Start with Why
I think at this point most of us have seen the video by Simon Sinek “Start with Why”. If you haven’t already, the link is below. But with that in mind, I thought I’d share my “Why”.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u4ZoJKF_VuA
I think everyone who knows me personally knows one of my biggest strengths/weaknesses is my competitive spirit. Where does this come from? At the age of 6 I was playing a video game with a friend, I beat him and less than seconds later he pulled a pellet gun from under his bed and shot me in the eye from less than 5 feet away. At the age of 6 my life was changed forever. It has since been ingrained in me - you compete for your life, no matter what is it.
During freshman year of college, 2 days after losing a dual as the starter on the Michigan State Wrestling team, in a conversation with my coach he looked me right in the eyes and said “You’ll never have a future on this team or at this university”. At the age of 18 I was told by a man who I looked up to that my future was irrelevant to him. I later went on to graduate from Michigan State. Moral of the story - Nobody can determine your worth, only you can.
At the age of 23 I knew I wanted to pursue my passion and continue to be involved in wrestling. My dream since I was a child was to start my own business. Ultimately, I wanted to merge that desire to have my own wrestling club one day. During a conversation with another coach he looked me in the eyes and said “If you start a club in Virginia I will ruin you. I will run you out of town”. Just like the conversation with my college coach, I knew nobody could determine my worth.
I’ve been known through the wrestling community for having a bit of a chip on my shoulder since I started my career at the age of 7. Honestly, at first it bothered me, but as I've gotten older I’ve come to embrace it. I’ve gotten this far with people telling me I can’t/shouldn’t do something and I’ll never stray from my values.
As I continue to get older and my “WHY” is constantly evolving, I am delighted to have a new purpose come 2022 welcoming my son to the world. I will teach my little boy to be strong, be humble, don’t back down from a challenge and to always follow your passion.
