Life Is Short, Don't Wait to Dance: Advice and Inspiration from the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame Coach of 7 NCAA Championship Teams

by Valorie Kondos Field, Steve Cooper Narrated by Valorie Kondos Field

Overview

Highly acclaimed UCLA Women's gymnastics coach Valorie Kondos Field shares insights on how to use uniqueness and authenticity to achieve success.

How did a professional ballerina become one of the winningest coaches in NCAA history? Valorie Kondos Field—or Miss Val as she's affectionately known—has never even tumbled, flipped, or ever played any type of organized sports and yet she has been able to craft a legendary coaching career through curiosity, creativity, intention to detail, and unwavering care for the overall well-being of her athletes. For Miss Val, it's not about the X's and O's, it's about choreographing your life and owning the choices you make.

Miss Val has shaped her UCLA Gymnastics program as a life skills class and now she's sharing those lessons with you, whether you're an athlete, business leader, or simply someone who wants to own their destiny. Miss Val's philosophies are timeless. Her coaching style is unorthodox. Life Is Short, Don't Wait to Dance is a thought-provoking, fun journey through the personal stories and anecdotes of the 35-year career of a dancer/choreographer turned athletic coach. Included are Miss Val's favorite memories she experienced with her mentor, legendary coach John Wooden; as well as some of her most unforgettable stories of the Olympians and student-athletes she's coached. In 2014, Miss Val was diagnosed with breast cancer and explains how she made it one of the best years of her life—really!

Miss Val reveals how her head coaching journey started off disastrously, spending years mimicking other top coaches while her team suffered because of her lack of authenticity. In time she realized being a gymnastics immigrant wasn't a detriment, it was a gift. When she embraced and honed her own uniqueness Miss Val led her Bruins to six NCAA Championships and became one of only two active coaches to ever be inducted into the UCLA Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2016 Miss Val was named Pac-12 "Gymnastics Coach of the Century."

Life Is Short, Don't Wait to Dance is packed with brutally honest advice delivered in an inspirational tone Miss Val is known for. Did we mention she's a ballerina who's never played sports?

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

"Coach Val was smart enough to have been naive enough to not know what she could not accomplish. Ballerina to championship gymnastics coach-will certainly finds a way."-Kevin Plank, Founder and CEO of Under Armour

"Valorie Kondos Field's scope goes well beyond gymnastics... Miss Val is the life coach we all need in our corner, be it the boardroom or in the arena. I encourage all CEOs who want to tap into their fullest potential to become a student of Coach Val."-Mary Callahan Erdoes, CEO J.P. Morgan Asset & Wealth Management

"Miss Val's not-as-you-would-expect approach to coaching has positioned her to ink 7 NCAA Championships. Her success has inspired many who have witnessed her gifts and genius as a coach, mentor and healer."-William D. Parham, Ph.D., ABPP, Director, Mental Health and Wellness Program for NBA Players Association

"Miss Val is a force of nature. Her journey to the top is a riveting story. Her demand for personal excellence and her ability to create belief in her student athletes provides for a great read and success model for all."-Sue Enquist, Founder of ONE Softball, Former UCLA Head Softball Coach, 11-time National Champion

"After years of observation I can say with unbridled respect and full-throttled enthusiasm it is Miss Val's turn! She truly is one of the brightest beacons of light in the gymnastics world!"-Kathy Johnson Clarke, Sports Commentator, 1984 Olympic Medalist


"Miss Val's coaching technique really appealed to me because it was very different than elite gymnastics. She always reminds me before meets, never take life for granted and to cherish every moment."-Simone Biles, 4x Olympic Gold Medalist


"She nurtures that kind of potential into so much excellence that even standing in a room with her and listening to her speak can bring you to a level you didn't even know you had in you."-Johnny Kim, International Cirque Artist


"It's really easy to give up when things are not going your way, or when things are challenging, or when you have adversity or struggle, but she always stays positive."-Nastia Liukin, Olympic Gold Medalist

"After meeting Miss Val, I have a new found love and passion for the sport. She creates champions while putting their health and well-being first and allowing each athlete's uniqueness to flourish. She is a coach, mentor, leader, and friend who saw the potential in me before I saw it in myself and helped me grow to be the person I am today."-Jordyn Wieber, World Champion, Olympic Gold Medalist


"Having a role model like Val early in my college career was really important to me because I saw the interaction she had with the women on her team and how winning was certainly important, but not the most important thing."-Jim Mora, UCLA football head coach


"To watch her work with people who have won gold medals in the Olympics... it's one thing to be an exceptional athlete it's another thing to have this emotion bleed through your athleticism to take that sport to an entirely different level."-Brian Gott, Philanthropist/Producer


"She has this reputation within the gymnastics community of not only being a great gymnastics coach, but also a life coach, a mentor and a friend."-Judy Olian, Dean of UCLA Anderson School of Management

"Miss Val has redefined the rules of success. In Life is Short, Don't Wait to Dance, she gives us a new roadmap we so desperately need to live a life we would have never dreamed of. From a gymnastics coach who had never done gymnastics, this book is poised to change the way we think about success, diversity, purpose, passion, gratitude, leadership, and our choice in the matter."-Darcy Anderson, Political Director

Product Details

BN ID:	2940170179305
Publisher:	Hachette Audio
Publication date:	10/02/2018
Edition description:	Unabridged

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