Don’t let your desire to reach your destination prevent you from enjoying the trip

I’d always been a point-A-to-point-B kind of person; “I’m here, I need to get there. How do I do that as quickly as possible?” The problem with that, I’ve discovered, is that most of the wonders in life occur between point A and point B.

We live in a goal-oriented society. We are constantly trying to become something, to achieve, to be better than someone. Our athletic endeavors are certainly subject to a similar obsession with reaching a certain goal. Whether it be getting recruited to play at the NCAA level, being chosen to join that gold-level travel team, or simply advancing to become the #1 pitcher for your high school, we must be very careful not to allow the desire to reach a destination prevent us from appreciating and enjoying the trip.

For many of you, the people you meet, the experiences you have, and the pure joy of a team environment will be the highlight of your athletic careers. Make no mistake; NCAA softball is more hard work than it is play, and although it may be a worthy pursuit, it should not be at the expense of the enjoyment of the journey you take to get there.

In our push to reach some point in the future, we often miss what is happening right now. We have all heard the expression, “Take the time to stop and smell the flowers.” Coach Jillian was a very highly ranked college recruit. For a variety of common reasons, her NCAA experience was less than rewarding. This can be the case for even the most accomplished athletes. To this day, she is so grateful for having savored every moment of her high school and travel ball career and not allowing the goal to obliterate the path to it.