Yes, I can. Yes, we can!

Who's excited about the competition? All right, so let me ask you this question: Who's going to win the competition? All right, great, great, great. So do you really, really believe that, or are you just raising your hand? Like you really, really believe that, right? Like how many of you really, really, really, really believe that?

Raise your hand.

All right, so let me ask you this question: How many of you like really, really, really know for a fact? That you guys are going to win tomorrow. So I noticed we lost some people along the way there. So let's kind of go back and hit the rewind button, and let's try that one more time. So how many of you really know for a fact that tomorrow you guys are going to win the competition? There we go. All right, great, great, great. So What I'm gonna do is I'm gonna ask you if you will look at the person sitting next to you and repeat after me. Say, you are special.

You are special.

You have greatness on your life.

You have greatness on your life.

You can do all things.

You can do all things.

Nothing is impossible.

Nothing is impossible.

You are a champion.

You are a champion.

And we are winners!

We are winners!

Give yourself a round of applause.

Give yourself a round of applause.

So let me, let me start out by saying I believe in you guys. I believe in you guys, and I haven't known you that long, but I've been observing you since I've been here, and I really see greatness on your life. And I want to tell you something, you can do whatever you set your heart to do. All things are possible. All things are possible. I'm a living testament to all things being possible. And I won't go too far into my story, but my name is Rico Sharp. I'm a motivational speaker and I travel the world speaking, motivating people. I motivate people from college campuses, schools, churches, corporations, workplace. I motivate people in the federal government. I speak to students like your age. And for 33 years, I've been a motivational speaker. For 33 years. I just a couple of weeks ago, I did some motivational speaking for a homeless organization in downtown Orlando. Next Thursday, I'll be right back up this way motivating some students in a college. I go around the world motivating people. That's what I do. That's what I wake up for every single morning. And so when I heard about you guys having this this wonderful organization going here, this wonderful network and nucleus. I said, you know, I would love to be a part of that. And I heard about your school and/or your gym and everyone that's a part of it. I got a chance to meet Evan and got a chance to meet— is it Yashira? I'm the only messed up from there. Jocelyn, which is The owner for the gym, and I got a chance to do a little research on you guys, and you guys have a lot going for you. And so I really do believe that you're going to win your competition tomorrow, but not just win the competition tomorrow. I believe that you can win every single competition that you have to take and that you have what it takes to be the champions at the end when all this is said and done. Do you believe that?

Yes.

I believe that too. And so I want you to do one more thing for me. I want you to repeat after me. Put your hand right here and say, I am special.

I am special.

I have greatness.

I have greatness in my life. In my life.

All things are possible.

All things are possible.

I am an achiever.

I am an achiever.

I believe in me.

I believe in me.

I believe in our team.

I believe in our team.

And I also believe.

And I also believe.

That we're going to win.

That we're going to win.

This championship competition.

This was championship competition.

Do you believe that?

Yes.

All right, one more time, give yourself a round of applause. So I want to talk to you today on a subject called give it all you've got. Give it all you've got. You know, when you're a part of a team, you have to come in with the understanding that my teammates need me. They need me to be 100% dedicated. They need me to fully understand my role and my position. And that's, that's what it's like when you're trying to do something great, when you're trying to accomplish something great. You have to know that you're a team player and that you have what it takes to make this team a championship team. Like, you're not just competing, but you're competing to win. Am I right about it?

Yes, sir.

You want to win. You want your hand raised in the end, right? You want to be the ones that take home the banner that says state championship or whatever level you're competing on. And so you got to believe that you have every single thing that it takes. Let me get a drink of this water. That you have everything that it takes.

Need a little bit.

When you think about The challenges that lies ahead and the other teams. And I heard there's some other teams out there. I heard there's some other competitors that's pretty good in the area. But I believe that regardless of who you have to fight, face, confront, or challenge, or compete against, that you have what it takes to be the winners.

Yes.

And that's what we want to talk about today. What can you do to be the winner? What can you do to guarantee yourself that you're going to win this competition? The first thing is you gotta want it badder than the other people. You have to want it. Like, you have to really, really, really, really want it. So you build up the mindset that this is what I want, right? This is what I'm putting my energy and my time into. This is what I'm breathing. This is what I think about. This is what I dream about. This is my passion. This is what I want to do, and I want to do it and give it everything that I have to give. Are you with me so far? Can you agree with that?

Yes.

And so you realize that no matter what's going on with another team, we're not focused on them. We're focused on ourselves. And so when you think about giving it all you've got, there's 2 points of views I want to make. Number one, you got to have a yes, I can attitude, and that's for every single one of you. You got to have a yes, I can attitude. Say this with me, yes, I can.

Yes, I can.

And then what does that mean? That means that yes, I can contribute to the team success. Yes, I can give all I have to give to this team. Yes, I can make sure that I'm, I'm doing my part. Yes, I can give my time. Yes, I can give my attention. Yes, I can give my energy. Yes, I can give my heart to this team. And then secondly, it's yes, we can. Can you say that with me? Yes, we can.

Yes, we can.

So what does that mean? That means that we as a team, we have what it takes to be the champions. We have what it takes to win. We have what it takes to rise above adversity. We have what it takes to be the ones that finish first, right? We have what it takes. We can overcome any challenges that we may face. And there will be challenges that you face though. You know, sometimes you face challenges where you may not feel like giving your best for that day because you may feel like, well, I'm tired, or, or my foot is hurting, or my ankle is hurting. And you may feel like, well, there's something, some things on my mind. Maybe I need to focus on something else other than focusing on my, my commitment to my team. But no, that you, you gotta have a yes, we can attitude every single time you go to the gym, every single time you practice. Every single time you compete, you gotta have a yes, I can, I can do my part, and yes, we can, we can win this thing. All right, let's try that one more time. Yes, I can.

Yes, I can.

And yes, we can.

Yes, we can.

All right, let's, let's put a little bit more behind it. Yes, I can.

Yes, I can.

Yes, we can.

Yes, we can.

All right, and then secondly, cheerleading is a team sport. There's going to be some times where you may get banged up a little bit, and when you get banged up and you get hurt a little bit, or you feel a certain way, sometimes you may feel like, oh, I can't really give 100% right now. But remember, you're competing against other kids. They want to win. They want to win just as bad as you do. So you got to ask yourself, what is it about us that's going to guarantee That we can do better than them? Because they want it too. They want to be the state champions. They want to be the regional champions. They want to win in the end. How can we guarantee that we're going to be the ones that beat every team out that we have to compete against? You do it by making a commitment to yourselves and to one another, and then you stick with that commitment. And you don't let pain, you don't let tiredness, you don't let other distractions get in the way. You stay focused on what you want to accomplish. You know what the end result is, and you work toward that, and you don't deviate from that. You know, like when you're going to school, you get time off for holidays, right? You get the weekends off, right? There are different times where, like, you're just out of school because it's teacher's workday. Well, when you're working to compete, when you're working to be the champions, when you're working to be the best, you don't get time off. You can't have a bad day. You can't have a moment where you say, I don't feel like competing, I don't feel like practicing. You don't get to have that. You have to stay there when you're, when you're practicing, and you've got to give it all you've got to give. You got to give it 100%. every single time. Because the people down the street from you, they're giving it 100% every single time. And I understand that there's a school or, or a gym that you're competing against and they're pretty good. Is that right?

Yeah.

And they've, they've been winning quite a bit. Is that right?

Yes.

So what are you going to do that is going to give you an advantage over them? You bring your full mind, your attention span, right? You bring your heart, your passion. You bring your energy. You bring everything that you have to offer when you show up to practice every single time. How often do you show up to practice and give your all? Every single time. How often do you show up to practice and you put everything that you have? into your practice every single time. Say this with me, every single time. Are you, are you going to commit to that?

Yes.

Like every single time. Say it one more time, every single time. So you believe that you can win, and I ask you who's going to win, and do you believe you're going to win? after the competition is over tomorrow? And everyone raised their hand. So that means you have the faith in yourself. Now you just got to follow through with the commitment to make that happen. And you do it by competing with all your heart. You put everything into it, and you do it every single time. One more time. Every single time. Okay, so look at the person sitting next to you And say we're going to give our all every single time. Sounding good. I like that. So each and every one of you must fully understand that when you're part of a team, it's not about you as an individual as much as it is about a team. Corporately or collectively. In other words, we matters, and what we want to do together and what we want to accomplish together, it matters. Will there be moments where you need attention and you need talking to and you need time to kind of recalibrate and get your, your focus back? Yes. But when you're a team, you got to stay together as a team. You got to stick together as a team.

Mm-hmm.

You got to work together as a team, and you got to put your all in as a team. Because when you win, you win as a team, right?

Mm-hmm.

And when you compete, you compete as a team, right?

Mm-hmm.

Okay, and so when they hand you a trophy or whatever type of award you get for winning, that is a team's award. And so let me say this to you. And I want you to really focus on building even closer relationships with each other and realize that you're not just a team, but you're actually a family. You're actually a family. And you're not just teammates, but you're more like sisters. Okay? Can you see that? Can you agree with me on that?

Yes.

Okay, so do this with me. Look at the person sitting next to you and tell them, you're my sister.

You're my sister.

Okay, so look at someone else and tell them, you're my sister.

You're my sister.

Okay, look at someone else and tell them, you're my sister.

You're my sister. You're my sister. You're my sister. You're my sister. You're my sister. You're my sister. You're my sister. You're my sister. You're my sister.

And so as sisters, you have a special and a unique relationship, right? As sisters, you're there for one another. As sisters, you support one another. As sisters, you believe in one another. As sisters, you like one another. As sisters, you have each other's back. As sisters, you stand together and you let nothing come in between your sisterhood. Do you believe that?

Yes.

Do you receive that?

Yes.

Okay, take a moment right there and give your sister a clap. All right, so let me tell you something about winning. Winning is more than just competing. Winning, in fact, is more than a result. Winning is an attitude. Winning is something that has to be in your mindset as a mentality. Let me just say to you right now, you haven't competed yet because tomorrow haven't come, but you're all winners. Each and every one of you, you're winners. And I need you to start realizing that we are winners. We are winners right now sitting here on this couch. We are winners. And so everything that we do, we do it with a winning attitude. Everywhere we go, we go with a winning attitude. Every time we compete, we compete with a winning attitude. Winning is more than a result. Most people who win championships, whether it's in cheerleading, whether it's in soccer, football, basketball, baseball, hockey, they have to have a winning mindset long before their hands are raised at the end of the competition. So I want you to start now seeing yourself as a winner. I want you to start now declaring over your life that I am a winner. Maybe when you get home, you can write down on a piece of paper and put it on your your dresser window or mirror and say, "I'm a winner." Can you look at your sister and tell your sister you are a winner?

You are a winner.

Okay, look at someone else and tell them you are a winner.

You are a winner.

Okay, look at someone else and tell them you are a winner. You are a winner.

You are a winner. You are a winner. Good job!

So winning requires hard work. Winning requires commitment and dedication every single day. So you may practice 3 or 4 days a week, but I need you to have a winning mindset and a winning attitude 7 days a week.

Mm-hmm.

When you're in school, I need you to have a winning attitude. When you're practicing at the gym, I need you to have a winning attitude. When you're doing your homework at home, I need you to have a winning attitude. When you're celebrating Christmas, I need you to have a winning attitude. When you're at the playground or the park playing, I need you to have a winning attitude. When you're sitting in the backseat of the car with the seatbelt strapped around you, I need you to have a winning attitude. When you don't feel good, I need you to have a winning attitude. When you feel like crying, I need you to cry with a winning attitude. When you feel like pouting and complaining because you're tired and you don't want to get up in the morning to get dressed for school, I school need you to have a winning attitude. because you worked hard and you practiced hard that day, the day before, I need you to get up and get dressed anyway because Mommy's not gonna let you stay home, Dad's not gonna let you stay home, but I need you to complain and pout with a winning attitude.

All right?

So winning is in everything. Winning is in everything. Say this with me, a winning attitude—

A winning attitude—

Is in everything I do.

Is in everything I do.

Okay, so let me ask this question. How many winners am I talking to here today? Which of you are winners?

How many winners?

We got 1 winner, 2 winners, 3 winners, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. Okay, too many to count. So all of you are winners, right?

Yes.

Okay, so let me hear what a winning cheer sounds like. Like, let's say tomorrow when you go, you're going to win, right? We know that for a fact, right? So let's get a little practice on your winning cheer. What is your winning cheer going to sound like tomorrow? Let me listen to it a little bit. On the count of 3. 1, 2, 3.

Okay. All right.

Okay. So let me ask you this question. Is it possible— because, you know, you guys are cheerleaders, so your vocal cords are pretty much developed. You guys are cheerleaders. So is it possible that you can get a little bit higher than that with your cheer in terms of winning, right? Not just competing, but winning, right? Not just practicing, but winning. So one more time, on the count of 3, let me hear your best winning cheer. 1, 2, 3! That was pretty good.

That was pretty good. I felt that in my eardrum.

That was pretty good. I'm not changed. I'm going to the final 8.

The first time I was in the gym with my daughter, she was like, no, it's gonna fly out.

So, so, so here, here's something that's very important. When you, when you compete, you're going through a show and tell, right? You're showing the world who you are. You're showing the world that you live. You're showing the world that you exist. You're showing the world your greatness. You're showing the world what you're made of. You're showing the world that Brandon All-Star Cheers, that we are here. We are here to take over. We are here to win. We are here to compete. We are here to dominate the sport. We're not here to finish second. We're not here to finish third. We're here because we've come to take over. You see, that's the kind of attitude that you got to have when you step out there tomorrow to compete. That we are here to show the world that we belong here, that this is our spot in life, this is our place. We're stepping out there because we believe in ourselves. We know that we have what it takes to win, and we want the whole world to know what we know. We're going to let the world in on our secret. And so you got to step out there tomorrow, and every time you compete with the mindset and the attitude that I am showing the world who I am. We are showing the world who we are. Can you say that with me? We're going to show the world.

We're going to show the world.

Who we are.

Who we are.

So, so do you believe in yourself that you have something that the world needs to learn about you? Do you believe that you have something that the world needs to discover about you and your passion and your talent for cheering? Because if you do, then it's time to show the world what you have. It's time to show the world your talent. It's time to show the world that we can compete, and not only compete, but we can win, because we are winners. And when you walk into the gym tomorrow to compete, you walk in as winners. And when you go through the motion and the exercise of competing, you go through it as winners. And if you're winners going in, guess what? You're winners coming out. If you're winners when you take the mat, you're going to be winners when you take your seat. If you're winners when you stand up, you're going to be winners when you sit down. So you go in tomorrow to show the world that we are the winners. We're the ones that is going to win not just this competition, but every single competition. Because we have what it takes. And how do we guarantee ourselves that we're going to be the winners tomorrow? Because we're already winners. So if we're already winners, we can't lose. We have to go in with the attitude that I'm not here to lose, I'm not here to finish second, I'm not here to just go through the motions and compete. Like, I really, really want this. So if Santa came to me and said, Rico, what do you want for Christmas? Then I'm going to say, I want to win in life. So if Santa came to you and said, what do you want for Christmas? I want to win in life. So when I go to compete, I'm going to compete because I want to show the world I want to win in life. Can you say this with me? I want to win in life.

I want to win in life.

And I'm going to win in life.

And I'm going to win in life.

Because I am a winner.

Because I am a winner.

Do you believe that?

Yes.

Okay, so give yourself a round of applause one more time. Okay, so now one last thing before we do something just a little bit different. I want to give you a chance to ask questions. There is this team of cheerleaders from out of Australia, and they won the international championship in 2023. They even beat out the USA team.

Oh, wow.

And they have a very remarkable story, and their story is that they only had 3 weeks To practice and prepare for the championship because of some things that kind of got in the way. And they were not really guaranteed to win the championship. The United States had really won for several years and was guaranteed to be the champions. This team was the underdog. Kind of like the team that's down the street from you guys That's been winning every year. See, they're not thinking that you guys are going to win. You got to sneak up on them and show them we're taking your crown from you. And yet this team from Australia, all-woman team, they won first place. They won the gold, and their co-ed team won the silver. Listen, it doesn't matter what challenges lies ahead of you if you believe in yourself If you believe in one another and you do every single thing that it takes to compete and to practice and to do what no one else has done, you can win. There's another team out of Ithaca, New York that also had some setbacks. They needed to raise $36,000. When they started, they didn't even have a coach for their team. It was just a bunch of girls that believed in themselves. And they wanted to compete. They believed that they could win. They too were underdogs. And when they stood up to make a vow that we're going to win and we're going to bring home the championship, nobody could stand in their way. They had some injuries to come that really threw them off course. Some of them had a real fear of some of the flips and the stunts that they had to take, but they did it. They challenged themselves. They worked hard. They believed in one another. They gave each other the support, and then they competed. And when they competed, they won. And you know what? If they can do it in Australia, you can do it here in Riverview. If they can do it at Ithaca, Ithaca, you can do it here too. Doesn't really matter what your challenges are, as long as you stay close together and you focus and you give your heart to this and you put in the work and you work hard every single time. You may be considered the underdog when you're going up against other teams, but the underdogs are the ones who have the best story because they overcome the odds. They overcome adversity. And you may have some things that you feel like kind of stands in the way right now. You may have some things that you feel like that is challenging, and you're going against some great teams. You may be the underdog, but the underdogs are the ones that shocks the world. The underdogs are the ones that let the world know what they're made of. And so what I need you to do is to really take this to heart and consider that nobody's expecting for us to beat this other team, but we're going to surprise them. We're going to show them that even though we're considered to be the underdogs, we're gonna rise up and become the big dog. Am I right about it?

Yes.

We're gonna become the big dog on the block that takes the crown from the other team and bring the crown home To our gym. Do you believe you can do it?

Yes.

So if you believe you can do it, say yes I can.

Yes I can.

Yes we can.

Yes we can.

And look at your sister and say you got what it takes.

You got what it takes.

Look at somebody else and tell them I believe in you.

I believe in you.

And look at one more person and say you've got it going on.

You've got it going on.

Now give yourself a round of applause.

Thank you.

So, so there is this quote that I have that I want to share with you, and it goes a little something like this: Always reach for the moon, because even if you miss, you will land among the stars. Be willing to work hard and be on top, because it's the bottom that's overcrowded. Most people fail in life not because they aim too high and miss, But because they aim too low and hit— they set their goals too low. Be willing to do today things that others won't do so that you can have tomorrow things that others won't have. So be willing to practice today harder than the other teams so that your hands can be raised higher than the other team. Understand That when tough times come, tough people like you, tough girls like you, you rise up and you get going. Knowing that your attitude towards life determines life attitude toward you. So your attitude towards winning and competing determines winning attitude toward you. So think sharp. Plan sharp, work hard, believe in yourself, and give it all you've got. Because in the end, when it's all said and done, you win and you bring home the crown. You bring home the championship. Do you believe that?

Yes.

Say, I believe that.

I believe that.

Okay, so now I want you to say it like you really, really, really mean it. Say, I believe it.

I believe it!

And we're going to achieve it!

And we're going to achieve it!

That's great, I like that. One more time, give yourself a round of applause. Now what I want to do is give you a chance to ask questions. This is the Q&A part, and so if you have any questions for me about life, about winning, Any questions for me about anything that you may find as a challenge in your life or challenge with competing? This is your opportunity to ask questions. All questions are smart questions. All right, so who's going to go first? Don't everybody raise their hand at the same time. Do you have any questions, y'all?

Think of one. Okay, think about something that we struggle with at practice, or you know some challenges you face, or something that's hard for you in your full out. Like ask him about mental tips or anything.

Anybody?

I'm gonna give you a little time.

You got a little time.

You got a little time.

Think of a question. What's hard for you? What's challenging for you?

Keep going. Well, not just me, but I feel like almost everyone on team.

Maybe pyramid, like the pyramid. Like I feel like because in pyramid we don't have like enough confidence that we can do it because it's like the end of our routine and we're all tired. So like doing it is like a struggle for us, and I think that if we all put our mind to it, that we can do it, and that we're not tired, then like. We could hit it like better and have it consistent.

So understand this and wrap your minds around this. Anything great is going to be hard and challenging, and if it's hard and challenging, then it's going to cost you a lot of energy, time, commitment, dedication. And if you're going to be better than the other teams that has figured out how to master these moves and these stunts, then you got to do things not only what they're doing, but you got to do things they're not doing too. You got to do even better things. Like, what's going— what's the difference between you and the other team? If they're doing pyramids and you're finding pyramid as a challenge, then how are you going to beat them? Do you understand what I'm saying?

Mm-hmm.

So you've got to really focus on getting this done. So it's a matter of confidence in yourself. And some of the— you know, I watch you guys. I watch some videos of you guys and some of the flips and the stunts and the acrobatic movements that you're doing. And it's very impressive, very impressive. I can tell you this much. I can't do it. But it's very impressive. And I know it's challenging, but you got to think about it. If we're going to be the best, and we are, then we got to not only perfect the pyramid, but whatever is next, we got to do that too. So it's all up here, right? It starts with your mindset. It starts with you telling yourself, I can do this. It starts with you believing in yourself. It starts with you challenging yourself. And so every so often, you got to do things that's very hard, and you got to do it to a point where it's no longer hard. It's like second nature. You can do it. Do you believe it?

Yes.

How many of you believe you can do the pyramid? And how many of you are going to perfect the pyramid? Great. Good job.

Good job.

Okay, next question. What else is hard or challenging for you? What else is difficult?

I have a question. How can I, as a teammate, help hold my teammates accountable in a respect— like, in a respectful way that doesn't maybe offend them, but it really motivates them to be better? Like, how can I stay focused, and how can I keep my teammates on track and make sure I'm not a problem when it comes to focusing at practice?

2 answers. Number one, remembering that it's not about me, but it's about us. And then secondly, asking yourself, why am I on the team? What's my why? I'm on the team to win. I'm on the team to make sure that I give all that I have to give to competing So that we together as a team can win. So you want to hold the other person accountable, you want to hold your teammate accountable in a respectful way. That's a right that you have, but you do it by reminding them that we are a team. And if I see you slacking, if I see you not trying, if I see you just kind of like getting distracted and losing your focus, because we are a team, I have the right to come to you in a respectful, loving way like a sister and remind you that it's about a team effort. It takes teamwork to make the dream work. We're not just a team, but we're the dream team. We have a dream for our team. We want to win. And I have to say to my other sister, I want you to give your all. I know you can do it, right? And another good thing is always encourage your sister. Always tell her what she can do. Don't focus on what you can't do. Focus on what you can do. Tell your sister, you can do this. You've got this. If it's a flip that they may not feel confident about, if it's a landing they may not feel confident about, if it's something that seems to be challenging, let them know, you got this. I believe in you.

Let—

in fact, let's try that. Look at somebody and tell them, you got this.

You got this.

You can do this.

You can do it.

I believe in you.

I believe in you.

I know you can do it.

I know you can do it.

Because you have what it takes.

Because you have what it takes. Great, great, great.

Do you understand that?

Yes.

So because it's about winning, right? So at every given moment, you put your all into it and you don't let anybody like just come and not put their all into it. You encourage them. If there's something they need to talk about, sit down and talk with them. If there's a problem you need to work through, sit down and work through it. If there's an adult you need to bring into the equation, then do that. But don't let your sister down. She needs your support. She needs your confidence in her. She needs your affirmation. She needs you to tell her that she can do it. She needs you to believe in her and to give her the support that she needs. Is that good?

Yeah.

All right, cool, cool. Any other questions from the kids or from the parents or from the coaches or from anybody? Great. Well, I've enjoyed my time here with you guys. Thank you so much for letting me come. I'm going to be following you guys and seeing how you guys are coming along. I want to know how you guys did tomorrow. I believe in you, so I'm already expecting for you to compete and win tomorrow. And I'm already looking forward to being able to stay in touch and continue to encourage and motivate you guys along the way. And I want to see you grow up and grow up and grow up and grow up and come up and come up and come up and come up, right? So how do you do that? You step it up, you step it up, you step it up, and you give it all you've got. Thank you so much. My name is Rico Sharp. I really appreciate