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith, which I’m halfway through. I haven’t studied Vance extensively, but if he’s going to be a consequential presidential candidate in the years ahead, I believe it’s my responsibility as a citizen to understand him beyond headlines and sound bites.

One thing that has stood out is the degree of vulnerability, transparency, and humility in his writing. Vance openly describes his journey from believer to atheist and back again. He is vulnerable in recounting periods of disdain toward his family and uneducated Americans. He talks about becoming intoxicated with moving up in social status and the singular pursuit of career prestige. He is transparent about his journey and is humble enough to acknowledge when he believes he was wrong or placed value in the wrong things.

Cynically (which is my predisposition toward politicians), I picked up the book expecting political messaging. Instead, I’ve been surprised to encounter something more valuable: an honest account of a person’s intellectual and spiritual evolution. Or, at least, he is very convincing.

Does that mean I’m now a supporter of Vance for President? Not necessarily as I’m still learning.

What it does mean is that I’m trying to do what I believe thoughtful citizens should all do: learn about people on my terms before deciding what to think about them on someone else’s.

FROM MY ACQUAINTANCE JOHN, the less said about Tuesday’s impressive primary victories by the Progressives, notably in New York, the better. Their appeal may work in the cities (as it has in New York, Washington, D.C., Seattle and Los Angeles), but it is not going to carry the Democrats to electoral victory nationally in 2028. If anything, it is a gift to the Republicans.

- A feel-good story -

MY FRIEND REGGIE WILLITS is the Associate Head Coach for the University of Oklahoma Sooners baseball team. Earlier this week, OU won its third national championship in a stunning run through Omaha after finishing 11th in the SEC (11th!!!).

This interview with Reggie is fantastic and contains today’s NTL headline. He’s a big-time coach and a core contributor to the Sooners’ success.

So besides being a Sooner fan and celebrating a national championship, why am I writing about Reggie?

Because I’m inspired by a decision he made as a father and a coach - something I can relate to.

In 2021, Reggie faced a fork in the road. He was the first base coach for the New York Yankees—a dream job in baseball. At the same time, his two sons were in high school and excelling on the field.

A few years earlier, my son played 11U baseball with Reggie’s youngest son, Eli. During that season, Reggie told me something I’ve never forgotten:

“You’ve seen Eli play more baseball games than I have.”

Think about that.

Reggie made a choice. He left one of the most prestigious jobs in baseball and returned home to Oklahoma in the prime of his career to take a lesser position. Since then, OU has been to two College World Series and now has a national championship.

But that’s not the most impressive part of the story.

Reggie figured out something early that many successful people learn too late: there is a difference between climbing the ladder and climbing the right ladder.

The world will always celebrate the championships, promotions, and titles. But the people who matter most in our lives rarely care about those things. They just want us there.Something to Think About: Where can you get congruence between what you say is important and how you actually spend your time?

PostScript: In the last year, Reggie’s younger son Eli became the number-one pick in the MLB draft. His older son, Jaxon, was named MOP of the College World Series. They live in Fort. Cobb, Oklahoma (pop. 518).

A THEORY I’M TESTING:

If you find this statement to be true for the organization where you work, volunteer, serve, or attend school, I’d be interested to learn your perspective.

“The world is moving faster than leaders of organizations can think, adapt, and execute.”

My take is that many leaders recognize this challenge, but few have found a reliable or strategically aligned way to address it.

TWO QUOTES WORTH READING:

“The speed of trust is a function of two things: character and competence.”
— Stephen R. Covey

“The strongest love is the love that can demonstrate its fragility.”
— Paulo Coelho

@renzistone33 on X, LinkedIn & Substack