Leadership Tips & Training Got Attitude? Winning or Whining?

1 Corinthians 9:24
Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize.

Everyone has seen the billboards and magazine advertisements with sports figures, movie stars, and other famous people promoting milk. "Got Milk?" is printed across the page and the person has a milk mustache across their upper lip. The picture answers the question. You can look at them and tell they have just taken a sip of milk. 

Every First Place member who walks through the door of your classroom has an attitude. Every First Place leader has an attitude. You can look at their face and tell which attitude they possess - a winning one or a whining one! I would love to have a commercial each week in my classroom. I would stand in front of the class and pose this question, "Got Attitude?" and then proceed to write "winning" or "whining" across their forehead. Of course, you don't need anything written on the forehead of a person with an attitude. You just know by observing them what type of attitude they possess. It has often been said that everything rises and falls on leadership. When the leader has a winning attitude, the members reflect a similar "can-do" attitude. However, the converse is also true-whiners breed whiners! 

Leaders often call me when they are midway through a session and share how some of the members have dropped out and those left are discouraged. I can tell by the tone in their voices that they, too, are discouraged.   This is the crucial point of any First Place session. Each session is like a basketball or football game. The players need the coach to convey a winning attitude, especially at half-time. Can you imagine a coach coming into the locker room during half-time and saying, "Well, we are 10 points behind; we will never catch up, and we will most definitely never win?" I don't think so! A leader must be that coach who calls time outs and gathers the team around for a word of encouragement.

When my daughter began playing basketball, I shared with her 1 Corinthians 9:24, which became her theme verse. Paul states in the verse that everyone who competes in a race must run to win. I encouraged her all through her basketball career to always play to win and to never give up. A winning attitude is what "comebacks" are all about.   I have watched basketball teams come from 20 points behind to win a game. How did they do that? They had the attitude that said, "We can win!"

This session my class has not done all that well at losing weight. They will lose one week, only to gain the next.   This past week, the member who has lost the most weight and has lost consistently each week, did not lose weight for the first time this session. She was really discouraged. I looked at her and saw a whining attitude about to expose itself when I said, "You didn't lose for the first time this session? Well, that is good!" She looked at me like I was crazy. I then went on to explain to her that set-backs keep us humble and remind us that it takes consistent discipline and hard work to reach our goals. She thought a moment and said, "You are right! I am not going to quit, but I am going to try that much harder this week."  

Maintaining a winning attitude in the last few weeks is crucial. Many members tend to have that "all or nothing" attitude. They tell themselves that they haven't lost weight at a pace that will get them to their goal by the last week, so why keep trying. My daughter recently played in her very last basketball game. It was the state championship game and her team was down by almost 20 points most of the game. I saw a winning attitude rise up in her and she decided to finish well. She made a career high, 7 three-point shots and was the high scorer of her team. They did not win the game, but she finished a winner! Your entire class may not meet their weight loss goals, but that doesn't mean they can't all finish winners! My husband often says, "Many people start well, but few finish well." Only those with a winning attitude will finish well. 

Help your members have a come-back session by first possessing a winning attitude yourself. Develop such an attitude by spending quality time in prayer, Bible reading, Bible study and by faithfully memorizing scripture. When the leader is wholeheartedly committed to the First Place program, then they will influence their members in a positive way. A winning leader, combined with the Word will transform the minds and attitudes of members who were once whiners into members who are now winners.

Got Attitude? Which one? A leader must start a session with a winning attitude and maintain that attitude throughout the session. As Zig Ziglar often says, "You don't feel your way into a new way of behaving, but you behave your way into a new way of feeling." If you don't have a winning attitude - act like it anyway! Guess what? You will eventually have it!   I learned a song at cheerleading camp some 30 years ago and it has stuck with me ever since.

"Let the sun shine in, face it with a grin. "Smilers" never lose and "frowners" never win, so let the sun shine in, face it with a grin, open up your heart and let the sun shine in!"  

Let that winning attitude shine through and you will see a room full of First Place winners!

Lead on!
Nancy Taylor
Leadership Training Director



Nancy Taylor is the First Place Leadership Training Director and joined the First Place staff in 1997. Nancy teaches leadership principles to First Place Leaders throughout the country and at Houston's First Baptist Church where she coordinates all the First Place groups. Nancy also speaks at First Place workshops, rallies, retreats, and conferences, where she delights her audiences with humor and encourages them with boldness. She writes a monthly article, which includes helpful tips for leaders, for the First Place E-newsletter, and was a contributing writer to the Today is the First Day devotional book. Nancy is the resident First Place Bible Concordance because of her love for Scripture memory.