About

If you have ever played a sport, especially on a varsity, collegiate, or professional level, you know the amount of dedication and hard work it takes to be successful. The number of hours you spent trying to perfect your craft to be the best took its toll in more ways than one. Granted, it paid off in countless ways, but sacrifices were made to get where you are. 

You didn't just work in the off-season, either. No, you chose to spend every free minute on the court or in the field training, practicing, and working to become the best. You went to every practice, spent extra time in the gym, and even went to camps in the off seasons to stay a step ahead of the rest. It was at these camps that you learned to become not only the best athlete you could be but the best version of yourself. How do I know all of this? Because I, too, walked through this journey in my younger years. 

Basketball was my sport of choice, and it was on a basketball court where I learned about life, who I was as a person and leadership. This was made even more apparent to me when I spent those long summer weeks at basketball camps, working with some of the best players in the industry. From 6:00 in the morning until 7:00 at night, I would run drills, lift weights, shoot ball after ball towards the net, and be taught how to become a leader for my team.

Being taught how to be a leader isn't something that one would normally think they would learn at basketball camp, but it was through watching my coaches' hard work and dedication that I learned what it meant to lead truly. I quickly realized that being a leader didn't mean being the best player on the court, the smartest, or even the most well-liked. It meant being the one who was willing to put your team above yourself and make sacrifices so that your team as a whole could be the best that they could be.

It meant waking up earlier than anyone else, watching more game tape, spending time with my teammates, genuinely getting to know them as people, and working harder than anyone else so that I could be an example as a captain to my team. The coaches were harder on me than some of the other players because they expected more from me. And even though this was difficult at times, I realized it was a sign of respect. They saw something in me that I didn't even see in myself, and they nurtured it and helped me grow into a leader that my teammates could look up to. 

What I learned at basketball camp took me not only to a collegiate level in basketball as the captain of my team, but it has since led me into management positions in my current occupation. The same lessons that I learned on that basketball court running those drills and being yelled at and encouraged by my coaches help me daily with those employees I am now responsible for. 

Could I have learned these lessons outside of basketball camp? Maybe, but there is no doubt in my mind that my coaches' dedication and what I learned at basketball camp made me into the leader I am today.