Barkley offers his ‘steps for success’

The book is aimed at players, parents and coaches, and gives them a guide on how to succeed.

“It’s a conversation with parents, coaches and, mainly, the student-athlete that gives them a good idea that, if you want to be successful in high school, you’re not going to do everything perfect, but have that success, this is how you do it,” Barkley said. “It goes through a step-by-step approach. It talks about struggle and triumph through adversity and still overcoming. I realize in hindsight that as I wrote the book that it was because of those steps that got me through to achieve my goals. I wanted to share those with young people because I have a heart for them, and as a parent and a coach, I know what they go through so I wanted to help them also.”

The lessons Barkley preaches throughout his book don’t just come from a career mentoring and coaching teenagers. His steps to success began as a youth in Florida.

“As I grew up, the things my parents taught me, once I got old enough to make my own decisions for the most part, even when my parents weren’t around and weren’t able to lead me in a way they used to, I still relied on those things I was taught at an early age from my mentors and parents,” Barkley said. “The main things were those steps I went through: Keeping God first; respecting authority; competing academically and trying my hardest in school; falling in love with the sport I wanted to be good at, not just talking about it, but applying myself on a daily basis; applying the three Ds – determination, discipline and dedication – to whatever I was trying to do; when the success came, handling that; and also staying away from those distractions that would have pulled me away from it. Those are the six steps I talk about in the book.”

Applying these steps wasn’t always easy. Barkley was cut from his middle school and high school basketball teams five times growing up in Orlando, Fla. From sixth through 10th grades, Barkley was told he wasn’t good enough to play. He used that as motivation.

“That’s the main thing I go by: persevere,” Barkley said. “That’s the one word that can get you through any situation. You’ve got to persevere. If you’ve ever felt like you may not be fast enough, strong enough or big enough, or you may not be the right color or from the right background or your parents don’t have all the money to provide, this is for you.

“Going through those trials, getting picked on and told I wasn’t good enough by my peers as well as coaches saying I just didn’t cut it, didn’t make me run from it. It made me run to it.”

Barkley’s parents divorced during his junior year and he moved to Daytona Beach, Fla. He watched as Vince Carter led Mainland High School to the state championship. Just a year later, it was Barkley leading the Buccaneers to a state title.

“It was a tough time, but it seemed like a blessing in disguise,” Barkley said. “I didn’t want to go to Daytona, but when I ended up there, I was at the school where they were the best team in the state at the time. That didn’t have an affect on me because I figured from my background I hadn’t made a basketball team before. I didn’t know if I would be good enough. But I just persevered and connected with the coach. He liked me. That didn’t mean he would put me on the team, but once he saw how hard I worked he started spending more time with me and helped me develop.”

Barkley developed into a collegiate player. He spent four years at Alabama-Huntsville. Barkley twice led the Chargers in rebounding and to their first NCAA Division-II tournament berth in 2000.

Barkley played professionally for the Harlem Ambassadors for two seasons, even coaching 40 games.

“When I played I was not going to be outworked,” Barkley said. “I was always going to work harder than anybody else I played against. That kept me on the court. I would lead the team in rebounds, charges or steals. I would get small points here and there, but they would add up…Across the board, I did the work no one else wanted to do. It was like that in high school, college and even when I played semi-pro basketball. I was a hard worker.”

It wasn’t until years later he realized it, but throughout his career as a player and a coach Barkley used those same six steps for success. One night after discussing those steps with a player, Barkley decided to write the steps down and put them in book form.

“The 6 Steps to Success for High School Student-Athletes: Becoming a Success in Sports and in Life” can be purchased at xulonpress.com, amazon.com, booksamillion.com or at Dove Christian Supply. Barkley will be at the Dove Christian Supply in Dothan Saturday from 9 until 11 a.m. to sign copies of his books and meet fans. Barkley will sign books and meet fans at the Enterprise store location Oct. 8 from 9 until 11 a.m.

Barkley wrote the book from an athletic perspective, but said the lessons would serve just as well in everyday life.

“That’s just my experience, because I have a lot of experience in sports,” Barkley said. “Definitely this can be (applied to life). It’s about kids relating to parents, dealing with problems kids face with peers or their social groups. There are all kinds of things students get into, whether they’re playing sports or not, that pull them away from their goals or dreams. I believe this book gives them a little bit of direction to see it’s not over. They just have to stay focused. The book crosses different boundaries of backgrounds because it speaks to the heart of someone and not necessarily their heads.”