Throughout most of my life, team sports have always been important. While I was playing baseball from kindergarten through my freshman year of high school and playing football through high school, they dominated my time outside of the classroom. I think that team sports are great. Exercise is good, so why shouldn't we do it with other people? I feel that some of the lessons that you learn become extremely important and they can even be applied to life. Things like character, integrity, and communication are all extremely important, both in sports and in everyday life.

Often, teams will come up with acronyms or slogans that mean something to them. My high school football team is no different. My junior year, we had an acronym for the word “fight.” We had a word for each letter and how it corresponds to fighting. While I’m probably not supposed to share what the acronym stands for, I’m going to do it anyway and show how this can be applied to everyday life.

F: Finish

It's simple. Finish what you start. Whether it’s finishing a play on the football field, finishing your assignments for class, or finishing bigger things, you should always finish what you start. Even if it might not be your best, you’ll get the satisfaction of completing something, especially if it’s something that you didn’t think that you could finish.

I: Intense

This means to do everything at a high level. You should always “go hard or go home.” If you’re going to do something, do it at your most capable level. Even if you fail when doing so, you'll fail knowing that you went all out in whatever you were doing. Whether it’s going all out in your workout or writing the best paper that you can, you should always go all out when doing so. At the end, you will be exhausted, but that’s great because it's a sign that you went all out.

G: Grit

This one is a little bit more abstract. This is more of a trait. It’s toughness. It’s resiliency. It’s not letting things get into your head. So you got a C- on your last paper, but you know you can do better. Don’t let that bad grade get you down. Go out there next time and write a better paper. So what if that last three-point shot didn’t go in? You have to have the confidence that next time will be better. Keep your mind clear and your goals will become easier to accomplish.

H: Heart

With everything that you do, you have to put your heart and soul into it. It’s lying down on the field or court or wherever after your last match or game, knowing that it’s the end, but not wanting to let go. It’s finding your passion in life, whether it is history, music, science, or anything else and then doing that for the rest of your life. You have to love what you’re doing or it won’t matter.

T: Team

Your team is always important. Do everything for the betterment of the group. Whether it’s one extra pass to get a wide open shot for your teammate, doing your part in a group project to get the best grade, or whatever else you’re doing for a team or group, do it so that everyone can succeed. It’s also holding everyone else accountable in the group. If a lineman misses a block and gives up a sack, as a quarterback, you had better make sure that he doesn’t miss it again. If someone in the group is slacking on the project, tell them to get off of their lazy butt and do their part so the project is great, but it’s also not just chewing them out and yelling at them. It’s helping your teammates if and when they fail. Help them finish their part or help them to know who to block.

Life is hard and sports are hard, but if you F.I.G.H.T., your chances of survival or winning are much greater than if you lay down and accept defeat. At the end of the day, you can lay your head down exhausted and content that you fought until the end.