He wasn’t trying to be better than everyone else. It wasn’t an ego trip or a “privilege thing.” He simply recognized that his mother was right when she said, “you don’t jump off a bridge just because everybody is doing it.” So, he didn’t drink and drive or experiment with the drugs. He didn’t jump on every bandwagon or chase every new band or movie star. As a result – even as a teenager – he stood out from the crowd. In spite of an average IQ, his grades were higher. In spite of average health, he was a better athlete. In spite of an average personality, people trusted him and loved to be around him.

When someone asked him how he managed to stay out of trouble and do so well in college, he told them, “It’s pretty simple, I just take good advice to heart. Sometimes it takes a little courage, or some extra discipline, but taking advice is actually less stressful and more productive, in the long run. It’s not so much about what I do; it’s about who I am.”

Richard A. Bennett, a former basketball coach for Wisconsin-Green Bay and father of a son and daughter who also became successful college coaches, explained how he helped college students stand out from the crowd and become successful athletes:

I concluded some time ago that a major part of success of a team, or of an individual, has a great deal to do with the intangible qualities possessed. The real key is how a person sees himself [humility], how he feels about what he does [passion], how he works with others [unity], how he makes others betters [servanthood], and how he deals with frustration and success, truly learning from each situation [thankfulness], I believe those concepts are the essence of a good player, team, coach, or individual in any capacity in life.”

Here’s some advice given several thousand years ago by another “coach.”

And so I insist—and God backs me up on this—that there be no going along with the crowd, the empty-headed, mindless crowd. They’ve refused for so long to deal with God that they’ve lost touch not only with God but with reality itself. They can’t think straight anymore. Feeling no pain, they let themselves go in sexual obsession, addicted to every sort of perversion. But that’s no life for you. You learned Christ! (Ephesians 4:17-20 MSG)

God has been coaching mankind since the first couple was created. Most people have ignored his advice and chased temporal and unimportant things. Turns out, God wants people to live the best life possible. Turns out God’s advice benefits those who take it to heart. It may mean work, discipline, or saying no to some things, but it always makes for a more abundant life. Jesus summarized His goal like this, “My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” (John 10:10b nlt)