Naismith Hall of Fame basketball coach, George Raveling, was recognized this past weekend at Washington State University. Coach Rav secured his first head coaching job in Pullman in 1972. Coach took two teams to the NCAA tournament and finished with an overall record of 167-136, including seven winning seasons. He sent multiple players to the NBA and overseas to play professionally.

Coach also implemented the Cougar Cage Camp, welcoming in kindergarten through high school aged boys and girls. The camp, the most successful of its kind in the nation, attracted 600 youngsters from all 50 states as well as multiple countries. I was one of those kids that felt the impact about 40 years later.

I was born in 1992. In 2014, as a college student, I was impacted by the Cougar Cage Camp that Coach Rav ran in the 1970’s. My brother was looking for the board game Monopoly in my grandma’s basement after dinner. He found the Cougar Cage Camp notebook and handed it to me. He said “here, I bet you would like this.” I had been following coach on social media for a period of time at this point and quickly sent him a message on Twitter, notifying him of the find and my excitement to read through the notebook. Coach quickly replied and we exchanged contact info. I nervously gave him a call.

At this point Coach was still serving as International Director of Basketball at Nike. As an aspiring coach/athletic administrator, I was eager to learn. My opportunity was magnified on August 30^th of 2016. I was able to go to Los Angeles and meet with Coach.

Coach: “Who accompanied you to LA?”

Me: “My mom flew down with me.”

Coach: “Reward her by being the person she thinks you can be.”

I had just finished my first season coaching before moving to finish my master’s degree and for my wife to take a job. I was currently out of coaching and desperate to get back in. Coach and I had planned to discuss my personal growth strategy that Tuesday afternoon. As we began speaking, the conversation quickly turned back to coaching. He knew that was my love. He knew I was passionate about being a coach. He knew I felt like it was a calling. And he inspired me to do everything in my power to get back into coaching.

Here are some thought provoking and inspiring questions Coach Rav asked me. I encourage you to ask yourself the same questions.

• What’s most important to me right now?
• What do you really want to do with your life?
• What are you willing to sacrifice?
• How do I get above average?
• Who can help me see what I don’t see?
• What do I need to know? What don’t I know?
• How will I acquire unique knowledge to set myself apart?
• Who do I listen to?
• Where, when, and how do I want to get there?
• Is success material to me?

Here’s some advice Coach Rav shared. He taught me to continually pursue and acquire knowledge, particularly through books.

• Secure transferrable skills (communication, leadership, problem solving) – pick a skill and study everything you can about it for a year
• Create a 5-year plan and take smart risks to make it happen
• Make adjustments to your plan, just like you would if coaching a game
• Be simplistic and realistic
• Never take a job for the money, take it for the opportunity
• If you’re as good as you think you are, you’ll get paid
• Growth habits leads you to a destination
• Be committed and disciplined to your plan
• Once you commit, walk the walk
• Surround yourself with amazingly intelligent people
• Build good habits to grow – They’ll compete against your other interests
• Commit to growth and success – acquire and master skills
• Be authentic because you’ll be more relatable
• Sustain success, learn lessons, fortify experience
• Hold yourself accountable to the responsibility you have to be yourself
• Lead yourself – If you can’t lead yourself you can’t lead someone else
• Control what you can control, particularly how you think
• Take charge of your life and you’ll be more productive
• Validate yourself or you won’t be who you really are

I had decided to make Coach Rav a mentor of mine before I met him. When I was able to meet him face to face, he made the comment that he had mentors that he had never met in person. Coach inspired me that day like he’s inspired so many before me. My hope is you’ll leave feeling inspired as well.

“If there’s going to be a positive difference in my life, I have to initiate it.” Coach George Raveling

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