PETE CARROLL

Dancers work and they work and they work, and they master their skills so far that improvisation just comes flowing out of them. Their natural expression of the best they can possibly be comes out of them because there is no boundary to hold them back... That's the mentality that I'm trying to create, recreate and hold on to forever.

Think of your favorite teacher you ever had in school: the one who made it the most fun to go to class. They surprise you. They keep you guessing. They keep you coming back, wanting to know what's going to happen next.

I am an example of a person who got zeroed into a philosophy early.

In 1999, I got fired as coach of New England. In three years in New England, we actually did better than most people think. We were 27-21, won the AFC division title, went to the playoffs twice.

My mom was really cool. She's the one that gave me the mentality about believing in myself and trusting it, that I was always gonna be okay, and that I could do things in a special way. She just pumped me up, you know?

Each person holds so much power within themselves that needs to be let out. Sometimes they just need a little nudge, a little direction, a little support, a little coaching, and the greatest things can happen.

It isn't about the words you say. It's about the energetic message you send.

Once you're a football player, you're a football player for life. You always think of yourself in terms of that. We all do. It's hard to get rid of when you can't play anymore.

The thing that always strikes me is how much power one person has. Everybody has so much power to help and to change if they just exercise it and get after it.

People make mistakes all the time. We learn and grow. If there's patience and love, and you care for people, you can work them through it, and they can find their greatest heights.

At the highest level in the NFL, the pass game is as complex as you can imagine.

I was the best guy, you know, all through Little League and Pop Warner and that kind of stuff. But when I went to high school, I was undersized. I didn't grow. I was behind the whole puberty cycle. I didn't like high school.

You will find a way to make your message fresher. You'll find a way to make your connections in a way that will continue to inspire and direct and motivate. That's what I'm banking on.

It's not that you're not smart anymore; it's that you're unwilling to do it. Coaches who coach know what I'm talking about. You just keep battling to help your coaches and your players, to refine your scheme, to break down your opponent, to find ways to travel and take care of your players.

Our philosophy doesn't change. We're always competing. But the ways to approach it and the ways to make that up and make it available to our players, there's no end to that. That's why the thought is that you're either competing or you're not, and that's why I'm learning and searching and trying to transfer information to our coaches and to our players.

You do what you have to do to compete, and that takes you to places where you are in a relentless state to find an edge and compete. That mentality keeps you on and on point. The how is following the drive, being resourceful and creative.

That’s the interesting thing about the philosophy — to accomplish the grand, you have to focus on the small. To exist in the eternal perspective, you have to live in the moment.

I just realized how bad it is when you're not in charge and you're a head coach.

It's about us getting ready to play. It's not about the other team. We'll beat ourselves before they beat us. That's always our approach.

We're not going to do anything different for this game since we're not treating this game any different than another game. Every game is a championship game for us, so we'll treat this one, the last one and the next one exactly the same. And that goes for our practices leading up to it as well.

I always think something good is about to happen.

I would say that we have to explore and find ways to make our game a better game and take care of our players in whatever way possible. Regardless of what other stigmas might be involved, we have to do this because the world of medicine is doing this.

Winning Forever is not about the final score; it's about competing and striving to be the best. If you are in this pursuit, then you're already winning.

It's about being the very best you can be. Nothing else matters as long as you're working and striving to be your best. Always compete. It's truly that simple. Find the way to do your best. Compete in everything you do.

The only competition that matters is the one that takes place within yourself.