This is an iHeart podcast. Guaranteed human. Spending time outdoors, then let's talk about skin cancer. Non-melanoma skin cancers, or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are the most common cancers in the U.S. and can become harder to treat if left undetected.
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This is a job for Indeed Sponsored Jobs. Whether it's help with hormone therapy, weight management, or sexual health, every woman should have access to affordable prescription medication and personalized care that understands the whole woman. Join me, Dr. Doug Lucas, clinical lead of hormone optimization and longevity at LifeMD, along with other leading experts on the podcast. Here's something good on women's health and longevity.
To learn more, go to lifeemd.com slash iHeart. This is how eBay Live usually goes. You tune into a stream just to browse. Then something rare pops up for a total seal, like a vintage handbag or a rookie baseball card. The bids start flying, and browsing quickly turns into, I have to have this.
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eBay Live, things people love. This is Lee Habib, and this is Our American Stories. And we tell stories about everything here on this show, from the arts to sports, and from business to history, and everything in between, including your stories. Send them to ouramericanstories.com. They're some of our favorites.
And this edition is with Bill Coke. whose company Oxbow Carbon has over 1,200 employees and $4 billion in annual revenue. Bill has also led America to a victory in the world's premier sailing competition, the Americas Cup. And he did it on his first try. But today he brings us some formational leadership stories from his younger days at his high school.
Culver Academy. And Culver You know, my first year, I got beat up a lot. and rasped a lot. Uh And When I was at Culver Some of the advisors told me that I couldn't get into MIT. And then when I got into MIT, I said, well, You know, you're at the bottom of the class.
Uh You know, I don't think she'll make it. And then I found out that If I wanted to do well. mainly to impress my father. as well as mentally too. develop my own skills.
and my own accomplishments.
So I just would work very, very hard. You know, if I had to go to the bathroom, I'd take a book with me. Yeah. Yeah. So I worked really hard.
And then I graduated with top honors. And then Got my doctor's degree from it. And I've always been, seem to be told that I can't do something. you know, being harassed. and told I was dumb.
an idiot, some other things. And so that has become a big challenge for me. I mean, it can have two effects. Either you stay a nerd the rest of your life or an idiot the rest of your life or you take advantage of it. In fact, you know, I probably have a little OCD.
And I looked at it and said, well, that could either kill me or I could use it to an advantage.
So I used it to work very hard. And surprisingly, I got more honors than all my brothers put together. We just made a couple um tests. But I wanted to play basketball. I thought the sport was terrific.
But in our freshman year. The Varsaloon won one game. But we as freshmen couldn't play on the varsity. And they'll say, now they can't. And then you couldn't.
And we were a bunch of nerds. And MIT went out and got this one coach from Methuen High School. It was a northern mill town that was dying in northern Massachusetts. And he had the longest winning record of any high school in the country.
So MIT recruited him. Then when we became sophomores and were playing on the varsity, we also won only one game. And the coach, you know, took a while to learn out the MIT system, to learn what nerds we are and what how clumsy and awkward we were.
So I wanted to play more on the varsity, so I went up and went to a summer camp that he had so I could practice all summer. Mm-hmm. And also that avoided me going out and working on the ranch. And I could possibly chase girls, even though it was in Methuen. But anyway, he told me he had a new plan.
and he came up with a new play. but he came up with only one play. because he said we weren't smart enough to learn more than one. These nerds from MIT. And he was also afraid that if we all had different plays, we'd get too confused.
And then he just drilled us over and over and over in that same plane so we could do it in our sleep.
So it was habitual. Mm-hmm. Then he started giving us variations off the play. which was great. But the most powerful thing he did Once that he put people in the right spots.
to minimize their weakness and maximize their strengths. and he defined jobs. You know, he said, okay. Your job is to bring up the ball and dribble it. and dribble it up.
and set up a play. And then your job is to get rebounds and block shots. And of course. put up pivots. And then he said to another guy, all right, your job is to go after the best shooter on the other side and rough him up a little bit.
But he made it very succinct.
Well Anyway, in our junior year, We won over half our games our senior year. We had the longest swimming streak in the country. and the least points scored against us. And And so I looked at that and said, That's a, you know, and I sat on the damn bench, but it was terrific. I learned it because that was one of the best lessons I made, ever learned at MIT.
how important teamwork is and focus and well the guy also told us You guys are winners. You know, if you think you're going to lose, you will lose. You know, if you think you're going to win, at least you have a 50-50 chance of winning. And I said. That's terrific.
You know, and they said, you work all work together. I mean, it's remarkable because. not one of us. could have even joined, got in any other college. In fact, we probably wouldn't have even made intermural teams.
And and what relying upon your teammates. You know, and not be a star. I think Ren Arbuck said, any of you guys on the pro team, if you want to be a superstar, any one of you can score 30 points a night. But if you do, we're going to lose. And instead, we got to work as a team.
And if we win, then we're all heroes. Yeah. And that's so true. And Red Arabak is one of my heroes, one of my dad's heroes. My dad was my coach.
I was a point guard on an all-state team. And my goodness, learned a lot of these lessons. about knowing your job, being accountable to the job too. If your job is to rebound and block out that guy, rebound and block out that guy. and your teammates are depending on you.
Uh Bill Coke's story. His leadership story. and a coach's story. and the impact that man had on those boys who turned into men. Here.
on our American stories. Lee Habib here, and I'd like to encourage you to subscribe to Our American Stories on Apple Podcasts, the iHeartRadio app, Spotify, or wherever you get our podcasts. Any story you missed or want to hear again can be found there daily. Again, Please subscribe to the Our American Stories podcast on Apple Podcasts, the iHeartRadio app, or anywhere you get your podcasts. It helps us keep these great American stories coming.
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Um Open or enroll your account at bankofamerica.com/slash B of A Rewards. Bank of America Corporation All Rights Reserve. Spending time outdoors, then let's talk about skin cancer. Non-melanoma skin cancers, or NMSCs, including basal cell carcinoma and cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, are the most common cancers in the U.S. and can become harder to treat if left undetected.
That's why sun protection and timely detection matter. Our sponsor, Regeneron, is raising awareness about advanced NMSCs. Learn more and take the pledge to see a dermatologist annually at let's get real about skincancer.com. Ice Cube's big three season has come down to this. The big three championship is coming to Charlotte, who will be crowned the big three season nine champion.
Plus the big three all-star game, the biggest names in the game, all on one court, one more time. Two games of the most physical, competitive, and non-stop three-on-three action. The game played the way you love. Watch live Saturday on CBS at 1 p.m. Eastern, 10 a.m.
Pacific, and catch replays Monday on BET. Presented by iHeart. Whether it's help with hormone therapy, weight management, or sexual health. Every woman should have access to affordable prescription medication and personalized care that understands the whole woman. Join me, Dr.
Doug Lucas, Clinical Lead of Hormone Optimization and Longevity at LifeMD. along with other leading experts on the podcast. Here's something good on women's health and longevity. To learn more, go to lifeemd.com slash iHeart. Mm-hmm.
