The will to win is not nearly so important as the will to prepare to win.
The origination of this quote remains a mystery. I’ve seen it credited to Bear Bryant, Vince Lombardi, Bobby Knight and Joe Paterno. It’s been used countless times by motivational speakers. None of that matters to me.
What I find important is whom I heard spoke it last. On stage while accepting his Angler Of the Year trophy, Jacob Wheeler found the quote too good to pass up, as it best described much of the reason for his success.
Sounds reasonable.
Like most of the other attendees of the banquet, I listened to Wheeler casually at first. But the speech itself called to me. Following the event, I’d gain a copy to examine further, always wanting to learn more.
So, being raised in “a modest, hard-working household” in urban Indianapolis, Wheeler and his two sisters lived a life of chores and discipline. One of his finest memories was “saving enough money to take my whole family to a nice restaurant.”
Needless to say, materialism wasn’t in the Wheeler kids’ vocabulary. Later, Jacob would theorize that growing up on meager means helped steer him from temptation to want more. “It didn’t matter because I didn’t know any different. All I knew was that I wanted to fish.”
As a kid, Wheeler continued his daily grind, doing “schoolwork and chores for hours, just to earn 30 or 40 minutes of fishing time on the banks of the White River.” Winters were spent pitching jigs into a coffee can, open water unavailable.
Obsession is the only applicable word to describe Wheeler’s behavior as a young man.
In his late teens, Wheeler ran into the hurdle facing many anglers his age who aspire to compete. He was boat-less. Unwilling to give up his dream, Wheeler would head to the local boat dock for the weekly bass tournament, in hopes one of the anglers would pick him to partner. “But no one wanted to take 'The Kid', as I was called.”
Until, finally, someone did.
Here’s where I want to pause. Imagine that scene. A strange young kid rides his bike to your local weeknight derby. He hauls his rods and everything. There he waits, hopeful, awkward. Fighting that internal teenage mindset, trying not to look foolish, but wanting nothing more in the world than for someone to ask him to partner up. It’s his only chance. At the time, you, me; we’re too worried about taking time away from ourselves, having to help an inexperienced kid, costing ourselves a shot at the $60 in prize money.
But just look where it took that kid.
Anyway, back to our story.
As I said, Wheeler did get the invite from Bryan Johnson, a local FedEx driver who would become a lifetime friend. Not surprisingly, they won the tournament.
Shortly thereafter, Wheeler was fishing BFL events. His first tournament found Wheeler broke, a win-or-die moment where he again triumphed.
Next was the All-American. Another win. On to the FLW Tour, and an immediate Forrest Wood Cup title. In the course of just a couple of years, Wheeler went from saving all his money for a meal at a local restaurant to being able to buy the place with cash. No exaggeration.
Wheeler’s speech went on to cover what he believes are many of the reasons for his success.
“When you grow up like I did and a lot of responsibility gets put on your shoulders, self-reliance and resourcefulness come at an early age. I developed a sense of urgency in everything I did.
“I had to overcome a lot of adversity just to get to go fishing, and fishing is full of adversity itself. So when I did get to fish, I didn’t have time to cry over spilt milk because I was too busy figuring out how to make lemons into lemonade.
“The background of my upbringing, in turn, became fertile ground for my drive, determination, perseverance and intensive work ethic.”
Heavy stuff, really. It’s never easy to self-diagnose.
But that’s what Jacob Wheeler did in front of his peers and idols while accepting his AOY award. Surely, he didn’t have to, yet this check-in with reality may add another dimension to his winning persona.
Jacob Wheeler is currently the undisputed best tournament bass angler in the world. It will be interesting to watch him the next few years to see if his dogged determination continues. Drive has a tendency to wane once success is realized. Restrictions on time, appearances, a growing family; these all have pulled competitors away in the past. Will Wheeler continue to do what’s necessary to win?
Will he be able to look back and rekindle the fire he had standing on the boat dock, wondering when someone was finally going to ask him to tag along? With success and all the accolades, do memories of the early days still have the same effect? What of all the adversity?
I don’t think you ever forget that.
(Joe Balog is the often-outspoken owner of Millennium Promotions, Inc., an agency operating in the fishing and hunting industries. A former Bassmaster Open and EverStart Championship winner, he's best known for his big-water innovations and hardcore fishing style. He's a popular seminar speaker, product designer and author, and is considered one of the most influential smallmouth fishermen of modern times.)
