Going into the EliteFTS sports performance summit I knew it was going to be something special. Usually I look at a line up and think about who I want to see(usually not many) and who I will be napping through. Before I went I drank a monster because I knew there was no time for napping with this line up of speakers.

I am proud to say that 3 of the the speakers are long time friends. I also realized that one speaker I know peripherally and one I didn't really know at all. This meant that I had a chance to really have new conversations and talk to people I may have not spoken with before.

I had dinner with Mike Robertson, Joe DeFranco and Smitty on Friday night. We got to talk about a lot of things and it was a great time. Saturday morning I had breakfast with Buddy Morris and my staff. It was funny watching my staff listen intently to every word Buddy said. He is very engaging and intelligent, so it makes it worth your time to listen.

Saturday night at the mixer I think DeFranco was cornered for about 6 hours in one spot. It was pretty funny but it goes to show how much people want to learn and respect him. Dave said that it is not a bother when people ask questions but an honor and that is something that Joe emulates as he spent all his time answering questions that I'm sure he has answered a million times before.

I met many great people at the clinic. One person who I was really impressed with is Justus Galac, head strength coach for the Jets. We talked for a while at the mixer after the clinic and he is a guy who is doing it right. People see the shitty things on Youtube some strength coaches do and lump them all in that category but the ones who are doing the stupid things are the small percentage of guys.  Guys like Justus are doing an amazing job and not publicizing or trying to hype themselves up, they are too busy doing a great job with their athletes. If more guys were busy actually being awesome instead of talking about how awesome they are, our profession would be a lot better off.

I left the mixer and went out to dinner with Mike Robertson. I have known Mike for a long time and he is one of the smartest men in this business. He bought me dinner even though I refused to put out for him so that shows you what a  class act he is.

After dinner we came back to the mixer and talked shop with Joe Kenn, Adam Feit, Tyler English and Mike. Overall I enjoyed this clinic more than any I can remember in 10 years. I really hope that Mark Watts puts another one of these together in 6 months or so. I would like to thank Mark and Dave for putting on such an amazing clinic.

Lastly: Lessons Learned from this past weekend!

1. Follow your passion. When I was 22 years old I went to Las Vegas for a seminar that was in the basement of the Venitian hotel. It was Mel Siff and Louie Simmons. Joe Kenn brought it up in his presentation and it really got me thinking, that is where I met all these guys. People that are  friends and colleagues to this day: Mark Uyeyama, Tom Myslinski, Buddy Morris, Mark Bell, and Joe Kenn. All those people were in a basement of a hotel learning about strength. I couldn't afford that seminar, I worked extra bouncing shifts to get the money, but it was my passion and I had to go. If you aren't willing to sacrifice for your passion, it isn't your passion.

2. Give of your time. None of speakers  were there because it was making them rich. They were there to give back. They are helping to make the profession in which they love become better as a whole by passing on knowledge. Knowledge that has been gleamed from so many hours of practical application it is unfathomable. Anyone who left that conference and didn't get better, can't have a pulse. If you give of your time to others you will always be rewarded. Maybe not monetarily but there is a lot more important things in the world than money.

3. Become well rounded. When I was younger all my conversations revolved around training. This weekend I bet that actual training was about 25% of the extra conversations. More were about life, family and business. Buddy says that he reads 1 hour per day. I can't make this commitment right now but I am committing 20m per day to reading. Maybe when I am Buddy's age I will be able to afford 1 hr. I want to become fluent in Portuguese, learn more about how to effectively run my business and just be a more diverse person in general. These things take a commitment to knowledge, just as becoming stronger takes a commitment to strength. Both are worth your time and will help you throughout your life.