Postcards

Entrepreneurs who never let you see 'em sweat

by Patricia Sellers

New-product innovation tends to be 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.

Here's that 1% that led to the creation of a hot little company called Sheex: One afternoon in the summer of 2007, Susan Walvius, then the head women's basketball coach at the University of South Carolina, was at practice and wearing a pair of over-sized, super-soft, performance-fabric shorts. "I'd love to have bedsheets made out of this stuff," Walvius MORE

Two Sportsmen: Jeter and Woods

by Jessica Shambora

"He is a role model not only for how to play baseball but also for how to remain atop the wobbly pedestal of fame."

-- Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci, who wrote this week's cover story about Derek Jeter, captain of the world-champion New York Yankees and SI's 2009 Sportsman of the Year.

Kudos to Jeter. He stands in stark contrast to the only athlete in history who has received MORE

Are you situationally aware?

Situational awareness: being aware of what's happening around you to understand how information, events, and your own actions will impact your goals and objectives.

This is how Wikipedia defines this concept that's been bandied about a lot lately, since those Northwest (DAL) pilots got distracted on their laptops and flew wayyyy beyond Minneapolis, their destination. Whatever the rogue navigators were viewing or doing on their mini computer screens, they were oblivious MORE

Power Point: Triathlete with heart transplant races the Ironman

"It would put an exclamation point on my recovery."

-- Kyle Garlett, the first triathlete to compete in the Ironman World Championship with someone else's heart. Tomorrow is a special day: Garlett will be among 1,800 triathletes attempting to swim 2.4 miles, bike 112 miles, and run 26.2 miles (a marathon) in Kona, Hawaii. It's also three years to the day when Garlett, 38, received his heart transplant. Garlett's own heart MORE

NBC Sports boss's big win

"The N.F.L. is more of a guarantee of success than if you got Brad Pitt, George Clooney and Angelina Jolie to do an hour drama series for the network. You can't guarantee that it will be a ratings success."

-- Dick Ebersol, chairman of NBC Universal (GE) Sports, today in a New York Times story about Sunday Night Football's stellar ratings--one of the few bright spots for the woe-begotten broadcast network.

While MORE

Power Point: Venus and Serena dig for discipline

"It's a stage. I'm a performer and I love to perform and being in front of the crowds and hearing them cheer for me."

-- Tennis star Serena Williams in today's Wall Street Journal story about her and sister Venus' renewed commitment to the game. Last year, hours after losing to a pair of little-known Chinese players in the doubles quarterfinals at the Banglaore Open in March, the sisters decided they'd MORE

Power Point: Branch out

"I'd love to play for the rugby team — that would be great."

--Tiger Woods, joking in response to the IOC executive board's recommendation to include rugby sevens and golf in the 2016 Olympics.

I'm giving Pattie a much-needed day off today and just thought I'd share the story I published today on golf and the Olympics. --Jessica Shambora

Power Point: Respect the team

"If I were him, I'd drop this drivel and start thanking his team. Without them, he doesn't win."

--Lance Armstrong, responding to Astana teammate and 2009 Tour de France champion Alberto Contador. On Monday, the day after the race ended, the Spanish champion told reporters that he "never had great admiration" for Armstrong and "never will." The two battled for the role of team leader during the three-week race, and when MORE

Power Point: Problem after problem

"It was just, it was just problem after problem."

-- Tiger Woods, who missed the cut by one stroke on Friday at the British Open, a tournament he has won three times. This is only the second time Woods has missed a cut in a major; the first was at the U.S. Open at Winged Foot in 2006. Scotland's famous weather didn't disappoint, delivering rain and high winds on the Turnberry MORE

Power Point: Go for the "W" over the "$"

"The only thing that means a lot to me is winning."

-- Tiger Woods, after missing just the fourth tournament cut of his career back in October, 2005. All was not lost though. Since fellow golfer Vijay Singh also missed the cut that weekend, Woods stole the PGA Tour money title back from him. The quote reveals the mindset that makes Woods, four years later, the $100 Million Man, landing him MORE