My son Jordan just finished his second year of wrestling. As I watched him struggle to learn the sport, I couldn’t help but see the analogies to our business. When a person is learning something new it is important for them to maintain two contrasting thoughts at the same time.

The first thought is that they are not yet competent at this skill, and the second thought is that they will one day be one of the best. At first you may think, “How can you say you are not competent? Isn’t that a negative thought?” I say it is not negative to state the facts as they are, as long as you are willing to work to change the facts. In his first year of wrestling, Jordan was a poor to at best average wrestler, but we always believed that with enough dedication and practice he would learn to become good and then great! Jordan completed his second year with enough first place medals to advance to the “open” level tournaments. The “open” level is for the more advanced wrestlers. This article is a quick look at the process of the success of Jordan Woodward’s wrestling through the eyes of a proud father.