Beyond Champions: A Playbook for Winning at Life By Coach Dru Joyce II Book Review

 

 

I’m a member of the Family Christian Bloggers and they provided me with a free copy of Beyond Championships for this review.

 

In Beyond Champions, Coach Dru II shared ten powerful principles he learned in his life and how they have influenced him as a coach. Some of these included, “The Beauty of Rock Bottom”, “The Power of Words”, “Dare to Dream”, “Take Charge of Your Mind”, and much more. He began the book about how decisions create the environment in which we are living in and they have an impact on the rest of our lives. He worked for a business corporation, ConAgra for 25 years and he was making a good living. He eventually discovered he wanted more and he wanted to follow his true passion, coaching basketball, and working with the young. Leaving his good paying job and changing careers was a tough decision but he realized this choice changed his entire life. He strongly believes in teaching his players the importance of making right decisions and asking themselves where they want to be in the next few years and making sure they plan for their futures.

 

One of my favorite chapters was, “Use the Game; Don’t Let the Game Use You” because this one he opened up about his son, Dru and how he encouraged his son to press on even when it looks impossible. Dru had a dream of playing basketball but he is only five foot two and he struggled with insecurity. People would constantly criticize him for being short and they thought he wouldn’t be able to effectively play basketball. In the Divison III state championship game, when Dru was a freshman, his coach decided to send Dru out into the game. His team was three points down and Dru shocked the audience when he scored seven three pointers and won the game with 21 points. He now plays professional basketball in Germany. He didn’t let people stop him and tell him he couldn’t do it, he pushed on to accomplish his dreams.

 

I would recommend this prevailing book to anyone who enjoys sports and reading a book that has a potent faith built message. I liked how Coach Dru shared personal stories ranging from his past relationships, to meeting his wife, raising a family, business field, and coaching. He was very transparent throughout the book about his disappointments, mistakes, and triumphs and what he learned through the ups and downs. This book taught me the importance of planning for the future and making wise decisions because they affect my life and others. This book would make a great gift to any youth sports fan as well as adults.

 

 

If you would like to purchase a copy of Beyond Championships, then check it out on Family Christian.com:  

http://www.familychristian.com/catalog/product/view/id/296602/