Coaches Changed My Life

Coaches changed my life

Growing up I played many sports, but my focus was on football and wrestling. When playing sports my growth was limited alone and that is why I needed coaches. In my experience, coaches seemed to give guidance in multiple areas I could never thrive in by myself. They helped me with things like building resiliency, setting goals, and overcome limiting beliefs of myself. This began a process which changed my life...

My living situation wasn’t as ideal as other kids around me. My father was not around, my mom worked multiple jobs to provide, and I struggled emotionally and definitely spiritually from the reality of my experiences. This resulted in me drifting in the ways of the world. However, sports became my outlet from these circumstances and my coaches became my guides. They taught me things like how to fight when shit got tough in practice. This prepped me for game time but also for home life. They reminded me that I didn’t have to go through anything alone which gave me strength when I felt like I couldn’t go anymore. These aspects of a coach built lasting resiliency for me as I faced many challenges moving forward.

I also remember coaches helping me set goals for myself. They would assist with academic goals, physical goals, and general goals for life. They would assist me with goals such as improving my grades. This use to irritate the hell out of me but they educated me on the importance of my good grades. Then they would follow up consistently adding the accountability factor which helped me to try harder and accomplish it. My coaches also helped me strive to win regionals which I never believed was possible. Then it happened. The results caused these goals to become very real and I realized I could have never done it on my own.

Goals are great and all, but they don’t go very far if I still have limited beliefs. When it came to school, I never believed I was smart enough. Specifically, I would tell myself I’m not good at English so that is exactly what manifested. In sports, I never I thought I was fast enough or strong enough and that is also what manifested. However, my coaches told me the exact opposite. They helped me to identify these limitations and coached me to overcome them. There guidance, motivation, and consistent reminders allowed me to thrive in the goals we set out which changed my life. Once again, I could never do this alone.

The sad part of this story is when I faced extreme injuries. That is when I walked away from the coaches in my life. They tried to reach out, but my mind was set on escaping reality through unhealthy choices which took me down a dark path. As I look back, I am realizing more than ever the importance of coaches in my life. I am reminded that I will not reach my maximum potential on my own.