Standards Over Feelings: David Pollack’s Playbook for Success in Life

What this episode is about

David Pollock emphasizes the importance of maintaining high standards over fluctuating feelings, advocating that consistent effort and a positive attitude allow individuals to surpass the majority of their peers. He highlights that true leadership stems from influence, acknowledging that personal failures are part of the journey toward success, and encourages a mindset that prioritizes resilience and commitment.

Key takeaways

• Showing up is half the battle; outperforming 90% requires relentless energy and a good attitude.
• Leadership distilled: CARE. Influence one person and you're already wielding power.
• Success is failure's shadow; Pollock embraces missteps to shine light on real growth.
• A church lock-in lured Pollock with sports, igniting a spiritual journey from unlikely origins.
• Accolades impress, but legacy is etched in faith; Pollock's journey transcends sports.

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 5:00: Church, David Pollock, All American, Bulldog
2. 5:00 – 10:00: David Pollock, Church, All American, Bulldog
3. 10:00 – 15:00: Brandy Chastain, carbonation, my daughter, Stanford Stadium
4. 15:00 – 20:00: Coach Van Gorder, fullback, standards over feelings, Steelers
5. 20:00 – 25:00: Coach Van Gorder, defensive end, defensive tackle, fullback
6. 25:00 – 30:00: adversity, Dean Cayman, Eddie Shadex, leadership is a four-letter word. C A R E.
7. 30:00 – 35:00: adversity, Be still and know that I am God, David Pollock, perseverance
8. 35:00 – 36:33: adversity, David Pollock, davidpollock.com, davidpollock.com

Notable quotes from "Standards Over Feelings: David Pollack’s Playbook for Success in Life"

• Much more than I have succeeded. And I like to share those because those are real. The three H's is hard, it's hot, and it hurts.

  about The three H's · at 0:56

• Solidifies the man of who he is. Ladies and gentlemen, it is my distinct honor to bring my friend, Mr. David Pollock, on to Mick Employ. David, how you doing, brother?

  about David Pollock · at 1:58

• Loved me, supported my dreams like crazy. But church just wasn't something we did. And two events happened, two big things happened in my life that I always like to share. One, it started with an invite. And I think that's what we all.

  about Church · at 3:31

• And then I had a teacher named Mark Watson who was my physics teacher. And Mark was so chill and so even calm, cool, nice, and he had a Jesus sticker on his computer and he played praise and.

  about Mark Watson · at 4:22

• With me. He volunteered his time and he literally sat down and he started to take me through Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. And he was laying out the Gospels for me. And I was…

  about Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John · at 5:26

• Because of who you are. I want to tackle, no pun intended, one of the things that you said, standards over feelings. I'm a big believer in standards, right? Like I personally…

  about standards over feelings · at 16:04

• Yes, sir. Yes, sir. So, when you got to Georgia, right, you were a fullback.

  about fullback · at 19:19

• Without the failure. And so for us, learning how to deal with failure, learning how to deal with adversity is huge. Kid, teenager, adult, senior citizen, like we have to…

  about adversity · at 27:28

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• David Pollock — Person · 8 mentions · first at 2:03
• Mark Watson — Person · 2 mentions · first at 4:22
• Coach Van Gorder — Person · 2 mentions · first at 19:45
  And Coach Van Gorder was my defensive coordinator and he was always Hey, Pock, come to the dark side. I'm Coach, it's Pollock. He was Hey, Olaf, come to the dark.
• Torrance — Person · 1 mention · first at 2:46
  Was Georgia, right? So me and my family, we're talking my uncle Wayne and my uncle Randy, my cousins Torrance. I got to give everybody their shout out now because they'll kill…
• Maxine Dexter — Person · 1 mention · first at 2:53
  Because they'll kill me if I have David Pollock on. And I don't talk about Torrance and Randy Jr. and Dexter. So I did my job. Now David, it's about you.
• Randy Jr. — Person · 1 mention · first at 2:53
  Because they'll kill me if I have David Pollock on. And I don't talk about Torrance and Randy Jr. and Dexter. So I did my job. Now David, it's about you.
• Brandy Chastain — Person · 1 mention · first at 10:11
  And I'll never forget when I was in eighth grade watching the World Cup and it's the one Brandy Chastain, the famous one when they won gold. And I'll never forget the…
• my daughter — Person · 1 mention · first at 10:39
  And I do it with my daughter. And I love it cuz my daughter me and my daughter have this little thing where she loves to work and she's starting to really embrace it. And I always say, Baby.
• my wife — Person · 1 mention · first at 23:10
  He's my wife's personality to a tea.
• Dean Cayman — Person · 1 mention · first at 25:11
  And I can say this with my sons and they'll they'll laugh at me. I'm not I'm not talking bad about you, Jay Cayman.
• Eddie Shadex — Person · 1 mention · first at 28:06
  Just dro I quit. And guess what? I had a coach, Eddie Shadex, who believed in me and saw something in me before I did.
• James Randy — Person · 1 mention
• Norm — Person · 1 mention
• Tron — Person · 1 mention
• William Herschel — Person · 1 mention

Books & papers

• Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John — Book · 1 mention · first at 5:30
• The Won't Quit Kid — Book · 1 mention · first at 34:41
  Use in the book, the three H's. It's hard, it's hot, and it hurts. Football does. Life does. And so it's the won't quit kid. And so it's literally a story of perseverance and…
• Bible — Book · 1 mention

Companies & orgs

• Church — Company · 4 mentions · first at 3:33
• Mick Unplugged — Company · 2 mentions · first at 1:08
  Welcome to Mick Unplugged, where we ignite potential and fuel purpose. Get ready for raw insights, bold moves, and gamechanging conversations.
• Bulldog — Company · 2 mentions · first at 2:34
  So, shout out to my uncle Tron because I'm a Bulldog first, right? So, growing up, all I knew Tar Hill second. Absolutely. All I knew was Georgia, right? So me and my family, we're talking my uncle Wayne and my.
• Tar Hill — Company · 1 mention · first at 2:39
  I'm a Bulldog first, right? So, growing up, all I knew Tar Hill second. Absolutely. All I knew was Georgia, right? So me and my family, we're talking my uncle Wayne and my…
• public school — Company · 1 mention · first at 4:35
  Cool, nice, and he had a Jesus sticker on his computer and he played praise and worship music at a public school in between classes. And I'll never forget, man, I had the good…
• Playboy — Company · 1 mention · first at 7:17
  Could have done better with sharing my faith and being more bold. But like I remember I got invited to the Playboy Mansion. I was an all Playboy All-American as a junior. And I…
• Steelers — Company · 1 mention · first at 16:26
  Know, Mike Tomlin, I said this in a previous podcast, one of the things I love most about him, I'm not a Steelers fan, but he said the tradition in Pittsburgh is the standard…
• davidpollock.com — Company · 1 mention · first at 35:06
  Instagram or whatever they are whatever those fun socials are. And I have my website now davidpollock.com and the speaking is fun Mick. I've talked to you about that and just I…
• nonprofit — Company · 1 mention · first at 35:35
  Links to all of that in the description and show notes. And for all the organizations, the nonprofits, your next speaker needs to be David Pollock. I put my stamp on that for…
• College GameDay — Company · 1 mention

Products & tech

• The Won't Quit Kid — Product · 1 mention · first at 34:41
  Use in the book, the three H's. It's hard, it's hot, and it hurts. Football does. Life does. And so it's the won't quit kid. And so it's literally a story of perseverance and…
• halo (medical device) — Product · 1 mention

Concepts & topics

• adversity — Concept · 6 mentions · first at 27:32
• The three H's — Concept · 2 mentions · first at 1:00
• All American — Concept · 2 mentions · first at 1:40
  We're talking about player of the year two times. Defensive player of the year one time. All-American two times, three times. You name it, he is that guy.
• running back — Concept · 2 mentions · first at 2:31
  One of my uncles played football at Georgia in the early to mid80s. Was the running back like right after Hershel.
• gospel — Concept · 2 mentions · first at 4:56
  Invitation and then a life worth emulating a dude that was living out the gospel that was so crazy and so different and unique that I said that's different. I want that. And…
• standards over feelings — Concept · 2 mentions · first at 16:08
• fullback — Concept · 2 mentions · first at 19:22
• SEC player of the year — Concept · 1 mention · first at 1:28
  Today we're about to get personal with a really good friend of mine. We're talking about a ton of accolades. SEC player of the year two times. We're not talking about one side of the ball.
• Defensive player of the year — Concept · 1 mention · first at 1:38
  We're talking about player of the year two times. Defensive player of the year one time. All-American two times, three times. You name it, he is that guy.
• first round draft pick — Concept · 1 mention · first at 1:48
  Number one or first round draft pick.
• praise and worship music — Concept · 1 mention · first at 4:33
  Mark was so chill and so even calm, cool, nice, and he had a Jesus sticker on his computer and he played praise and worship music at a public school in between classes. And…
• Playboy All-American — Concept · 1 mention · first at 7:18
  Faith and being more bold. But like I remember I got invited to the Playboy Mansion. I was an all Playboy All-American as a junior. And I remember I turned it down because…
• testimony — Concept · 1 mention · first at 7:42
  Come to faith, we don't automatically know how to share, our testimony and articulately put certain things. But if we go back to my last story and how I came to faith…
• Fruit of the Spirit — Concept · 1 mention · first at 8:13
  Man, I want to emulate that. Mark Watson, like he was so different and so unique and so and he lived the fruits of the spirit so much that I'm like I want more of that in my…
• carbonation — Concept · 1 mention · first at 10:19
  They're talking on the broadcast and they said the girls stopped drinking carbonation because it hurts their conditioning. I'm in eighth grade, Mick.
• defensive tackle — Concept · 1 mention · first at 20:08
  Beat trying to beat everybody. And he was I just love the competitiveness. And so, our defensive tackle room gets decimated with injuries. And I played defensive tackle in high school and running back. So, I played both. So, coach is Hey,.
• defensive end — Concept · 1 mention · first at 20:40
  Decent freshman year. And then Mick before my sophomore year like I moved the defensive end. So you're talking about three positions in less than a year on campus. And so it…
• leadership is a four-letter word. C A R E. — Concept · 1 mention · first at 25:35
  You're right. As a leader, you have to understand those things. And you hit it on the head. I tell people leadership is a four-letter word. C A R E. And if you start there, if…
• NFL Draft — Concept · 1 mention · first at 29:21
  17th pick in the NFL draft. I'm making my NFL dream come true that I dreamed about since I was 6 years old. I'm doing it. Like exactly what I wanted to do.
• NFL dream — Concept · 1 mention · first at 29:23
  17th pick in the NFL draft. I'm making my NFL dream come true that I dreamed about since I was 6 years old. I'm doing it. Like exactly what I wanted to do.
• Be still and know that I am God — Concept · 1 mention · first at 32:42
  Her. I would argue they don't exist. It doesn't happen. So I really, the Bible says, Be still and know that I am God.
• perseverance — Concept · 1 mention · first at 34:45
  Does. Life does. And so it's the won't quit kid. And so it's literally a story of perseverance and teaching parents like how do we help them when they say it's hard like…
• 50 40 10 — Concept · 1 mention
• 504010 — Concept · 1 mention
• diet — Concept · 1 mention
• evangelism (inviting somebody to church) — Concept · 1 mention
• NFL (17th pick) — Concept · 1 mention
• rehab — Concept · 1 mention
• speaking circuit — Concept · 1 mention

Places & events

• Playboy Mansion — Place · 1 mention · first at 7:17
  Could have done better with sharing my faith and being more bold. But like I remember I got invited to the Playboy Mansion. I was an all Playboy All-American as a junior. And I…
• Stanford Stadium — Place · 1 mention · first at 11:36
  Like at practice, I'm not always going to be 100%. But there's also times that I stepped in Stanford Stadium, Stanford Stadium, where I was 70%. But that's where I'm at. So I…

Sponsors

• davidpollock.com — Sponsor · 1 mention · first at 35:06
  Instagram or whatever they are whatever those fun socials are. And I have my website now davidpollock.com and the speaking is fun Mick. I've talked to you about that and just I…

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 Two big things happen in my life that I always like to share. 504 4010 by David Poll.

0:04 You can outdo 50% of the people in this world. By showing up more, showing up with a good attitude. Showing up ready to rock and roll. 40% is the next step in the right direction with the right effort. I'm beating 90% of people, but we got 10% left. Mick

0:21 to you. White standards are important. Don't worry about how you feel every day because your feelings change every day and what people say change and the task changes. But that doesn't change who you are and what you bring to the table every single time. Will you succeed all the time? No.

0:39 I tell people leadership is a four-letter word. C A R E. Yeah. I think first of all, if you have influence over one person, you're a leader. So everybody got that crazy person in your family that likes you for no reason. So you're everybody's a leader. Dude, I've failed all [snorts] along the way. I mean, I have failed so much more than I have succeeded. And I like to share those because those are real. The three H's is hard, it's hot, and it hurts. Welcome to Mick Unplugged, where we ignite potential and fuel purpose. Get ready for raw insights, bold moves, and gamechanging conversations.

1:19 Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another exciting episode of Mick Unplugged. And today we're about to get personal with a really good friend of mine. We're talking about a ton of accolades. SEC player of the year two times. We're not talking about one side of the ball. We're talking about player of the year two times. Defensive player of the year one time. All-American two times, three times. You name it, he is that guy. Number one or first round draft pick. But what's more important to me, he's a man of God. He's an amazing father and he's an amazing husband. And to me, that solidifies the man of who he is. Ladies and gentlemen, it is my distinct honor to bring my friend, Mr. David Pollock, on to Mick Employ. David, how you doing, brother?

2:07 Mick, wait. Way to sell me, dog. Golly, I'm not worth a million bucks, but I feel like it right now.

2:12 Hey, you know that $5 you sent me? It goes a long way, bro. $5 still goes a long way in my world.

2:19 I appreciate it. Thanks for having me on, man. I'm honored to have you here. You know, I've got a connection to Georgia. One of my uncles played football at Georgia in the early to mid80s. Was the running back like right after Hershel. So, shout out to my uncle Tron because I'm a Bulldog first, right? So, growing up, all I knew

2:39 Tar Hill second. Absolutely. All I knew was Georgia, right? So me and my family, we're talking my uncle Wayne and my uncle Randy, my cousins Torrance. I got to give everybody their shout out now because they'll kill me if I have David Pollock on. And I don't talk about Torrance and Randy Jr. and Dexter. So I did my job. Now David, it's about you.

2:58 Covered. Covered. Now I guess I'll do mine now. Yes, sir. But David, man, like we can go so many places. You have an amazing journey, an amazing story, but for me, it all starts with you being that man of God first. And I would love for you to just talk about not necessarily your your spiritual journey, but that moment that you knew God's my everything.

3:22 Yeah. I didn't grow up with it at all in in the household. And um I had two great parents, mama and daddy, Kelly and Norm. And they uh they did everything for me. Loved me, supported my dreams like crazy. But church just wasn't something we did. And two events happened, two big things happened in my life that I always like to share. One, it started with an invite. And I think that's what we all have the ability to do. My neighbor across the street, he was like, "Hey man, we're going to the church and we're h" and I was like, "Yeah, okay." And he's like, "We're having this lock in."

3:52 I was like, "Double out church and you're going to lock me in the church?" I'm out, bro. No way. And then he said, "This is what got me, Mick." He said, "We play sports and stay up all night in right now." Um, punch that ticket. And I was like, "I get to stay up all night and do that." So, that's the first time I'd ever heard about God. I never heard about God really in my And I'm sure there were examples of people that tried, but I wasn't ready for it. And and God put this moment in front of me. So, a simple invite got me in the door.

4:22 And then I had a teacher named Mark Watson who was my physics teacher. And um Mark was so chill and so even calm, cool, nice, and he had a Jesus sticker on his computer and he played praise and worship music at a at a public school in between classes. And I'll never forget, man, I had the good ability to annoy just about anyone. And I I had so much energy and I was all over the place and Mark was just like, "Ah, it's okay, chill." And just had a really different spirit about and then I was like, "This dude's different, man." So I tell people all the time it started with an invitation and then a life worth emulating a dude that was living out the gospel that was so crazy and so different and unique that I said that's different. I want that. And then when you spin it forward going into the summer. So that was my junior year. That summer we had to read 200 pages for outside reading for English. And I went

5:08 to the to my English teacher and I said hey I'd like to pick the Bible. And she was like why? And I was like I don't know. I just I want to read it. And she was like well I can't cuz I you can't cuz I can't sit down with you. I don't know it. said, "Mr. Watson can?" And I went to Mr. Watson. He said, "Absolutely." And Mr. Watson sat down with me. He volunteered his time and he literally sat down and he started to take me through Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. And he was laying out the Gospels for me. And I was like, "Holy cow, wait a minute." Like, go back. What? Like, okay, Matthew did this and this is Mark.

5:39 This is Luke. This is John. Different accounts of Jesus. And who is Jesus? And started to learn, man, and just fire questions. And Mark was so patient and so kind and just started to answer my questions. And then from that point on, man, my life was absolutely never the same. Um, accepted Christ, started going to church, and then, um, got to go to the University of Georgia where God put more people in my life to continue my development. I love that, man. And, and to me, that's what it's about, right? It's how do we bring others, which you talked about it starting with the invite, but then how do we go deeper and then begin to share that knowledge, that love, that joy with others and and I commend you for that. It's one of the the things that I've always loved about David Pollock. You know, again, I talked about the accolades in the opener.

6:27 Amazing. You are my uncle Tron's gonna kill me. My favorite Bulldog player of all times, just like many others, right? I'm not the only one, but you are my favorite Bulldog player of all time.

6:38 But before I got to know you personally, always understood your journey. Always heard stories about you. And that's just who you are. And that's what I love the most, man, is that you were genuinely you, but you are passionate about your love for Christ. You're not ashamed of it. And and and you know where I'm going with this because there are a lot of people that behind closed doors they're there but then they feel like certain opportunities they need to hold back or you know certain things you've got to hold back. I love the fact that you're always David Pollock

7:08 and I get that Mick. I I understand why and I'll be honest like I've also failed in some opportunities that I think I could have done better with sharing my faith and being more bold. But like I remember I got invited to the Playboy Mansion. you know, I was an all Playboy All-American as a junior. And I and I remember I turned it down because that's not like what I wanted to be known for or in alignment with. And I remember like that that all of a sudden it got it went crazy. And I had so many opportunities to talk about it. I was like, "Holy cow." And then I started to to go and to do. But like again, there's a process, man, that I think when we come to faith, we don't automatically know how to share, you know, our testimony and articulately put certain things. But if we go back to my last story and how I came to faith, everybody can invite somebody to church. Everybody can do that. It's the preacher's job

7:52 then to deliver the word or bring them to someone that they know. And everybody, the most important witness that we have is living our lives, is living out the gospel. I don't care if you know scripture inside and out. If you don't treat people with respect and you don't love others, like if you don't do those things, nobody's going to go, "Man, I want to emulate that." Mark Watson, like he was so different and so unique and so and he lived the fruits of the spirit so much that I'm like I want more of that in my life. And so we have an awesome opportunity to turn people on and we have a awesome or a bad opportunity a lot of times to turn people off by the way we live our lives and the way we treat them.

8:29 Totally agree, brother. Totally agree. So, let's go into some of these accolades, but not the accolades, but more of how you got there. Because these are the words of Mick and Mick only, and because we're not face to face, you can't like slap me or anything. You were not supposed to be there, bro. I'm just going to be honest. Like, you were you were not supposed to be there. It takes a lot of hard work, a lot of consistency, because I tell people this all the time, especially in the business world. Talent's great, right? It's going to get you so far. And you know, people always say hard work outworks talent when talent doesn't show up. And I always say that's great, but when talent does show up and it's mixed with hard work, you have David Pollock. And to me, that's what it's about, right? Like you've got the talent and the hard work.

9:16 And when you and I were face to face, we got to meet you talked to me about this 50 4010. And I'm not going to lie to you, I don't think I've slept since because I've been so invigorated by that. And I know that is your message and so I'm trying to like contain myself. I've been waiting for this moment to share the world the 50 4010 because I think that makes you who you are and I know that there are other people that are like you again whether it's sports, whether it's business, whether it's entrepreneurship that have that same thing and you've given it a label and I love it. So 50410 by David Pollock. If you're going to be great and you have big dreams and big goals, it's going to come with sacrifice. And like I had a mindset. Now listen, I I don't know. God gave me this. Like God gave me physicality and a mindset and a work ethic. Like that was God-given. And then I I slowly started to learn to hone it.

10:07 And I I'll never forget when I was in eighth grade watching the World Cup and it's the one Brandy Chastain, the famous one when they won gold. And um I'll never forget the semi-final game. and they're talking on the broadcast and they said the girls stopped drinking carbonation because it hurts their conditioning. I'm in eighth grade, Mick. I'm 14 years old. It's the last time I've ever touched a carbonated beverage in my life. Because I was like, dude, if I want to get here, like I got to give that up. And so I started to learn at a young age like I I got to do things that are different. I got to outwork people.

10:39 And I do it with my daughter. And I love it cuz my daughter me and my daughter have this little thing where she loves to work and she's starting to really embrace it. And I always say, "Baby girl," I said, "We're working the dark. We're working the dark." Like, "We're working the dark. Don't worry about anything else. It will come to light." Like, but you just keep working the dark. And it's kind of our own, you know, little thing that we've been able to do. But 50 4010, you can outdo 50% of the people in this world by showing up more, showing up with a good attitude, showing up ready to rock and roll. Like every time you're there, be where your feet are. There is no elevators to the penthouse, bro. We taking the steps. We are taking the steps. We are going to be here and we are going to do it every single day. I don't care about your feelings. I care about where you are.

11:23 Okay? So, there is a standard that we meet. It's standard over feelings. Like, you're going to be here. This is who you are. This is what you are. And I compare that with football. Like, when I walk in like at practice, I'm not always going to be 100%. But there's also times that I stepped in Stanford Stadium, Stanford Stadium, where I was 70%. But that's where I'm at. So I got to find it and I got to give what I got. And so I had to learn that on the practice field by showing up continuously. 40% is the next step. 40% of people, man, you can outthink. You can outprepare. You can out organize. It's amazing to have a work ethic. That is a great thing. That is not a bad thing. But I if we're climbing this mountain feverously and and we're getting to the top like I'm going to get to the top no matter what.

12:08 and you get to the top and you go, "Oh crap, I climbed the wrong mountain." Like, you did a lot of hard work and you grinded, but you're in the wrong spot. Right? Like I I went the wrong direction. So getting organized and realizing like with the direction I go every single day matters. So watching tape in in football was so huge because you build instincts, you build mental reps, you understand the game, you see things faster. So that was a big part of my success was I think I built more reps in my head and more success by thinking the game. And then when I got in it, it was slow. It was still, it was easy. Now I could be crazy and I could give in the right direction with the right effort.

12:53 I'm beating 90% of people. All right. I'm not a math major. I play defense and I'm not the smartest in the world. But we got 10% left, Mick. And the 10% left is you are left with those people that work their tail off. You are left with those people that have direction, that have guidance, that use nutrition, diet, and in my field, whatever it took to get to there. Now it's who's got this, man. Like, you're left with a bunch of dogs. Who's going to eat your heart with a spoon? Like, who's going to stab until who's going to give in? Who's going to keep fighting? Like, it's going to suck.

13:26 You're going to lose a lot of battles. But you better get your butt back up and you better get ready to roll because there's another one coming and another one coming. So that's how I I define 50410,

13:37 man. So you can't see it, but just like when I was at your house, I have chills, bro. Like the leader in me connects with that so well on a business level and an entrepreneur level because that is it. You're going to outwork 50% of the people, right? You can outthink, you can outprepare, you can out organize 40% of the people. It's that last 10 to me that separates who really is committed to it, who can I depend on and who can I count on, but more importantly, how can I deliver when no one else does? And bro, so the business side of me that night when I got home, man, if you could see my wall, it it is nothing but I have 50 4010 everywhere and I circle 10 and and when I wake up, this is no lie. When I wake up, I circle the 10 and I say, "What's the dog gonna do today? What's the dog gonna do that no one else is committed?"

14:35 I can influence the great Mick. That's that I mean that that's that's great. Thank you, brother.

14:40 Bro, I love that, man. like and I know that there's a big story behind that. There's a big message behind that. And I don't want to I don't want to tease the world with that yet today, but but when David starts going in on that, you're going to feel just like I feel. I'm sure there are listeners and viewers right now that just got cold chills, too, because that is literally the most powerful concept I think that I've heard. And if you haven't started it yet, that there's a book about 50410, brother.

15:11 Well, in the in the works. It's definitely something that's that's swirling and and and we're working on. But, you know, it's amazing like we all have different gifts and blessings. And man, I am ADD and you can tell probably like I'm high energy all over the place and and one thing that's been a struggle for me is like can you get still enough and can you sit down and can you do the things that need to get done? I'm really learning that challenge. Like that's a that's a challenge for me that I've done more of embracing more reading. Like that's something that doesn't come natural. Like I I I'd rather work and be physical and go do something and be interactive and uh you know just with my kids like circling them up and making intentional time to pray and intentional time to read an intentional time to talk about things and stuff. So like that's something for me that's that's always a a work in progress that an area of my

15:59 life that I got to continue to grow and get better at. I love it, man. I love it. And I know you're going to do it because of who you are. I want to tackle, no pun intended, one of the things that you said, standards over feelings. I'm a big believer in standards, right? Like I personally am not into goals as much as I am standards because to me, you can't set a goal until you have a standard, right? You know, Mike Tomlin, I said this in a previous podcast, one of the things I love most about him, I'm not a Steelers fan, but he said the tradition in Pittsburgh is the standard is the standard. And I immediately connected with that. And I know you being the person that you are truly connect and and not only connect, but embody that.

16:40 So, I love to talk a little bit about to you why standards are important and if you have a story around that, that'll be awesome, too. Mike Tomlin, by the way, there are a few guys in professional sports that when they talk, I listen, and he's one of them. I mean, just he is liquid gold. I mean, that dude is just in the way he says things, I'm just like, yeah, like I I'll run through a wall for that. I can't imagine being a player every day and being called out and being held to that standard. But, you know, I saw so much of it making in my life and I just I see so many people and I started to like see, okay, well, this is a person that want to work. And then I would see other people that would come in and I'd be like, "All right, they complain all the time, but they work." And then I saw people that came in and they always worked and they didn't talk and they didn't complain.

17:29 And so, you're like, "What are the keys? Like, how do we bring this together and and understand this?" And so, we started talking with our football team, man. Like it's it nothing that happened today, nothing that happened yesterday changes where you are right now. And where you are right now is at football. And if you're at football, I need to be my best. If I'm in school, I need to be my best. And I am going to adhere to this standard that whatever I do, I'm going to run the race and I'm going to be consistent and I'm going to do it in a manner in which to get the prize, right? Like I'm not just here to participate. I'm not here just to show up. There's such a big difference in life in showing up to something like showing up and being there. Like showing up and being present. Just like with the football players, being able to tell them when they started their first day this year, when you walk in, you go to

18:19 your teacher. I'm here to be a leader. I'm going to sit in the front row. I'm going to pay attention the whole class. Like, I'm setting a standard. Like, this is who I am. This is what I am. This is what I'm going to be. And I think that takes some thought sometimes and that takes some I'm going to run and I'm going to go. Well, oh, okay. This happens and it kind of knocks me down. Man, this stinks. I'm where I'm at. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa. Uh-uh. We ain't staying here, though. That's not who we are. That's not what we are. When we show up, we show up with excellence.

18:48 When we show up, we're going to punch that clock and we're going to make sure we fit the standard. So, you know, don't worry about how you feel every day because your feelings change every day. and what people say change and the task changes. But that doesn't change who you are and what you bring to the table every single time. Will you succeed all the time? No. But I know you're going to bring your best effort. I know you're going to compete. I know you're going to fight and I know it's going to be important to you because you have a standard that you're going to actually hold yourself to.

19:19 Yes, sir. Yes, sir. So, when you got to Georgia, right, you were a fullback. What was the switch to defense? And then what was that initial moment like when it's like, "Yeah, Dave, we appreciate all this fullback stuff. We need you on the the dumb side of the ball."

19:36 I like that you put it that way cuz you're right. So, when I got to Georgia, we started conditioning in the summertime and I went in early so I could condition all through that summer. And uh Coach Van Gorder was my defensive coordinator and he was always like, "Hey, Pock, come to the dark side." I'm like, "Coach, it's Pollock." He was like, "Hey, Olaf, come to the dark side." I'm like, "All right, forget it." Like, he knows my name. Like, he's calling me that on purpose, obviously. But he was like, he he said he watched me in conditioning in the summer and it just like he said, "You were looking and beat trying to beat everybody." And he was like, "I just love the competitiveness." And so, our defensive tackle room gets decimated with injuries. And I played defensive tackle in high school and running back. So, I played both. So, coach is like, "Hey, man, we need we need some defensive tackles." And so, they throw me at

20:20 defensive tackle. and I started playing defensive tackle and um it was awesome. It was great. It was it was uh it was a new challenge. It was hard. There was a lot coming at you fast. And so I I started at fullback, moved to defensive tackling camp and then had a pretty decent freshman year. And then Mick before my sophomore year like I moved the defensive end. So you're talking about three positions in less than a year on campus. And so it was a lot that came at you. But but coach Van Gorder saw me and kind of my attitude and he was like I think I think we can work with that. He was like he always said like you're more of a defensive player like your mindset and your mentality.

20:58 You need to be over here with us. Yeah. What he was saying was you're a little crazy, right?

21:02 Yeah. You try to be politically correct there. He was saying you're a little crazy. You're a little off.

21:07 You got to be a little crazy to play football. Like you got to be a little crazy to like beating people up and banging your head against other people to and enjoy it like Yeah. Yeah. 100%.

21:17 Yeah. an amazing career at Georgia. All the accolades that I mentioned aren't even a tenth of all the things that you accomplished at Georgia and being a leader and and that's again one of the many things I love about you is that you are a leader as well too. And and not only that, but you take pride in being a leader. You take pride in, hey, the buck stops with me or everyone's counting on me, right? Can you talk about how that shaped your career professionally outside of sport and your family as well? Because I think that's something that a lot of people don't spend enough time embodying is you're a leader and there are people that count on you and there are moments where it's you and you've got to rise to the occasion.

22:03 Again, I'm not just talking sports there. Can you talk a little bit about that?

22:07 Yeah, I think um first of all, if you have influence over one person, you're a leader. So everybody got that crazy person in your family that likes you for no reason. So you're everybody's a leader, okay? And everybody has influence and opportunity to use it. And I would say this, when I was younger, I did it by example 100%. And I didn't know how to communicate with people. It wasn't a strength of mine. And my definition of how I led was a direct reflection of how I like to be led and how I responded to how I was led. So, I was firing brimstone and I was get your butt to the ball. I didn't use those language because I wasn't a believer when I was younger a lot of times. And so, I used a lot worse, but it was by challenging. It was by insults, you know, that was what I thought was leadership. That's what I saw from my coaches. And so, that's what I kind of emulated. As I've gotten older, I've

22:57 really learned the value of understanding who you are leading because not everybody's going to respond the same way. And it took me till having kids, Mick, to figure that out. I had a son who was totally different than me. He's my wife's personality to a tea. Nothing bothers Nicholas. Nothing. And he's just chill and everything's fine and it's going to be okay. And I'm like, "What is this alien? Sweet baby Jesus, what am I doing?" Like, God, what did you give me? And so really like coaching kids and six-year-old kids with football and seven-year-old kids and starting to see the different personalities and and really what makes people tick and then pouring to them individually and then then you realize, oh man, you can get to know and now I think more than ever like understanding they've got to know you care about them. They have to know you care about them. When they know you care about them, you really have a position

23:51 of authority with people and you can speak to them. And then nowadays, I think with kids especially, just they got to know the why. Back in the day, Mick, back in our day, back in your day, daddy said, "Dig a hole." You freaking dug a hole. Like, you went and dug a hole. Yeah. Now, like, if I said that to my 16-year-old son, be like, "Why? Why? Why am I digging a hole?" I'm like, "Man, I said go dig a hole." You know? I mean, so I think teaching them first of all showing up, being an example, understanding who you're leading, leading with humility, leading with with character, and leading with standards over feelings. Like knowing that I got a guy that like when that dude checks in, man, he's the same. If everything's raised to a 10 right now, he's he's still the same. If it's at a one, he's the same. So those are things that that I've learned along the way. I wish id have learned them when I was younger and

24:43 I think I'd have been a lot more effective. But I think God still teaching me things in my journey of learning how to lead kids to middle schoolers to high school kids to grown-ups.

24:53 Yeah. I love that that parallel that you talked about us growing up. Dad, mom, whoever tells you to go do something, you just go do it. Probably going to do it wrong, but you're going to figure it out. And I think our parents expected us to just kind of figure it out right now. And I can say this with my sons and they'll they'll laugh at me. I'm not I'm not talking bad about you, Jay Cayman. But you tell them to go do something, you get the why, then you get the how, and then it's like a whole bunch of questions, and then they go to YouTube.

25:22 I'm like, dude, just figure it out. They look at it, and then just figure it out. But like it it's different, man. And so, you're right. As a leader, you have to understand those things. And you hit it on the head. I tell people leadership is a four-letter word. C A R E. And if you start there, if you start with care, everything manifests the way that it's supposed to be because it's a new era of life. And totally to me, it's about humans showing humans that you care and then everything else will follow. But if they don't believe in you, that you care for them, their best interest, and their journey, like nothing else will happen.

26:01 Nope. They're not going to give you their best. No. No. You know, David, I could talk to you forever. I feel like there's there's a lot that we haven't uncovered yet. and and I don't want to hold your time because I know you are a very busy human being. But I do want to talk about another thing I admire about you is your ability to overcome, right? Because life is never easy. Life never goes the way that we plan it. We can plan out the most amazing tomorrow and in about 10 minutes we got to reshift, right? But you've had to do that with a few things, right? So we're talking about football career. We're talking about how did you say it? What happened at ESPN? You were let go. Fired. You had Say that again.

26:43 Fired. My mom My mama Nick knows this. My mama would be like, "Man, you were let go." I was like, "Stop." She goes, "Stop telling people you were fired." I was like, "Mama, they told me to go away and not come back, so you can spin it however you want, mama. Like, fired, let go, whatever." They said, "Go away. We don't want you anymore." So, yeah. tech stopped.

27:06 Unfortunately, Mick, I got a lot of experience with that. And I think I think sometimes people just like you introduced me with so many accolades and things that I've been successful at. Dude, I've failed all along the way. I mean, I have failed so much more than I have succeeded. And I like to share those because those are real. And I think God has used every single one of them. Like, you don't have the success without the failure. And so for us, learning how to deal with failure, learning how to deal with adversity is huge. Kid, teenager, adult, senior citizen, like we have to understand if you're not in a storm. If you're not in adversity, it's coming. It's not if, it's when. And so, you know, for me, I I got it in high school when I was a sophomore in high school. I didn't play varsity. I didn't play JV cuz I was kind of stuck between two worlds. I had a dream. I told you, Mick, I had a dream

27:58 of playing in the NFL. I was giving up all these things. Got frustrated, got ticked off in a moment. Then I quit. Just dro I quit. And guess what? I had a coach, Eddie Shadex, who believed in me and saw something in me before I did. And he's like, "Hey man, just come work out. We'll do some curls and we'll get pretty for the girls." I'm like, "Deal, cool. I'm in." And then all of a sudden, I grow. And then all of a sudden, I get stronger and stronger and stronger. And now football's really fun when you're the hammer, not the nail. And so like he believed in me, but I had to face that adversity to learn to work and to grow and to get bigger and stronger. And then it was I knew what it was like to succeed, but I also knew what it was like to fail. And you know, same thing at Georgia, switching three positions in three years or in one year, one calendar year. I think nowadays it's easy and

28:43 some of us are like, "No, I'm this. I think my goal is this. I think I'm that." You have no clue. Like there are going to be things that change along the way. Are you willing to see it adapt and adjust and be great where you're at? Like if you're in a job right now and your job is to get coffee, do it to the best of your ability. Like crush it. Do it to a point where somebody looks at you in the company like, man, they do that with joy. They do that with something a little bit different, man. Like that's how we've got to approach those things. Because when we hit that adversity, when it comes to you, how do I respond? What does my response look like? Because here's what I've learned from adversity every single dagum time.

29:21 17th pick in the NFL draft. I'm making my NFL dream come true that I dreamed about since I was 6 years old. I'm doing it. Like exactly what I wanted to do. One play, bam, broken neck.

29:34 Yeah. Done. Gone. Like, you know what I learned in that one moment? I learned that that one moment led to two years of rehab and two years of recovery and a lot of grind. And I went from a healthy body that was strong as crud that could do anything I wanted to do to a guy that could do very little with a halo in my skull and couldn't lift weights. I benched 455 in college when I got out of my neck brace and I got cleared to lift. I benched 135 twice and it looked like this. Shaking like this. What's inside of you? What's next? Am I going to quit?

30:10 Am I going to roll over? No. Every day. What can I do today to get me better? what are my goals today? And really that's when it started developing for me for every day counts. That was my mantra. And I started texting myself the night before and I started just say I will not go to bed without these three things done like this is going to get done. And that was most of those by the way then were physical because I was trying to get my body back to some assortments of of normaly and then it turned into spiritual and then it turned into like family related as simple as like hey I'm going to tell my baby girl today three times that I love her and it's a small goal but like I had to start developing those systems and those small goals so I could get wins. So now, man, here's the thing. We serve a God that is so big and so great and a God that tells us in the scripture that he is for us. He didn't say he's for us

31:03 when you're getting a raise or he's for us when things are going the way you want them to go. He's for us all the time. He wants good things for us. And so when I go through a challenged man and something's hard, good. What is God going to teach me in this moment? There's something that I need to learn in this moment. There's something that's coming my way. Like my NFL career gone. College Game Day. Fantastic. This is awesome. Got to travel the country and go see all the different schools and got to be do things that I never thought I would get to do. I got to do that. Gone.

31:35 I'm not crying cuz it's over. Now I'm smiling because it happened. Like I'm I'm so thankful that that happened. I got to do that. I can't imagine what God has for me next. Like whatever it is, I know it's good. and and all those situations, man. I can take all those different individual adversity moments and I can tell you like with my neck and and I'll close with that. Like with my neck, like I'm a better dad right now because I broke my neck. I'm a better husband because I broke my neck. I'm a I'm better I'm a better friend. I'm a better son. Like cuz God said, "Slow down. Be still." And my relationship with God was one way when I had time.

32:14 Like I I'll talk to you. Yeah. Yeah. I I I got a little bit of I got a little bit of time between team meetings. I got a little bit of time. I'm running here, running there. Got a little bit of time to talk to you. It's really hard to hear from God when you don't sit still and listen to him.

32:28 Yeah. Like a relationship requires talking back and forth and communication back and forth. Show me your girlfriend that you have when you don't communicate with her. I would argue they don't exist. It doesn't happen. So I really, the Bible says, "Be still and know that I am God." And I got to do that in those situations. And then God's taking me to the next step and the next step and the next step and teaching me all these different things about me, about my family, those in my life who are in my my life for the right reasons. And it's really gotten me ready to be a dad, man.

32:58 and to be able to handle some of those moments with my kids with adversity and to show them and to teach them what it looks like and how we've used those things in a positive way and how God brings those trials and those tribulations for us to grow, for us to learn and to depend on him and he will get us through every single situation. Brother, I could do this all day. I could literally be inspired and moved by David Pollock all day. So, I just want to thank you number one for taking the time, but like I said earlier, man, just thank you for being the dude that you are.

33:33 Well, thank you, man, for having me on. Thank you for you drove all the way to me, you know, not too long ago and spent some time with me helping me on this speaking stuff. So, I'm getting my organized Mick plan on. Okay. Like Mick has a has a has a schedule and he's he's helping the ADD dude kind of all right, let's streamline this. Let's think about this. Think about this. So, I appreciate you, big dog. And I I love the message, man. Just keep we're keeping spreading the good news, man. The good news of of Jesus, the good news of leadership and and plugging in and and helping our communities get better.

34:04 Amen to that. Amen to that. And before we wrap up, what do you have coming up next? I know you're you're getting out on the speaker circuit so people can get access to you. But where can people find you, follow you, and what do you have going on?

34:17 Yeah, man. We got good bit going on right now. It's crazy what what God does again with different turns. I wrote a children's book. Like we already talked about the dumb people are on defense. So dumb people don't write. So sat down and got still and wrote a children's book about the whole message you just heard. By the way, it was very much in that vein. Like life is hard. That's what I use in the book, the three H's. It's hard, it's hot, and it hurts. Football does. Life does. And so it's the won't quit kid. And so it's literally a story of perseverance and teaching parents like how do we help them when they say it's hard like structure the next day and let's go attack today and let's build these little goals. So it's kind of very similar to my lifestyle but the speaking you know uh you can hit me on any of my social stuff with X or with Instagram or whatever they are whatever those fun socials are. And uh I have uh

35:06 my my website now davidpollock.com and uh the speaking is is fun Mick. you know, I've talked to you about that and just I just love being able to share my message and my failures and adversity and successes and some of those ways to get in touch with people cuz I love being around them. So, I think no matter what I do, whether it's coaching and commentating or whatever, speaking is something that will always be a big part of my life.

35:28 You got it, man. I'll make sure we have links to all of that in the description and show notes. And for all the the organizations, the nonprofits, your next speaker needs to be David Pollock. I put my stamp on that for sure. Like I said, I know a lot of you listening and watching have got chills through various moments of this conversation. That is how he leaves every audience and he leaves you on fire with action plans. So, he's not just going to talk to you about a story. He's going to give you things that you can start doing that moment to have a better life, to have better structure, to create standards.

36:05 And David, that's why I love you, brother. So, thank you. Appreciate my man. Thank you so much for having me on. Thanks you all for for all your help as well.

36:11 You got it. And for all the listeners and viewers, remember your because is your superpower. Go unleash it.

36:20 Thank you for tuning in to Mick Unplugged. Keep pushing your limits, embracing your purpose, and chasing greatness. Until next time, stay unstoppable.

Questions about this episode

What is "Standards Over Feelings: David Pollack’s Playbook for Success in Life" about?

David Pollock emphasizes the importance of maintaining high standards over fluctuating feelings, advocating that consistent effort and a positive attitude allow individuals to surpass the majority of their peers. He highlights that true leadership stems from influence, acknowledging that personal failures are part of the journey toward success, and encourages a mindset that prioritizes…

What is mentioned in this Mick Unplugged Podcast episode?

62 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including David Pollock, adversity, Church, The three H's, Mick Unplugged, All American. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "Standards Over Feelings: David Pollack’s Playbook for Success in Life"?

The episode runs 37 min; the transcript is about 7,757 words in 71 timestamped sections.

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