Paint Your Windows Black

You don’t have a talent problem; you have a focus problem.

Each year, I kick off our middle school football season with five core values and a theme for the season. The purpose of this is to create a culture of alignment and high performance.

One of our core values is “Paint the windows black” and it comes from the story of how the movie Rocky was written.

In the early 1970s, Sylvester Stallone was broke, rejected, and on the verge of homelessness. He had a dream, not just to act, but to star in a movie he wrote himself. But what most people don’t know is what it took to write that script.

Stallone didn’t just try to write when he “had time.” He knew he was a weak and easily distracted man. So first, he vowed to lock himself in his house and not leave until he finished the script. But he realized that wasn’t enough. So he painted all his windows black and stayed locked in until the story was finished.

Why? Because, as author Dan Koe wrote, “Focus is what separates action from distraction. Focus is the habit of habits.”

That’s what “Paint the windows black” means.
It’s isn’t just about staying focused it about intense concentration. Cutting off distractions, ignoring the noise, and giving all of yourself to the task at hand.

It’s easy to be busy; it’s hard to be focused. It’s easy to be interested; it’s rare to be committed.

Whether you are writing a script, playing football, running a business, or just trying to keep the main thing the main thing, you must “Paint the windows black” to get your best results.

Lock in and let’s get after it.

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