Tag: Improvement

My Chatty Self

bartholomulethegreatLeave a comment

I talk a lot, as many of my fellow journalists and my teachers know. I am quite the talker in most circumstances. During class, I used to consistently be sent outside for being a disturbance for talking in class. But somewhat recently I have learned to control my outbursts of vocal engagement. For example, recently the OVS journalist participated in THE ONE CHIP CHALLENGE, where three of the journalists ate chips that were very spicy. There were many times when I wanted to comment on what was happening, but I was able to make myself just shut up for the duration of the filming of the event. I find that I will speak without thinking and say something stupid that I don’t mean. People don’t realize that about me until they get to know me. I have made great strides in not speaking in class and even just being more of a quiet person in general. I hope that I continue on this path and it allows me to not be as intrusive to the class time.

Credit: Dreamstine.com

Improvement is Intoxicating

jared315Leave a comment

“Practice makes perfect” but nobody cares about practice, they care about applying said practice. When I go up and down a basketball court practicing my jump shot, I don’t like tirelessly throwing the ball straight up and down, I like watching my jump shot clearly improve when I start shooting. My jump shot in the past struggled, it struggled to even hit the backboard. My jump shot would consistently sky the backboard by a cool 6 inches, I sucked. Perfect. The worse I am at something, the more I can improve. The worse I am, the faster I can get better. Liking something to improve is not the best quality however, because when I attain a goal I had been striving for, I become intoxicated by my achievement, but I feel nothing for the sport. I find joy in reaching a goal that once felt unreachable. This has lead me to succeed at many thing and then quickly quit, wether it be certain video games, skateboarding, lacrosse, or basketball. I don’t count this as quitting, I just count it as losing interest.

PC: Sports Illustrated

Origin of the basketball term 'swish' | RSN

I suck at golf

navraj22Leave a comment

I suck at golf. I used to be really good at golf. I started about two years ago and kept getting better. I didn’t have to practice to improve, I would just magically shave off a few strokes a month. Last summer, about one year into it, I found myself scoring in the low 80’s, so I figured hey if I’m just improving like this I should probably keep doing what I’m doing. 

Little did I know I was doing a whole lot of nothing. I was just going to play golf at courses, never going to the range or putting green to practice. This caught up to me when I returned to school this year to find out that I was no longer the best golfer on the team. 

I’m not necessarily mad at it, just annoyed that someone whose name rhymes with schmogan won’t shut the fuck up about the fact that he’s now better than me. To be honest I do probably deserve a taste of my own medicine as I did the same to him all last year.

I am probably gonna start practicing and trying to get better now that I feel the need to be better than schmogan. Sort of glad I have someone to push me to practice, a reason to actually focus on improving but also don’t know if I want to improve. The last time I played was just a club throwing demonstration so maybe I just need to be a little bit less of a baby.

Photo Credit: Total Pro Sports

Sweaty Hugs and Hard-Earned Gatorade

mypetlobster1Leave a comment

Photo Credit: thepreachersword.com

team
tēm/
noun:
a group of players forming one side in a competitive game or sport.
synonyms: group, squad, company, party, crew, troupe, band, side, lineup, phalanx
verb:
come together as a team to achieve a common goal.
“he teamed up with the band to produce the album”
synonyms: join (forces), collaborate, get together, work together.
Sweaty hugs; cheering until my throat is raw;the pre-race jitters; hard-earned Gatorade; singing to “Africa” on the bus rides; pushing through almost unbearable pain; the cheers from my coaches and team mates; the feeling of success, when all the hard training and effort pays off; the happiness of coaches bringing food, after you just pushed yourself to your physical max; the endless support we have for each other; the amount of effort we put in; the dynamic and connection between us athletes; the fact that real teammates don’t only care about how you perform, they care about how hard you try. All these things contribute to the the feeling of being part of an authentic team, which is one of the best feelings that exists.
au·then·tic
ôˈTHen(t)ik/
adjective
adjective: authentic.
of undisputed origin; genuine.
“the letter is now accepted as an authentic document”

synonyms: genuine, real, bona fide, true, veritable

antonyms: fake. synonyms: reliable, dependable, trustworthy, authoritative, honest, faithful.

In my words, the way it should be: caring and real. 

I’ve been on many teams before. On some, we’ve won championships and received numerous trophies. On some, we placed last and got our asses handed to us. Winning is great, it’s what I strive to do, but I’ve realized that more than just winning that counts. I’ve realized that to have a good team, winning can’t be the only focus.

On a previous team, every day I would give my all. Yet, no matter how hard I tried, even the slightest mess-up resulted in dirty glares and angry shrugs. It made it so I was nervous to go to practice; I was afraid of my teammates; I pushed myself to the limits, because I was scared the punishment if I didn’t; and I was absolutely mortified before every game. This approach worked. I got stronger, I got better, I became a better athlete, but I forgot the fact that I love the sport.

After two years on that team, another opportunity came up, so I switched to a team with a VERY different dynamic. We pushed each other to do our best, to be our best. When slip-ups or bad days came, we encouraged each other to get better, not to feel like shit. I became so close to my teammates, I had good relationships with my coaches, I was so excited to go to practice everyday, and I pushed myself to the limits, because I wanted to get better for myself and my team. Our team performed just as well as the other one I mentioned and my love for the sport was rekindled.

Recently, I joined another team. I love both of the teams I’m on right now so much, but it’s been a long time since I have felt the feeling of happiness, appreciation, friendship, and passion as I did yesterday at my first ever cross country meet.

I know I love swimming far more than I love running, so it confuses me that yesterday, in this sport that I just joined months ago,  has brought me almost as much joy as the sport I have been doing for years. I think it’s just because swimming is more of an individual sport without a large aspect of team. I think its because the swim team I’m on has people who qualify for the Olympics or on the Junior National Team and I’m so slow compared to them, it makes me feel like I’m slow, period. Maybe its because a cross country the team is only as strong as its weakest link, so everyone is needed. Maybe because in the small league we run in, I too place high and feel like a good runner.

I think all of these things are a factor, but what I know for sure is that the feeling of being part of an authentic team is one of the best feelings that exists.