Alema Harrington understands being in front of people. Whether as a BYU football player or as a long-time broadcaster, he has spent much of his life in the public eye.

But Tuesday morning’s experience was a little different.

Harrington stood on the stage at Skyridge High School, presenting a message that means a lot to him to members of the various Falcon sports and activity groups. He knows high school students and could see that many weren’t focused on what he was saying.

But the best part was seeing those who were.

“When you see the person who is actually listening and connecting, it’s magical,” Harrington said. “That human connection is what we’re all striving for anyway. There’s this sensation you feel throughout your body, almost like hitting a three-iron pure, where everything just right. That feeling is incredible. What I feel in that moment is that I’m doing exactly what I was created to do.”

He talked openly about how he went through some tough times trying to find fulfillment, resulting in destructive addictions. The process of overcoming those challenges led to the genesis of the message he was sharing, called the A-Game Philosophy.

He got together with his twin brother, Tau Harrington, and started talking about the principles he had used in recovery.

“We started talking about all the great athletes we’d been around and those I knew as a broadcaster, and started looking for what they had in common that led to their success,” Alema Harrington said. “We came up with this self-sustaining cycle of success that has been proven by all these great athletes and successful business owners.”

The principles the Harringtons compiled are simple to understand: aspire, acquire, apply, achieve and acknowledge. Each step has nuances that Alema Harrington explained as he worked to help the Skyridge students recognize their potential to find greatness themselves.

“We’ve both been blessed in our lives to have the experiences that we have had,” Alema Harrington said. “So to acknowledge that, the question becomes how can I take some of those experiences and give back and connect with the younger generation?”

That objective is why Harrington has spoken to various sports teams as well as the larger group at Skyridge High School. Some will have success in their chosen activities, but more importantly is that they can apply the concepts to make lives better — both their own and those around them.

“All of those things are universal, whether we’re talking about athletics or we’re talking about life,” Alema Harrington said. “Our hope is that somebody — even just one person — gets that message or needed to hear that today and does something good with it.”

Although Alema Harrington did the talking during the presentation, he said it wouldn’t be possible to have such a strong message without his twin brother Tau Harrington involved.

“I could not do this without him,” Alema Harrington said. “He’s a brilliant producer and is an incredible talent. We come from real performance background with our father being an entertainer, so we have some sort of have a sense for that innately. It just so happens that But I’m the one in front while he’s the one in the back. But any time I get the chance to work with him, I jump on it.”

The Harringtons view this as just the start of the journey of sharing their concepts and look forward to seeing the message resonate with other young students as well.

“Our hope is to be able to carry this the message to other schools,” Alema Harrington said. “It is a big undertaking with all of the other things we are doing, but we think it would be valuable for any group. I tend to gravitate to sports teams because of my background but the principle really apply to everyone.”

For more information on the A-Game Philosophy, go to http://www.theagameinstitute.com.

Courtesy photo

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