Hail Mary In Heels - Coach Mikki

Staying In Your Comfort Zone is Killing Your Success - S1E2

• Coach Mikki • Season 1 • Episode 2

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We share how a crowded room, a dropped notebook, and a championship ring turned fear into focus. The story shows why stepping out of your comfort zone helps you and the people who need your example.

• building confidence through action and results
• the parents’ skepticism turning into support
• lessons from first head coach responsibilities
• navigating a male-dominated room with composure
• using earned wins as proof you belong
• coaching as teaching, mentorship and culture
• how courage in you sparks courage in others
• starting strong, finishing strong, owning the middle

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Okay, bring it in. Bring it in. Listen up. Listen up. Hey, I'm so glad you're here with me. I'm Coach Mickey and welcome to my huddle. And if this is your first time stepping into my huddle, I'm glad that you're here and welcome to part of my team. And uh for those of you that are part of the community, thank you so much. And if you're not part of my community yet, please click on the link down below and uh join our community of people that are lifting each other up, supporting each other. And we are a team of incredible players that are going to help you succeed in your business and in life and anything else that you're trying to accomplish. So today I want to talk about getting out of your comfort zone. And getting out of my comfort zone is something I seem to have to do each and every year, uh, whether it's stepping onto a new field, dealing with a new team, uh, regardless of where I am or what I'm doing, I always have to feel as though I'm stepping out of my comfort zone. Because while I might have a group of people I've worked with in the past, there's always the newcomers or the new coaches that are looking at me and judging and wondering, is she gonna really bring she gonna bring to the field what we need for these players? Matter of fact, this past season, um, I got introduced as the D-line coach, and it was with our parents meet and greet. And it wasn't said to me then, but it's it was said to me now that we're at the end of the year and I want to share the story because I thought this is so perfect. So a group of dads had seen me, and when they introduced me as the D-line coach, they looked at each other, they said, during that time frame, and they said, You've got to be kidding. And now they are the parents that are writing me letters of recommendation because how much I've helped their kids excel and move on and how they have grown into incredible players. So I'm stepping out of my comfort zone, yes, I do have to prove myself, but once you do, oh man, the reward is just amazing. So I want to talk to you about getting out of your comfort zone because this is never an easy thing to do. Getting out of your comfort zone, you're always going to have the doubt, the fear, uh, the voices that are telling you you're not good enough, you're not prepared, uh, this is not the right time. Um, and what or you haven't done this before, what are you thinking? And and if this is something you love and you're passionate about, then the only way to accomplish it is to get out of your comfort zone. So I want to share a story with you that happened to me. So nine years ago, uh it was yeah, about nine years ago, uh, well, ten years ago, I got my first position as a head coach, and I absolutely loved it. And it was one of the things that really helped me excel not only as a coach, but to really understand that coaching is just not stepping on a field with X's and O's. It's really getting to know your players, and you're really a teacher, and you're a life coach, and you're a mentor, and you've got responsibility to these kids besides just teaching them the game. Well, during this time frame in that season that I went, uh, you have to go to mandatory meetings. And and I'm okay with that, and you have to have certain certifications, and I've always accomplished those and so on and so forth, all the way through you know, uh high school. You have more than you have to do, but that's okay, it's a different story. So I had to go to another mandatory meeting. Now, the first year I was part of a program that had maybe 50 guys that were there, and it was it was uncomfortable. But when I got there, I just went in, I sat in the back, I listened to what they did, gave my certifications, took my notes, got out. No one even noticed I was there. They didn't notice I was there, they didn't even notice I was even part of the program until my team started winning, and then I became noticeable. So the second year I was part of a program, actually, it was Pop Warner, and I went on to uh be a head coach for them, and again I had to go to another mandatory meeting, and I thought, okay, no biggie, I'll get in there, do the same thing I did, I don't have to worry about it. Well, when I got there, I got in, and as I looked around, it was just a sea of male coaches, men coach, they were just all men. I was the only female in there, I was the only woman. And I scanned, I thought, okay, I'll just sit in the back. But as I looked, I went, oh my gosh, there's no seats in the back. And I'm like, I'm where am I gonna go? How am I gonna do this? And I'm thinking, I could just feel the feel the wave of fear come over me. I could feel the doubt, like, I don't need to be here. What am I doing? This is crazy. Look at all these guys, some were NFL players. So I stood there in the back and I went, okay, and I started to breathe heavy, and I was like, I did what anybody else would do. I shot out the back and went to the ladies' room. And I splashed water on my face. And I thought, oh my gosh, I'm like, oh wait, Mick, you've got this, you've got this, you've done this before. You you you know what you're doing, you know, you've got to go in there. You have no choice if you're gonna be a head coach, you have to go. And I'm like, okay, all right, oh my god, this, I got this, I got this. So I got to the doorway again, and now the room's even more crowded. And let me tell you, there was probably close to 300 people in this room. I mean, this was not a small crowd, this was like 300 people. So I start walking in, I could feel the eyes on me. I could feel them. And I'm just I could feel my body tense up and my shoulders were up. And I felt like, you know, like when you feel uncomfortable and you feel like you're walking weird because you feel like everybody's looking at you. That's how I felt. Or you they feel like they're looking at you. I felt like I didn't even know how to walk. So I kept going and I kept going and I'm looking up and down the aisles and I'm looking and I'm looking, and I look, oh, the first set of seats that I've seen were at the second row from the front. So I had to keep going. So I get up there and I look over to the guys that are sitting there. And of course, it wasn't on the end, it was in the middle of the row. And I was like, are that those seats taken? Is that seat taken? And they were like, they looked at me and just hand gestured. Didn't say anything, just hand gestured. Of course, they didn't get up, so I had to climb over them to get to the middle seat. I get to the middle seat, I'm like, all right, I'm here, I'm good. I set down my phone and my notebook, I put it on my lap. And as soon as I put it on my lap, it slid off right onto the floor. And I thought, oh, why? Why? It's like, really? So I'm like, huh. So I I I looked down, I start, I had to bend down, and here I am. I'm squished between two big guys, and they must have been NFL players because they were huge. And I I mean, I was like this, and of course, you just got regular chairs. This wasn't like, you know, extraordinary seating. This was like chairs right up against each other to fit as many people in this room that the fire marshal allowed them to have. Um so I was like, all right, so I bend down to pick up my my notebook and my phone. And I'm thinking, oh my gosh, this is just crazy. This is not good. But as I reach down, I look at my hand and I look down and I went, wait a minute. I got something these guys don't have. Or I would say 99% of them don't have. I don't know about everybody, but I know I've got something that a lot of them have maybe coached for years and never got. And as I started to sit up, I grabbed my stuff, and I sat up a little straighter, took a deep breath, and I looked down to my right. Down to my left. And I scanned all of their hands as I looked. And I thought, I've got something none of these guys have. I have a championship ring, I have a Super Bowl ring, I have got a league championship, a division championship, and a Super Bowl that I won. And I did it with 17 guys, my first year as a head coach. And that's why you always see me wear this ring. Because this was from my SOC Patriots, and when we won, I made sure all my guys got a Super Bowl ring. And that is the most proud moment I've ever had in football. Matter of fact, it's one of my most proud moments I've ever really experienced with a group of people, and and just see so many songs. A lot of them uh went on to play football, and a lot of them went on to do other things. But I know that what I did with these guys was something that a lot of people thrive for and want to do and want to accomplish. And a lot of times they don't get it, they don't make it, and very few do. So that moment made me realize I'm not better than everybody, but I'm sure I should be here, and I deserve to be here. And I sure as hell was proud of myself because I knew what I was doing and I felt good about it, and I knew what I bring to the table. I know what I bring to the table. I'm actually I know I should say I know what I bring to the field, is what everybody is looking for in that coach. But I would never have accomplished this if I'd stayed in my comfort zone. I never would have won my Super Bowl, I never would have changed these kids' lives. I never would have had an opportunity to keep helping the people I'm helping and working with them and getting them to the next level. Some of them gone on to college to play. And these were all people that I had an opportunity to be part of their lives and help them to achieve what they've done, even just as one small piece of their foundation. So stepping out of your comfort zone is not about you, it's about them. Because when you step out of your comfort zone, you give other people the courage to do that. You give insight to people that need it. Okay, and only you can bring that. Only you can do it, only you can say it, only you can teach it, only you, you have the ability to do everything you want on the other side of your comfort zone. Because there's people there waiting. There's people there waiting that don't have the courage to do the do it themselves. And when they see someone like you do it, they go, Well, wait a minute, that's pretty aggressive, that's pretty extraordinary. If they can do it, then my gosh, I could certainly do this or I could certainly start that. And I can't tell you how many times I've had people come up to me and say, I can't believe you're a you're a female football coach for tackle football at high school, you know, and and working with college-level guys. You know, how did you do it? And I always tell them, because I wanted to. So get out there, do you live your passion, get out of your comfort zone, and start strong and finish strong and dominate everything in between. I'm Coach Mickey. Let's go.