[014] Regret why?
leave no stone unturned. trust me, your sanity depends on it.
To the person:
I don't know how many of you have lost somebody close to you, but undoubtedly, that's probably one of the most challenging obstacles we ever have to face throughout our human existence. Yesterday, one of my friends asked me if I felt like I was healed after the loss of my mother a little over a year ago. She claimed that when I speak about my mother, it sounds like I'm healed from it. My response to her was that although some days are much harder than others, and there are moments when you wish you could talk to or hold that person, the contentment comes from living without regret.
At the end of the day, I think as humans, we all exist in a balanced state, and even our interactions with other people are a constant fight for balance if you are living with the right intentions. In our simplest form, children grow up wanting to repay their parents for giving them the greatest gift, which is life. In a healthy and loving relationship, I believe you feel the urge to repay that gift even more. I'm able to cope with loss from a place of knowing that I left no stone unturned regarding the moments we shared.
It's all about impacting the people you want to impact throughout life and living in a way that you don't regret anything in the end. We all get opportunities throughout the days, weeks, and years to chase greatness in different aspects of life. All of these pursuits look a little different based on who we are and what vehicle we choose to use, but there is one constant: effort. If you give everything you have to something, you'll be able to sleep well with the result, no matter what that result is.
Everything you go after in life is either teaching you how to be a better person or how to find better alignment. Every experience is a learning experience if you choose to look at it that way. As you go through life and all your endeavors, try as hard as you can to give it your all because the last thing you want to do is get to the end of the journey and have to live with the regrets of not trying.
To the player:
You have a limited amount of time to leave your mark on the game. Understanding this fact should motivate you to put in extra work, get extra reps, and play every game as if it could be your last. Honestly, you never know when or how your career will conclude. Many variables come into play when we talk about sports, from injuries to politics. The higher the level at which you play the game, the more external factors influence your interaction with it. There are many things completely out of your control that can shape the trajectory of your career.
The question I have for you is: What do you actually want to get out of the game? And why do you play the game? Finding the answers to these questions and having a firm grasp of your internal reasoning for chasing whatever it is you’re chasing will help you maintain perspective when things don’t go as planned. This perspective will allow you to have gratitude for the opportunity to play and contentment with the journey you took to get wherever you are.
My basketball career got cut short because of an injury. It happened at a time when I felt like I was playing some of the best basketball I’d ever played. For a while, I struggled with accepting the timing of it all. But as I reflect on my career in its entirety, I can’t be mad at the results because I gave everything I had to the game. What I didn’t know at the time was that all those obstacles and hurdles I had to jump over along my journey prepared me for my true calling: coaching, teaching, and inspiring. If I hadn’t faced those struggles, I would have no idea how to connect with others. All of those obstacles made me the person I am today, and your struggles and obstacles will do the same for you.
