A few things hp volleyball has taught me

Trying to put what this means to me into writing led to a long winding road trying to explain something that has always been inherent in me, but I have never even considered trying to define.

There are a few things HP volleyball has taught me (and by a few I mean a lot, but you would be stuck reading for the rest of your high school career if I listed them all, so I’ll let you figure it out through the years and only hit on what was the most important to me).

1. You will never be prepared for what life throws at you. The HP volleyball program has taught me a number of lessons that are applicable to life both on and off the court. One of the most important is being punctual. You will never be late to anything again, trust me – just wait you’ll understand and you’ll thank Coach later.
2. Communicating – communication is key.
3. Making quick strategic decisions – not every pass, set or hit will be perfect. However, when you act quickly and make the adjustments you will come back. Focus on the little things first and the rest will fall into place.
4. Trust and highlighting strengths of your teammates – it is important to find the balance between trusting your teammates to take care of their portion of the court and recognizing where the weakest link is – because you are only as strong as the weakest link.
5. Playing when you are down (this doesn’t happen often so keep good sportsmanship). The most important part about this lesson is you rally together, never give up and never settle.
6. Accepting and owning your mistakes – no excuses. You’ll learn quickly to say I’ll get it next time. You always need to tell yourself you want the next one; and own it.

In addition, I learned perseverance, how to work hard, how to find determination, and found my will to win. I learned a lot about myself and who I wanted to be. Volleyball did not come easily to me and I was easily frustrated by the slightest mistake and distraught by a loss. I worked at these, though, and being part of this team were some of my most enjoyable experiences throughout high school.

No matter how talented you may be, you are not always going to have a natural affinity or be the best. Most the time you are going to have to work for what you want. No matter how good you are you will mess up; someone will be better and occasionally you will fail. This piece always stuck with me, knowing someone might be working harder than me, so I never gave up. You learn that when you put time and effort in, it pays off.