This I Believe

Attitude is Everything

Lou Holtz, the legendary college football coach once said, “Ability is what you are capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it.” I am an athlete and attitude is everything; this, I believe.

I have been an athlete my entire life and I can’t imagine doing anything else. I have played so many sports that I can’t even count them on both of my hands. The experience of every sport has trained and helped me to learn so much about myself as a person and as an athlete.

I am a ski racer and I would not be where I am if I didn’t have the right attitude to guide me. Sure, I have help and support from family and friends; but they don’t help me through training, or competition. It is all about me and what I want to get out of every workout. The countless seconds of training add up, making me stronger as an athlete and as a person.

Having the right attitude is a long journey, which sometimes I have to take myself. While others are on the ski hill, on the soccer field, in the lifting room, or running I constantly hear around me, “wow this really sucks” or “I can’t do this.” I overcome their negative attitudes by saying to myself, “I am one step ahead of this person because they don’t want to be doing this.”

I am not going to sit here and preach and say that I am perfect and always have the right attitude, because I don’t, but I am a few steps ahead of others because I try.

I believe that attitude is everything, but it has to be real. People can easily tell themselves that they are the best or the fastest, but those are just words, right? There has to be belief behind what you say, because, trust me, there is a difference between belief and words. I have made this mistake plenty of times. If you truly believe what you tell yourself you will recognize the difference. I was on the ski hill and my coach said, “Look me in the eyes and tell me you can do it, because I know you can.” “I can do it,” I said the words, but I didn’t believe them. I went down the course and had the fastest time by 1.7 seconds. After that run I had the confidence and the belief. Whenever I didn’t have a stellar run I went back to the top and told myself I could do it, because I knew I could. I had the perseverance and the attitude to continue to hold my head high.

Yes, some people have the natural born talent and ability, while others have the motivation, but it’s hard to have the right attitude. Attitude is the most important part in an athlete’s career, because it gets you through the off-season training and season competition with a smile on your face knowing that you will succeed and take another step forward. It’s a long journey, but with the right attitude, I can do anything, this I believe.