I promised last week that I would share some thoughts on Touchdown!: Achieving Your Greatness on the Playing Field of Business (and Life)
by sports psychologist Dr. Kevin Elko. I’ve finished the book and can offer an opinion or two.
Kevin Elko is in the business of helping athletes and business leaders achieve their best both on the playing field and in life.He has worked with some of the biggest names in both collegiate and professional sports. He is a proven leader. His intent in Touchdown! is to offer some of his wisdom to average guys like you and me. Although his work is primarily with sports organizations, the book is not overly athletic. There are many anecdotes from various great teams but the material included is still very useful for every day application. I can assure you that you needn’t know a down from a dime to gain from reading this short book.
After length frontispiece materials Elko gets down to business. His whole attempt is to help train attitudes. He seeks to develop a though process which is prepared for setbacks but primed for victories. He wants his readers to focus on the process more than the ultimate goal or achievement. All of the hard work begins in the mind where attitudes are formed and dreams developed. According to Elko, do the dreaming and the work will take care of itself.
The book is full of nuggets of fine information and real suggestions for improvement. But that is also a weakness. The book lacks an easy flow. It isn’t always easy to understand how everything fits together in a nice, neat package. He uses ballgame terminology to head his chapters. For example, there is the Preseason, the Action Season, the Playoffs, the Off-season. It’s a nice device but a little more time spent on how it all comes together would be nice.
The book contains no direct Christian material to speak of but there are some principles which will help. Good attitudes are important to the Christian life.
The book is a worthwhile read and I would certainly suggest you add it to your reading lists. But don’t expect it to be the very best book on performance – just very good.
Touchdown! is 157 pages including the index. It is published by Pearson Education in New Jersey. It is available online and in bookstores.
2 comments On Book Review: Touchdown! by Kevin Elko
Hello,
I work with Dr. Elko. Thanks for the book review. I was wondering if you got a chance to read “The Pep Talk”, which is another of dr. Elko’s books. it was co-written by Bob Shook. It is much more Christian-focused and we are currently creating a 12-week Bible Study Program from the 12 Principles in the book. The program will be called, “Disciple Gameplan: Christian Principles for Winning in your Personal, Spiritual and Professional Life”, complete with DVD’s, workbook, and a copy of the Pep Talk. let me know if you would like a copy of the Pep Talk. Thanks.
Thanks for your comments. I would love to take a look at a book with Christian principles. If you need to contact me please do so at [email protected]
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