Ego Vs Soul In Sports

Imagine. Imagine the world of sports without ego. No more trashtalking, showboating, cheating, cheap shots, or running up the score. No more wackadoo parents and coaches ruining youth sports. No more prima donna athletes with an inflated view of their own importance. The win-at-all-costs mentality? Gone. The me-first athlete? History. Greedy owners that put their wallets ahead of what's best for the game? Bye-bye. As John Lennon once sang, "Imagine . . ." Sports have always brought out the best and worst in people. One of the compelling aspects of sports is that character is openly on display. Problem is, the ugly side of sports is getting way too loud these days. The ego in sports has run amok. And as the ego takes center stage, win-at-all-costs (WAAC) and profit-at-all-costs (PAAC) mentalities and behaviors begin to dominate. Things like sportsmanship start to take a backseat. Nevertheless, despite all the ego- and greed-based negativity in today's sports world, there are still some pearls out there, little stories in the back of the sports section that stir the soul. While too many sports center headlines bring forth feelings of shame, it's the snippets about obscure athletes that bless us with shining examples of the human spirit and give us reason for hope. This is a book of short essays about sport at its best and sport at its worst. Hopefully, the book is somewhat entertaining and occasionally even enlightening. Ultimately, however, the book's goal is to inspire those who love sports to find a way to make the sports world a better place to be. And that means a place with a lot less ego and a lot more soul. Because in the big picture, it really is about how you play the game. (From the introduction)

Imagine. Imagine the world of sports without ego. No more trashtalking, showboating, cheating, cheap shots, or running up the score. No more wackadoo parents and coaches ruining youth sports. No more prima donna athletes with an inflated view of their own importance. The win-at-all-costs mentality? Gone. The me-first athlete? History. Greedy owners that put their wallets ahead of whats best for the game? Bye-bye. As John Lennon once sang, Imagine . . . Sports have always brought out the best and worst in people. One of the compelling aspects of sports is that character is openly on display. Problem is, the ugly side of sports is getting way too loud these days. The ego in sports has run amok. And as the ego takes center stage, win-at-all-costs (WAAC) and profit-at-all-costs (PAAC) mentalities and behaviors begin to dominate. Things like sportsmanship start to take a backseat. Nevertheless, despite all the ego- and greed-based negativity in todays sports world, there are still some pearls out there, little stories in the back of the sports section that stir the soul. While too many sports center headlines bring forth feelings of shame, its the snippets about obscure athletes that bless us with shining examples of the human spirit and give us reason for hope. This is a book of short essays about sport at its best and sport at its worst. Hopefully, the book is somewhat entertaining and, occasionally, even enlightening. Ultimately, however, the books goal is to inspire those who love sports to find a way to make the sports world a better place to be. And that means a place with a lot less ego and a lot more soul. Because in the big picture, it really is about how you play the game.

The crisis of meaning is the issue of our time. The old beliefs that guided the West have faded, without credible replacement. Who lives well? What characterizes the good life? More particularly, what may we in the modern West claim about ourselves? And, ultimately, does how we live and what we do make any sense? Concerned for today's society and its problems as they relate to meaning, faith, belief, morale, moral attachment, and social direction, John Carroll surveys these questions in Ego and Soul. He examines how people in their ordinary and everyday lives grope unconsciously for direction, casting lines into the transcendent in the hope of a catch. He focuses on the main areas of modern life—work, sport, popular culture, family, friendship, intimacy, shopping, tourism, computers, cars, do–it–yourself renovation, our democratic temper, and the retreat into nature. He also examines high culture, the upper–middle–class elites, and the universities, tracing why they have lost their way and failed to provide a language that might help modern people understand their condition. Ego and Soul offers a surprising and compelling new look at the way we live today, and the way we try to make sense of our lives.

Many sports fans are conflicted—they may love the games, the players, and their communities, but they are often alarmed by issues such as academic corruption, athlete health, and the overarching emphasis on winning and profit. In How We Can Save Sports: A Game Plan, with a New Introduction, Ken Reed argues that much of our sports culture is broken, driven by ego and greed. Written to inform and empower those who care deeply about the impact of sports on individuals and society as a whole, Reed introduces readers to the most pressing problems in sports and shows how they largely derive from the mentalities of profit-at-all-costs and win-at-all-costs. Chapters dig into issues such as concussions, overzealous adults in youth sports, the disappearance of PE from many school curriculums, the focus on profit in college athletics, discrimination in sports, and more. With a new introduction to bring this perennial topic up to the present, and featuring helpful resources and practical solutions for readers interested in change at all levels, How We Can Save Sports is an invaluable tool for addressing the many challenges in sports today.

This book - the first to link feminism, sport and media theory - provides a broad cultural studies orientation. In addition to a theoretical analysis, it provides a practical look at models of sport, media effects and the construction of the sportswoman and women's sports. Divided into three parts, the book: provides an overview of the three areas; focuses on the print and broadcast media portrayal of women's sport, examining such issues as the relationship of sports promotion to media representations of women's sports and the ways in which sports reporting is taught to future journalists; and seeks to develop a new model for the future.

A powerful meditation on the nature and dangers of ego, from the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Stillness is the Key, and Obstacle is the Way - over 1 million copies sold 'Re-read it each year. It's that important' Derek Sivers, author of Anything You Want 'Ryan Holiday is one of his generation's finest thinkers' Steven Pressfield, author of The War of Art 'This is a book I want every athlete, aspiring leader, entrepreneur, thinker and doer to read' George Raveling, Nike's Director of International Basketball 'Inspiring yet practical' Robert Greene, author of The 48 Laws of Power It's wrecked the careers of promising young geniuses. It's evaporated great fortunes and run companies into the ground. It's made adversity unbearable and turned struggle into shame. Every great philosopher has warned against it, in our most lasting stories and countless works of art, in all culture and all ages. Its name? Ego, and it is the enemy - of ambition, of success and of resilience. In Ego is the Enemy, Ryan Holiday shows us how and why ego is such a powerful internal opponent to be guarded against at all stages of our careers and lives, and that we can only create our best work when we identify, acknowledge and disarm its dangers. Drawing on an array of inspiring characters and narratives from literature, philosophy and history, the book explores the nature and dangers of ego to illustrate how you can be humble in your aspirations, gracious in your success and resilient in your failures. The result is an inspiring and timely reminder that humility and confidence are our greatest friends when confronting the challenges of a culture that tends to fan the flames of ego, a book full of themes and life lessons that will resonate, uplift and inspire.

Release Your Ego. Manifesting a vision may seem an impossible dream, but this story explains how releasing your ego and following your soul path is the key to manifesting your dreams. In this inspiring book, Janice Taylor shares her story of the lessons learned growing up through tough times in Saskatchewan, and how she searched for, and found, the wisdom to turn her life around. From appearing as a guest on The Oprah Winfrey Show to working with the NBA, NFL, and NHL as CEO of a successful technology startup, Janice's journey is a remarkable success story. And she did it all by listening to her soul. Surrender to Your Soul. When she walked away from everything she knew, Taylor did not know where her journey would take her. With no more than an idea in her head, she jumped onto a roller-coaster ride that made her look deep within to overcome obstacles, discover miracles, and begin living a life of abundance and Great Love. Each chapter includes stories of soul and ego that we can all relate to, showing us how we, too, can release the behaviours that hold us back, and start living life with purpose, joy, and love. Start Up Your Life. When you have reached the point where you are ready to turn your life around, this book will guide and inspire as you navigate the paths of soul and ego. Throughout these pages, you will find journalling exercises to help you recognize the ego at work and discover the soul purpose in your life. This collection of life-lessons and age-old wisdom is every woman's journey. Each story is designed to help shed light and understanding on the obstacles we face, and, ultimately, to help each of us begin our own startup journey. Contributors: Henrietta Poirier, Editor Harvey Bremner, Photographer...

There are more opportunities than ever before for young people with disabilities to participate in sport and adapted physical education. For example, there are more than 3.7 million athletes worldwide aligned to the Special Olympics organisation, with national associations active in more than 200 countries worldwide. Despite this rapid growth, all too often coaches and teachers lack adequate knowledge of the particular challenges faced by people with intellectual disabilities. The principal aim of this book is to improve the understanding and professional skills of coaches, teachers, practitioners and researchers, to promote awareness of successful programmes addressing the needs of such young people, and to challenge the prevailing myths and stereotypes surrounding their abilities. With contributions from leading researchers and practitioners around the world, this book is the first to explore in depth the topic of sport and intellectual disability from a coaching perspective. Including both theoretical discussion and empirical case-studies, the book covers a full range of contemporary issues and themes, including training and coaching, family support, perceptions of disability, athlete motivation, positive sport experiences, motor development programmes, and social and cultural aspects of disability. Sport Coaching and Intellectual Disability is important reading for any student, researcher, coach, teacher, manager or policy maker with an interest in disability sport, physical education, coaching, or mainstream disability studies.