Tony Dungy Uncommon

Book review of Uncommon Super Bowl winning coach and author Tony Dungy reflects on what it takes to achieve significance in life in his book titled Uncommon. He is looked to by many as the epitome of the success and significance that is highly valued in our culture from the dominance of athleticism in society. In his book he gives examples of young men who are trying to achieve significance through football and all that goes with a professional athletic career, such as money, power, and a celebrity status. Tony Dungy has had all of that, but he passionately believes that there is a different path to significance, a path characterized by attitudes, ambitions, and loyalties that is rewarding in the end. Uncommon reveals lessons on achieving
a meaning in life that the coach has learned from his parents, his athletic and coaching career, his mentors, and his experiences with God. A big focus of Dungy’s book tells what it means to be a man in a culture that is losing chivalry and respect towards others. The book is filled with references from Scripture on many of its pages, and also includes quotes from authors and famous figures.
As you read you can tell that Dungy tries to use his fame to communicate about life and how to live it. He tells stories without sounding as if he is preaching to his readers. Its tone is gentle, and reads much like a conversation with a friend. The primary audience of these messages is men, especially young men and young fathers. Dungy focuses on a wide variety of topics including subjects not talked about very often. In it, he talks about some of his most painful tragedies and greatest victories. With chapters on failure, sex, the treatment of women, and respecting others, Uncommon has little in common with most football
books.
There are many interesting insights into various events in the last several years for football fans. He talks about the hiring of Mike Tomlin, and the role Dungy played in Tomlin's hiring in Pittsburgh. Tony reveals how devastating certain losses were for him, such as the 41-0 loss to the Jets and the 2005 loss to the Steelers in the playoffs. He also explained in detail his decision to move his family to Tampa last year, while he continued to work in Indianapolis. He went into great detail about the whys and hows of the decision, as well as revealing that it was something his own father had to do for a time while he was growing up.
The biggest insight you can gain about Tony Dungy from reading this book is to understand his decision to walk away from football. He loves it, and loves coaching. He has said many times that he doesn't feel tired or burnt out, he just has more important things to do. This book reads as if Dungy is saying, "I'm famous and influential. What are the most important things God would want me to say to the men of America?" He then went out and wrote those things down. It was interesting to read as Dungy handled certain aspects of a changing attitude with his players. His discussion of the 'respect my ethics' was fun to read.
Uncommon discusses the mistakes and regrets of Dungy.
He uses his failures and disappointments to serve as lessons and encouragements to himself and others around him. At the end of the book, there is sort of a question and answer section dealing with the topics of the book. It is one of the most interesting parts of the book in my opinion. If you want to know what is important to Tony Dungy, what he lives for, what he'd die for, and what he quit coaching for, this book is for you. A lot of people think Tony Dungy made a bad choice to walk away from the NFL to do work with troubled kids and convicts. Ultimately, Tony Dungy did what was best for him and that’s the matter that he conveys in this book. I would definitely recommend this book for anyone trying to learn more about themselves, God, or even just to get a better perspective on
life.