Young people all across the world are aspiring to become professional athletes someday.
They think about the training and rigorous practice schedules – and thrive in that environment.
They watch endless videos on YouTube of great motivational speakers that focus on grit, determination, perseverance and come away feeling like Superman only to fall short.
Focusing on the athletic side and getting wrapped up in all the short-term athletic goals can be your ultimate downfall when it comes to becoming a professional athlete. Somewhere inside of those goals, school has to be weaved in.
It can actually be the most important.
If you want the leverage to become a highly successful, highly paid athlete, then make a professional institution think long and hard about what they are getting.
Professional institutions know exactly how much leverage you hold. They know when you are scraping by in college and crossing your fingers for that big break.
Look at a high schooler going into college. If you can’t make good grades in high school, why should we have you come to college, just because you’re a good athlete? They know you can’t handle the class load.
From the professional organizations’ standpoint, the same rules apply: they are going to pay you to play. If you can’t do your homework then they have to assume you wouldn’t do the little things it takes to be great.
If school is just as much a priority as your sport, you have already understood the need for a plan “B” – sports aren’t forever. The friendships last forever but at some point, the jersey comes off. The career span of any great athlete is 25 years or less, and in most cases 15 years or less.
Now you’re 35. What now?
Too many athletes don’t plan for the future.
They think it will somehow last forever and for some, it does move over to the coaching or administrative side of sports, but those jobs are few and far between.
Wouldn’t it be smart to hold the power by making a sports organization not deny you the money you deserve by going to school to get your degree?
Think about it, they have to pay you if they want you, when they look at your bottom line.
They want born leaders, people that have goals and take the initiative to pursue and reach them.
If you’re going to school to be a doctor, they will have to pay you good money to sway you away from your plan “B”. Now that’s an extreme contrast, but you get the point: stay in school, make it a priority and you will benefit greatly when it comes to any avenue you decide to take in life.