The recent Tim Tebow craze has been nothing short of remarkable. The second year quarterback out of the University of Florida has led his Denver Broncos team to seven wins in his eight games as a starter this year. He has done it in dramatic fashion, posting fourth quarter comeback wins in an incredible six of those games. One who doesn’t know football would assume that his statistics would need to be at least above average to win so many games in a short period of time, but that simply is not the case. He ranks dead last (32nd) in the NFL in the categories of completion percentage and yards per game. He is only completing 48.5 percent of his passes and averages a mere 117 yards per game. So what is it that Tim Tebow has that makes him such a winner? In this article, I am going to tell you a few of the traits Tim Tebow possesses that have helped him become such a great winner.
1. Drive to Succeed
Tim Tebow always has had an innate drive to succeed. His mindset is to live every day to the fullest and do as much as he possibly can with his time. Whether it is through football or in other areas of life, Tebow has always wanted to be the best he can be and gives all of his effort in his endeavors. In football specifically, nobody practices and plays harder than Tebow. Practice is just as important as the games themselves, since what you do in practice prepares you to do your best in games. Tebow realizes this and takes it to heart. Tebow once said “I don’t believe it’s the will to win. It’s the will to prepare. If you wake up early, stay late, grind, games will come easy to you.”
2. Confidence
Confidence is another trait that Tim Tebow possesses that enables him to do seemingly miraculous things. Even though he is evidently not nearly as talented as many other NFL starting quarterbacks, he always keeps his head high and truly believes that he is going to do good things on the football field and win. Even in his interviews, when he is often criticized for not having great statistics, he doesn’t ever let his critics get to him. This confidence on and off the field is contagious; it instills a sense of confidence in his teammates and encourages them to also give everything they have each day in practice and on game days.
3. Leadership Qualities
Tebow’s leadership qualities are crucial to his success as well. For a moment let’s go back to his Florida days. After being upset by Ole Miss in 2008, Tim Tebow gave one of the most memorable post-game speeches in not only college football history, but in sports history. Now often referred to as “The Promise,” Tim Tebow came out and promised the nation that nobody would practice and play as hard as he would for the rest of the season. He didn’t even field questions from the press, he just gave his 45 second speech and left the podium. This is a perfect example of how Tim Tebow is a great leader. This speech instilled a sense of pride in Tim Tebow’s teammates and eventually the team went on to win its third ever National Championship. A good leader takes things into his own hands while getting others to buy into what he is saying and follow him, and that is exactly what Tim Tebow has shown he can do. Even while highly doubted and criticized in the NFL, Tebow continues to make passionate pre-game speeches that rally his teammates around him and make them play their hearts out. His teammates recognize his innate drive to succeed and win, contagious confidence, and extraordinary leadership capabilities, and they give it their all for him.
As an athlete, no matter what level, no matter how skilled you are, I would strongly encourage you to try to match your drive to succeed, confidence, and leadership qualities to Tim Tebow’s. It is clear that if you can do this successfully, the sky is the limit as to what you can accomplish.
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