Today is day 3,437, 1,100 published YouTube videos , 3 Keynote Speeches , 1 Published Book ; all dedicated to assist student athletes be the very best they can be both in and out of sport.
I’ve started a new effort of really focusing on careers, internships and graduate assistant positions for student athletes. I ultimately want to change the definition of what “making it “ for student athletes that have over indexed on their sport so much so, that they haven’t been challenged and supported outside of it. This is the 4th blog in that mission. Give me a quick 10 mins of your time and share this someone that could benefit from it.
Thank you.
There’s nothing worse than going to a restaurant and there’s a wait, a crowd or a delay from the food coming out. Often times the culprit is the restaurant but if you’re at my table; specifically when I’m with my sister; it’s because of her. The way she orders food should be studied. Though it’s painful to watch; there’s some important lessons I learned about her unique approach to ordering food at restaurants that college student athletes should adopt when deciding what careers they would like to embark upon.
My sister doesn’t care about what the soup of the day is nor what “Today’s Special” is. She’s normally the last person to give her order and by the time it is for her to let the waiter know what her selection is; she’s already read through the menu enough times over; you would have thought that she has committed it to memory.
Waiter: So what would you like today.
My sister: Yes, would you mind if I got the omelette with no egg, the hash browns charred on side , a meatless meat loaf , hamburger but without the burger and…
Waiter: {The all too familiar blank stare consistently reflects on their face}
Though I’ve never met the waiter , I can imagine exactly what their thinking at this moment.
“Ma’am this is a taco spot!” ( I’m exaggerating of course. My sister isn’t that bad but you get the idea)
When the smoke settles and the negotiations have been made after the manager comes to our table; she eventually gets a meal that she’s satisfied with and the restaurant gets her business and a sizable gratuity; so everyone wins.
So why is this being highlighted as if it’s positive and why is it something that I’m proposing student athletes should adopt when picking a career? There’s a number of reasons but for the sake of time I’ll name a few:
1.) The Menu : As a collegiate student athlete , the menu is the options afforded to you at the particular university you choose to compete at ; that offers the path of least resistance to ultimately do what you came to do. Play your sport / Eat. These majors usually fall in the categories of : General Studies, Interdisciplinary Studies, Kinesiology ,Sociology or Communications or Undecided. These majors typically offers enough flexibility that it feels less committal. Often times their couple with support language such as “ oh it’s a degree that is broad enough that it can apply to any industry.”
Menus are designed to minimize the amount of thinking required to make this decision. Pictures, large font and recommendations by the waiter serve as polite nudges in the “right” direction to hurry up and get this show on the road so we can leave more than enough to time for eating and enjoying ourself.
As a previous collegiate athlete, I found that ordering from the menu usually fell into two different categories. 1) Something that sounds impressive when people ask what you major in. “Bio Tech Engineering . Physical Therapy. Doctor. All great professions but unless you come from a foundation background sturdy enough to build upon; it’s easy to just pick a different major because of all the extra time you have to put into studying to compensate for the difference. 2) Order something that’s tried, true and easy.
2) The pictures on menu: This is a probably the most impactful portion of the menu. If the tile and the description listed of each meal on the menu is the major and course description; then the pictures on the menu are visual proof that those majors are great for you. It’s the ability to turn on the tv and see people that look just like you occupying those professions. Its the end result. It’s what makes the goal feasible.
Common professions to get into based off the pictures off the menu are : being a coach, being a trainer of the sport you played , playing the sport professionally, being a athletic director. All these professions are amazing fields to be in but I can’t help to wonder; when a student athlete tells me they want to be in one of those fields, is it genuinely what they want or is it just what they’ve been exposed to most often?
3) The nerve to order what’s not on the menu : Now I have to admit; when I first experienced the awkwardness and the delay on getting my food because of my sister doing her own remix of the menu and order stuff that wasn’t displayed as an option; I was more than a little taken back. All I could think to myself is “ Why is she being so difficult?”. Now that I have my food in front of me and I can think more clearly, I understand how important it is for her to stand in the gap of the temporary discomfort to help ensure she’s proud of the decision she’s made.
This can be directly transferrable to your experience as a collegiate student athlete, when picking a major. Now, I’m not insinuating that you should be contrarian or difficult and purposely try to order something off the menu, just for kicks and giggles. If you see something on the menu that you desire, by all means ; pick it.
Often times , it’s easy to fold in that gap of discomfort because you’re at the age where there’s social pressure to be respectful and go with the flow ; rather to do what’s best for your personal self interest. If you’re a collegiate athlete going through this process, I want to encourage you to not make a decision that its sole purpose is to not inconvenience everyone else because at the end of the day; your decision will directly impact you and you alone once your eligibility has expired .
I want to challenge you to familiarize yourself with items off the menu you’ve been given. Seek those opportunities out and understand going into it that it’s going to feel awkward. Much like the first day you started playing your sport; it’s going to take dedication in order to make a major that’s not presented on the menu to work. It won’t be easy but it will be much more worth in the long run; instead of picking something that’s comfortable.
4) The awkward silence and or lack of support: There was one seemingly subtle thing that took place when my sister was ordering her food that I don’t want you to over look. Its a thing that it’s impossible to practice and get better at unless you do it in front of people. She stated her interest, waited and was comfortable with the awkward silence that followed. The energy of the anticipation of eating was obvious. I’m sure she hears the deep breaths that are being taking. The eye rolls and the sucking of teeth but she does not waiver. At that moment, she 1 against everyone on a road game and it doesn’t bother her a bit. She’s developed the muscle to a point where it doesn’t bother her in the least bit.
You need that same tolerance when it comes to deciding a major and career that aligns with your life goals. Think it not be strange that you won’t have a cheering section to pick classes that demand more of your time. Your decision to pursue a major and career with longevity will directly impact your athletic as well as your social life. The strain in will place in those eras will undoubtably some awkward silence; whether that be within your own mind or from coaches and your friend group. Resist the urge to fill that empty space in with unnecessary noise in an effort to remove any awkwardness. You’re okay. You’re good and you don’t owe it to anyone other than yourself to make sure you don’t do what’s easy currently for the life you want for you and your family in the future. Relax and know that the silence will allow everyone else to speak up and reveal who they really are.
You got this!
For more articles and list of careers dedicated to assist collegiate student athletes of "making it" after their eligibility has elapsed; check out : https://www.jobs4studentathletes.com/
-- Jobs 4 Student Athletes