You get to take the field today.

There’s a story behind that.

This is your daily message from Chad number 1204 to upgrade your mental game today by telling yourself a better story, because the most important story you hear is the story you tell yourself. This message is dedicated to Ozzie Smith. Get a free copy of The Most Powerful Story in the World at fromchad.gumroad.com. The transcript of this message and hundreds of others are always available at http://www.fromchad.com.

Here’s the upgrade:

You may feel today is nothing special, but upgraded thinking knows being alive is the privilege you’ll never deserve and never stop receiving.

Here’s the story:

Ozzie Smith grew up in Watts, South Central Los Angeles. His family lived near a pallet factory. He’d use a plank between stacks of wood as a springboard, flipping into sawdust piles. His mother would catch him covered in dust. But the fearlessness stuck.

Years later, spring training 1978 with the San Diego Padres. He’s rookie and it’s been a long day of work outs. He’s the young guy near the back of the pack. To show he’s still got energy, he does a roundoff backflip. Fan Appreciation Day comes at the end of the season. Smith is asked to do a flip when he takes the field just like he did on the sawdust piles. He’s reluctant, he doesn’t want to seem like a hot dog, but he does it. People like it enough to ask him to do it again Opening Day.

Over time, the flip becomes a tradition. Opening Days. Postseason. All-Star Games. Even at 40 years old, on Opening Day 1995 and again in 1996 when the St. Louis Cardinals retired his uniform. Almost 20 years of flipping out over the game he loved and for the fans who supported him.

Years later, in his Hall of Fame speech, Smith reflects on his whole journey. He talks about the dream, the faith, the people who believed in him, the courage to get back up after being knocked down. Steve Dintaman, writing about the culture of baseball, captured what Smith understood: “Watching some guys take the field is painful. It’s an honor to play baseball. Run on the field like you want to be here.”

That’s what Ozzie Smith did. He ran on that field like he wanted to be there. Because he understood something simple: being able to run onto the field is a privilege. The better story to tell yourself is, “Every day is a privilege.” You don’t have to do a back flip when you get out of bed, but you can flip your attitude, by recognizing today is special because you get to be here.

Send me a story of someone who acknowledged the privilege of what they got to do. You can email me at fromchadsmith@gmail.com. Send someone a text today and tell them, “What is one thing that makes today special?”