From playing pickup basketball games in my parents driveway with my friends to participating in organized, competitive athletics from 2nd grade all the way up until my senior year of high school, there’s no question that sports have played a fundamental role throughout my life. Although every athlete has their respective motivations for playing, mine will forever be the social bond that was established among my teammates and coaches, and the adrenaline I felt before and during the game or while making a key and timely play. Athletics instilled a number of notable and perpetual values in me that still influence me on a daily basis, both professionally and personally, in a number of positive ways and will continue to for the rest of my life.

1. Teamwork: The recognition that what I’m doing is bigger than just myself is what I believe teamwork is all about. For example, when my son, Colin, wakes up at 3 a.m. and is fussy because he is hungry to be fed, I remember the value of teamwork that sports taught me. Instead of perhaps getting agitated or flustered because he’s woken me up during the middle of the night, I acknowledge that the feeding and nurturing of my son is twofold: 1) I’m taking care of his genuine wants and needs, all while showing him the love and compassion that I’ll eternally have for him; and 2) I’m giving my beautiful, caring, and selfless wife the opportunity to get some much needed rest and sleep for a few more hours. My wife and I have a common goal of working together to ensure our son is as loved, nurtured, and cared for as humanly possible. Without question, my family is my team now and I’m willing to go above and beyond the call of duty to ensure their happiness and well-being is foremost every single day of my life.
2. Patience: Patience is a value that I consider to be sorely underrated. Patience, in my humble opinion, is a powerful mental tool that’s losing ground in our society today. Respecting the winding road that life takes us on and all of the ups and downs that we’ll be faced with along the way is imperative to living a life of fulfillment and gratitude. When I was completing my Master’s Degree at Indiana State University and working as a graduate assistant at Ivy Tech in their Office of Student Life, it would have been easy for me to lose my patience with the demands of school while only employed at a part-time position. While I won’t deny there were hurdles, the value of patience that sports infused in me is one of the ultimate reasons why I landed the position I dreamed of today. If I would have spent my days in frustration, continually looking ahead to what might be, I wouldn’t have unlocked the abundant amount of positivity that was taking place in my life.
3. Perseverance: Another powerful tool that sports can foster is the value of perseverance. More often than not, mental toughness is the factor when determining the success and overall contentment of an individual. Despite the fact that at one point in our lives we all experience pain, agony, and failure, what separates many people is how they respond to it. I read somewhere that you can only feel a negative emotion or feeling if you allow yourself to endure it. Similarly, I believe the same can be said for how you move forward after another defeat, rejection, or tragedy. In your life, there will be people who will doubt you or tell you that you’re destined for failure. Instead of succumbing to their opinions, let it bestow upon you the motivation to rise to the challenge and prove the doubters wrong.
4. Commitment: Lastly, the importance of being committed to what I’m doing was cultivated from my participation in athletics (as well as my parents). For me, when I say I’m going to do a task at either work, as a husband, or as a father, that means I’m dedicated to fulfilling my responsibility. Athletics imparted in me the desire to achieve success. Commitment is the inner drive to put your heart and soul into accomplishing your goals. To reach your potential as an athlete you must have a strong work ethic and an underlying belief that you can succeed. High achievers are dedicated to work hard even when they don’t enjoy some of the tasks, because they are committed to the efforts necessary for their goals.

Although I don’t take part in athletics competitively anymore, as you can see they’re still an essential part of my life. From the values that were deeply ingrained in me to the genuine love and understanding of recreation and taking care of ones body, athletics has made a lasting impression on me. The friendships, memories, and principles, among many others, that athletics can cultivate can’t be overstated, and while not everyone is destined or motivated to play athletics, I will continue to endorse the benefits that they deliver endlessly and encourage my son to follow that path (if he so chooses).

What values did athletics instill in you?

Thank you for reading!

— Chris