“Everyone has the will to win. Few have the will to prepare.”

Just as few have the will to prepare, few will take the time to truly appreciate the weight these words carry. In order to reach our highest dreams, our preparation must be calculated and executed with precision over extended periods of time. I believe we all have been tempted to fall into the trap of taking shortcuts, thinking a short period of accelerated “preparation” will produce the desired results.

One of the things I’ve learned is that I perform the best when I’m most prepared and that the time for preparation has no end date. Obviously, there is a certain amount of time to prepare for a specific opponent, or for your 1st-semester chemistry exam, but even after those tests, there will be another. If we want to reach the places that are truly worthy of ascending to, our motivation to prepare must always be in overdrive. One of the beautiful things about sports is that it can be seen as a direct microcosm of life. Preparing to reach athletic goals functions exactly the same as preparing to excel in your workplace, or continuing your education, officially or unofficially, to become a better functioning person in society. 

For now, however, my mind is most firmly set in the athletic state, as I’m continuing my preparation for the 2016-17 season. Five games into the regular season (3-2) you may be inclined to say, time for preparation is over. But as we’ve already mentioned, there’s always more to be prepared for. Every day you have to be willing to prepare to be better than the days before.

The Carolina Tar Heels have more than enough experience to know how important this mindset is. Coach Williams has always focused on getting better every day, not only preparing yourself for your next opponent but also preparing for the crucial battles late in the season. As a junior guard, Joel Berry explains, “We want to be the last team standing, on the last night of the season.”

We would all love to fast forward to April 3, and watch our Heels compete again for the chance to cut down the nets in Phoenix, but there is a lot of work to do between now and then. No shortcuts. Not handouts. It’s a process, step-by-step, day-by-day, preparing ourselves for battle, starting now.

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The NCAA tournament is finally here, and today’s edition of “Inside Carolina” talks about the odds of a Tar Heel victory tonight against Iona (they favor the Tar Heels strongly, but stranger things have happened) and how UNC’s main priority needs to be handling business and warming up for the challenges ahead.

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This Carolina team reminds me of some oldie-but-goodie Tar Heels. Think of freshman point guard Phil Ford, selfless shooting guard John Kuester, talented wing Walter Davis and versatile big man Mitch Kupchak. That was a long time ago, but this 2019 version has grown into something similar. Roy Williams acknowledged after Carolina defeated tough and […]

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As the Tar Heels prepare to face off against the Cardinals for the third time this year as part of the ACC tournament, today’s edition of “Inside Carolina” discusses the first two match-ups between these teams — from Louisville’s victory in the first round to Carolina taking home the win 79-69 on the road. Hopefully, […]

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