Dear athlete,
Sports are everything to us. We invest all of our time and all of our effort into the game that we love, believing it to be the single most important priority in the world. We spend hours shooting free throws, running countless suicides, making hundreds of putts, lifting weights, trudging through soccer drills, and wearing ourselves out at batting practice. Many of us practice, lift, and train from sun up to sun down with little on our minds besides the ultimate goal. For some, this goal is to beat a rival team in a high school tennis match, and for others the goal is to win big at Wimbledon.
However, when our goals are not immediately accomplished, it can be frustrating to continue forward. Injuries that sideline us for weeks at a time, mental imbalances, inconsistencies in practice, and burnout all interfere with the desire to play and perform. When obstacles such as these get in the way, it can be hard to maintain the motivation we need to keep playing. When you feel as if you practice more than anyone and never show improvement, it can be debilitating. When sports become such a priority that they get in the way of relationships and other hobbies, it can seem as if there is no end in sight. When you don’t score enough, when your stats aren’t up to par, and when you aren’t winning enough tournaments are the times in which it feels as if the sport is no longer glamorous and may seem like it’s no longer worth playing. Your coaches may be disappointed in you, you may not live up to the expectations of your parents, and your teammates may question whether or not they can count on you to perform. While we love them, participating in sports can be humbling and sometimes even depressing.
These are the moments, however, that it is most important to stay strong. We train our bodies to be strong, but our minds and the confidence we have in ourselves requires just as much weight training. When we hit out of bounds, when we fumble the ball, and when we strike out—these are the times in which our minds are conditioned in order to make us the best athletes we can be. Little mistakes and burnouts can be disheartening, but the true test of talent is how well we can recover and improve from our mistakes. These moments of frustration not only improve our athletic abilities, but they also teach us patience, diligence, and work ethic. You may believe that the purpose of the sport you love is simply for competition or fun, but the truth is that the sport you play teaches you about life in many ways. One day, you’ll graduate or retire, and you may not ever play your sport again. You may not ever pick up a bat, a racket, a lacrosse stick, or a golf club ever again. Your abilities should never be taken for granted—even if you aren’t on top of your game at the moment. Fight through the frustration, and even if you feel like you can’t improve or if burnout is lurking, keep playing the sport you love. The things we love the most may hurt us, but at the end of the day, they give us the greatest joy and satisfaction that we can imagine.
