Slice of Life: March 3 -- Life Lessons

As I wrote in my last "Slice of Life," I love sports and am extremely competitive.  In many ways, sports have helped shape who I am and have provided me with some very important lessons that I've applied in many areas of my life.  My competitive nature, while not always a good thing, has often served me well and has helped me persevere through some challenging times.  So today, here are a few lessons I've learned through sports and competition that I've applied to my life.

Work hard, even when you don't love what you're doing.  I never loved early morning practices, running sprints, or doing drills.  In fact, I may go so far as to say I hated (I know -- it's a strong word) running sprints, especially what my high school coach referred to as "The Mountain."  As much as I hated running those sprints, I worked hard, did my best, and eventually, I didn't dread "The Mountain" as much.  Instead, I ended up in probably the best shape of my life.  Had I not been willing to endure the sprints I hated, I wouldn't have been able to play the game I loved.  Even today as an adult I have to do things I don't always love doing.  Not every aspect of my job or my life is fun.  We all have things we have to do that we don't love doing.  Regardless, do your best and work hard.  You have to be willing to do the things you don't necessarily love in order to enjoy all the other aspects of your life.  To quote Cynthia Dizon, personal wellness coach, "Champions are willing to do things they hate to create something else they love."

Accept new roles and strive to be the best you can be.  I made the varsity volleyball team as a sophomore in high school.  I was the youngest player on a varsity team that consisted of five seniors and two juniors.  I was honored to be part of the team and very quickly learned that my role would be to play back row defense.  As a freshman, I had never had the opportunity to play that role.  I knew, however, that my job was to now become the best defensive player I could.  When our team would do spiking drills, I would go to the other side of the court by myself and try to "dig" every ball that was hit.  I learned how to read a player and know where she was going to hit the ball.  I had one simple job and strived to be the best.  As a result of my hard work, I was named defensive player of the year for my varsity team.  I had to accept a new role which meant less playing time.  It required me to adjust my perspective and my role, but I became a better player and person because of it.  Life is much the same way.  I have had numerous roles and jobs in my career in education.  I've been a teacher, a coach, an assistant principal, and a principal.  In my personal life, I have the role as a daughter, wife, sister, granddaughter, and aunt.  While each of these roles are different, they all require me to give my very best.  Learn to adjust and adapt when new opportunities come your way.

Take adversity in stride.  I broke my right pinky finger during December of my sophomore basketball season.  The break required me to wear a splint and forced me to miss a month of the season.  Shortly before breaking my finger, my coach had given me a varsity uniform.  I still played on the junior varsity team, but I got to sit on the bench during the varsity games and had even recorded some playing time on the varsity squad.  When I broke my finger, I knew my time on the varsity team would likely diminish, if I would even have a spot when I returned.  I went to practice each day and did the drills I could with the team.  When I couldn't do a drill, I dribbled and shot with my left hand on the sideline and did my own drills that would allow me to use my left hand.  When I returned a month later, I still had a varsity uniform, but I don't remember getting to play much if at all on the varsity team.  I was disappointed, but I didn't quit.  I kept working hard and I'll never forget the junior varsity game when I stole the ball and dribbled all the way down the court with my left hand and shot a left handed lay-up.  Had I not been forced to learn to use my left hand because of my broken pinky, I never would have had the confidence to dribble and shoot with my left hand in a game.  Life is full of adversity.  You can let it get you down and you can choose to quit or you can take it in stride, keep working hard, and know that your perseverance will pay off.  The choice is up to you.

If you're competitive, be competitive in a positive way.  Have I mentioned that I don't like to lose?  I know, it's not one of my finer qualities, but it's true.  When I was teaching, my students were playing a game and were getting really argumentative with one another.  I made the comment, "Boy, you guys sure are competitive."  One of my students quickly replied, "I wonder where we get it?"  Ouch.  Just like a lot of things, being competitive can be good or it can be not so good.  Competition isn't always a bad thing.  As an athlete, being competitive made me go all out and do my best.  It made me work harder because I knew I wasn't the most talented athlete on the court.  Life is full of competitions.  I've competed for college scholarships, jobs, and awards.  I haven't always won and I'm certainly not the best, but my competitive nature has pushed me to be the best I can be.  Most importantly, I've learned to remain humble when I don't win.  Instead, I strive to learn from those who are better than me, wiser than me, and who have more experience than me.

These are just some of the many lessons I've learned through sports and my competitive nature.  My challenge to you is to think about the lessons you've learned through some of your hobbies or perhaps just through the challenges you have faced.  We all have things we can share and learn from one another.  My hope is that you will use what you have learned to inspire others to be their very best.