"DA Coach" Mike Ditka

Being from Chicago and a life long Bears Fan, I did not miss the opportunity to attend a fundraiser this evening to hear Mike Ditka speak. The Coach’s thoughts, comments and stories were entertaining, they also provide the framework for creating a winning organization, be it a football team, radio station or retail business.

He spoke about his mentors; Tom Landry, George Halas and Vince Lombardi and how they were thinkers, strategists and motivators. His talk focused on three pillars that combined, brings success. They include attitude, character and enthusiasm.

According to the coach in order to succeed, you need to have a great set of values and integrity; you must be confident, have a commitment to excellence and a strong desire to be the best. You must be respectful of others, including your competition, be a team player, talk about good things, be solutions oriented and have fun.

Finally, he said “The harder you work, the better it gets!”

I thought I was just going to dinner to hang out with the guys and hear great sports stories from a football legend. Little did I know that I was going to walk away with a MBA “DAgree” from the University of Mike Ditka.

Speaking of Chicago, I discovered a great Chicago Pizza and Hot Dog joint on Granite Reef and McDonald in Scottsdale called Chizona. This place meets all my criteria, good food, big portions and it’s cheap!