New York Rangers Alum, Tom Laidlaw, Shares His Secrets for Success
Veteran defensive NHL standout of the 1980-1987 New York Rangers and 1987-1990 Los Angeles Kings, Tom Laidlaw, visited The College of Westchester in White Plains to meet with students and share some sage advice for success in business and in life. Now a motivational speaker available through his company ‘True Grit Life’, this former defensive brawler now dedicates himself to motivating others and supporting several charitable causes.
Above: Tom Laidlaw speaking to students at The College of Westchester.
Below: Tom Laidlaw (blue jersey) on the ice at a charity event for the New York Rangers Assist.
MetroSports Magazine previously encountered Tom when covering the New York Rangers Assist, a Rangers alumni charity event last December at the Rinks at Shelton Sports Center. Tom is also a supporter of the New York Ranges Sled Hockey team and recently participated in a fundraiser in NYC on July 14th. The Sled Rangers, a team providing competitive ice hockey for athletes with disabilities, was featured in the August 2016 issue of MetroSports Magazine. Earlier this week, Tom was on hand to support the 27th annual fundraiser for Ice Hockey in Harlem at the Quaker Ridge Golf Club.
In describing how he structures his time and commits to moving forward, Tom criticized the tendency of people in the workplace to refer to Wednesday and ‘hump day”, the day for simply making it through the drudgery of half the work week, and “thank God it’s Friday”, celebrating the end of the weekly work commitment. For Tom, Wednesday is “pump day”, a day when he commits to getting the most he can out of the week. He went on to encourage the students not to let others influence what they do and limit what hey can achieve but, rather, to set their own goals regardless of what others may think.
Further elaborating on the importance of setting goals, Tom spoke honestly about what he perceives to be the difference between his successful professional hockey career and the exemplary Hall-of-Fame career of his L.A. Kings teammate, Wayne Gretzky. While Laidlaw spoke of having set his athletic goal as becoming a professional hockey player, Gretzky had set his goal as becoming the all-time greatest professional hockey player. They both achieved their goals.
While setting high goals and pursuing them with passion is the pathway toward success, Tom cautioned the students that, “every once in a while it’s important to stop, look at yourself in the mirror (both actually and metaphorically), and be happy with what you see.” Take note of and be proud of what you’ve accomplished so far, even if it’s not where you ultimately want to be.
Tom Laidlaw can be contacted though “True Grit Life” at email address hello@truegritlife.com. You can listen to his motivational podcasts, or book him for events at https://truegritlife.com
