I recently read a post about all the beautiful things that sports do for us. The post was about how the last game that you ever play is like a blow to the face and then everything seems to stop.
As a competitive athlete, having soccer and running has molded me into who I am today. Not just by playing in college, but also playing in a professional league in Israel and even high school, soccer has given me more than anything else I’ve ever encountered.
Friendships, life lessons, challenges, overcoming everything that is in your way, discipline, commitment to something bigger than yourself, teamwork, and so much more!
But nobody talks about what happens AFTER sports.
So many of us get depressed from the lack of sports, the lack of structure, and the lack of guidance… We are used to doing everything for our sports and the competitive spirit. When we eat, when we study, and when we do everything revolves around team practices, games, and individual extra work.
I’ve come to realize that there is a mourning kind of moment that all competitive athletes go through in order to get to a point of appreciation and gratitude for what we’ve been through. But it doesn’t come easy.
It’s only AFTER you start a job, or a business that you see the similarities between sports and your life.
- Discipline to stick to something and practice day after day because we want to get better.
- Teamwork because everything is better when you have people around you that can guide you to reach your goals.
- Goals that seem insurmountable but somehow when you reach them don’t seem as hard or as bad.
- Love for what you do, your teammates, and your craft, but most importantly, learning to love something that is so hard to do and loving the process.
- Sacrificing “going out”, and “having fun” because you have something bigger than a night out.
There are so many things that happen after sports, the process is always the fun part. As my favorite quote says, “The road of life twists and turns, and no two directions are ever the same. Yet our lessons come from the journey, not the destination.” - Don Williams Jr.
It’s the process, the love that we have for what we do. And guess what? It’s life! Enjoy the process, even if it’s hard, it will be memorable in the end!