Offense in basketball is trying to put the ball in the basket. It may sound really simple, but it can be very difficult. The difficulty can come in a number of reasons: Have you put in practice time? Did the defense shut you down? Did you psyche yourself out? All these things can prevent you from putting the ball in the basket. My coach used to tell me “practice makes perfect practice which then gives you a perfect game.” I used to catch the bus to go to basketball practice three times a week. One was a special practice at 7AM in the morning on a Saturday. I practiced to make my offense better, to put the ball in the basket. Without practice I wouldn’t have been able to make any shots at all. Once you get better at putting the ball in the basket, you have to do something about the defense in front of you. You have to start understanding defense and what it’s there to do. Obviously it’s there to stop you from scoring the ball and there’s different ways to stop you from scoring. They can deny you getting the ball, play straight man to man, or have zone defense where they make sure you go through the team before scoring. Once you practice your offense and learn how to get through the defense, you are ready to play and be effective.
What does this offense and defense have to do with life? Well, you are on offense trying to accomplish your purpose and the defense is everything wanting to stop you. The defense is anything trying to stop you from putting the ball in the basket which is what stops you from achieving your dreams. The defense can be a number of things. It could be yourself getting in the way, haters who don’t want to see you shine, past failures that want to stay relevant, or people in that same industry limiting your access.
So just like how I practiced to get better at putting the ball in the basket, you need to get better at whatever you love. The more you do it, the better you will get until it’s in you to do repeatedly without thinking like putting the ball in the basket. You learning to play the game will pay off in making it to your dreams.