To many boys (and some girls), professional athletes are modern-day heroes. Iconic celebrities with fame, fortune, and power. What wide-eye youth wouldn’t want the same?
Turns out, a lot of them do. (With oversized Bo Jackson and Michael Jordan posters adorning my childhood walls, I certainly did.) But as with all desirable things in life, getting paid to play sports isn’t easy.
In fact, the odds are downright nasty for aspiring players, according to new data from the NCAA.
Continue reading…
I recently stumbled on this phrase at a high school soccer game. I instantly liked it and can easily see what it’s popular among weightlifters, athletes, entrepreneurs, and optimists alike.
It also reminded me of some other mottos I’m fond of:
- The harder I work, the luckier I get.
- Don’t take things personal.
- Pity parties are a waste of time.
- There is no shortcut for hardwork.
- Life moves on, with or without you.
- If you want something, YOU have to go out and get it (that’s your job).
And last but not least, “Do you know where the power lies? I said it starts and ends with you.”
If you enjoy the effort of doing something more than the result, you will be good at whatever you decide to do.
In my case, when I spend days, weeks, months, or even years writing something, I love that process more than the minutes, hours, or days it takes me to read the result.
I’m not exaggerating to prove a point. It’s true. I love the act of writing more than the result (although the result is really nice icing on the cake that sustains me to the next result). Asking a lot of people if I can write for them is worth the rejection.
That’s how you know you can “win” at something—because you enjoy the mastery time, effort, and rejection required more than the average person.
In my case, I would write for free, I love it so much. Which is precisely how I started writing, for free, on this blog (and still do). Because I love writing so much, I’ve gotten good enough at it that people will pay me to write for them.
Which is a fulfillment of Joker’s absolutism: “If you’re good at something, never do it for free.”
I’ll disagree with him on the “never” aspect, since you sometimes have to work for free to keep learning and growing. But the point is hard work is valued.
So find work you love doing and the value will take care of itself.
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ls9Cg8iaq1s#t=30[/youtube]
Synopsis: British kid fails math, then passes after a year of hard work. Father loses it.
Quotes are a curious thing. They’re presented entirely out of context, so most of them go unnoticed. In the right state of mind, however, they can have a reaffirming or insightful impact on the reader.
Here are five quotes that connected and resonated with me most this year:
- “It is more important to know where you are going than to get there quickly. Do not mistake activity for achievement. Remember that there is nothing stable in human affairs, therefore avoid undue elation in prosperity or undue depression in adversity.”?Isocrates
- “A smooth sea never made a skilled sailor.”—Old British proverb
- “If you see someone on a high mountain, you can bet they didn’t fall there.”—Anonymous (Very similar to another one of my favorites from last year: “The harder I work, the luckier I get.”)
- “If she’s amazing, she won’t be easy. If she’s easy, she won’t be amazing. If she’s worth it, you wont give up. If you give up, you’re not worthy…. Truth is, everybody is going to hurt you; you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for.”—Bob Marley
- “Everything happens for a reason. And some of those reasons are because you are stupid and make dumb mistakes.”—Anonymous
