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About this blog
In recent years, I’ve noticed many of the principles I’m learning for success in one domain or another also come up in skateboarding. Perhaps this is because skateboarding is a central part of my life and I’m inclined to connect everything back to it. Or, perhaps, it is because skateboarding is unique as a sport Continue reading
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Rodney Mullen, Tony Hawk, and Andy Anderson: Making good choices, avoiding bad ones, and the right motivations.
Tony Hawk and Jason Ellis sit down with Andy Anderson and Rodney Mullen and ask them “What it Takes to Become a Great Skateboarder.” Andy kicks things off. Andy Anderson: “Feed the good wolf.” I think this comes from a Native American fable that each of us has two wolves–a good wolf and a bad Continue reading
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Lessons from Skateboarding: Andrew Reynolds (The Boss) on Risk, Discipline, Role Models, and Fitness.
On Hawk vs. Wolf Episode 100, Andrew Reynolds (a.k.a. The Boss) discusses his experiences managing a team, approaches to staying in shape, skaters that influenced him, and how he thinks about his career with Tony Hawk and Jason Ellis. Andrew’s experiences are rich with insights about choosing role models, risk management, discipline, and what it Continue reading
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It’s fun because it’s hard.
A friend of mine recently described a realization he had about skateboarding. The feeling he gets from learning a new trick or landing a difficult one is probably the same one that Tony Hawk experienced when he landed the first 900 (while admitting that his trick was by no measure equal in difficulty or significance Continue reading
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Skateboarding by the numbers
How knowing the odds can improve your skateboarding. Composing lines–a combination of tricks in sequence–is an essential part of skateboarding. The ability to put together lines that flow and make it looks effortless is a skill all it’s own that not every skateboarder learns how to do well. While the putting together a line that Continue reading
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Get better by avoiding avoidable mistakes.
Getting better isn’t only about doing the right things. We must also avoid doing the wrong things–the things that undermine our progress or waste our finite resources on things that are not important. We get caught up in trying to do more, and we fail to ask, “what am I doing that is holding me Continue reading
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Lessons from Skateboarding: Ryan Sheckler on Failure, Perseverance, and the Importance of Finding Community.
On Hawk vs. Wolf Episode 113, Ryan Sheckler discusses his experiences growing up in skateboarding and overcoming massive challenges on and off the board with Tony Hawk and Jason Ellis. Ryan’s experiences are rich with insights about managing failure, the courage to persevere, and the importance of building a community. Check out the full episode Continue reading
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What looks easy is merely the result of consistent focus.
I met a young skateboarder who really impressed me with the technical difficulty his tricks and the consistency with which he executed those tricks. When I asked when he’d learned those tricks, and if he’d learned them recently, his answer surprised me. “I’ve been doing these tricks since I was 12 years old.” He had Continue reading
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Not all time in life is equal.
This is especially true in skateboarding. The time in your teens and 20’s are prime years with fewer responsibilities and better health (a gift of youth), making this time in life unlike any other that follows when it comes to skateboarding opportunities. Aging, family life, and work responsibilities become increasingly significant barriers to investing time Continue reading
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Avoid comparison with anyone except yourself.
No matter how long you’ve been skateboarding or how good you become, there will inevitably be someone better than you. Even if for a point in time you can become the best, eventually someone better will come along. We all must contend with this. So, how do you deal with the self-inflicted judgment and criticism Continue reading
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Become better on purpose.
Unlike traditional sports and athletics that are highly systematized, skateboarding lacks a structure that a beginner (or even advanced) skateboarder can follow to consistently improve. So, I’d like to introduce another concept to skateboarding as a component of a framework for getting better faster. Objectives and Key Results. (For more on this, see What Matters) Continue reading
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the Practical Skateboarder 