Why having a "role model mindset" will change the game for you

Not many people know who mine is, but here it goes.

Whether you’d like to admit it or not, everyone has someone that they look up to. I think the term “role model” is seriously underrated. People say it’s cliché to have one, but I think they are too proud to admit it!

Everyone needs at least one human to learn HOW good people in this world should look and act in certain circumstances, especially the tough ones.

She will probably never know this, but Caitlin Lowe (4x All-American outfielder at Arizona Softball and USA Softball Olympic Medalist) was mine. Some of my favorite memories were hanging with my dad at night and watching her play on TV (and not tell mom that I stayed up super late!). I can’t remember what age I fell in love watching her play, but all I know is I grew up idolizing her.

She would rope hard slaps to the fences, lay down the most beautiful bunts and steal every base imaginable. Man-oh-man did I want to be like that. I even watched her live when she ran so hard for a ball in center field that her face and every limb of her body crashed into the (what seemed like) brick outfield wall. She was bleeding, she was bruised and she had to be escorted off the field.

As a kid, I was terrified, but I was SO INSPIRED.

(I have a feeling you’re dying to watch the video now!)

​This girl loved softball more than anyone else in the world, and, to me, I wanted to have that same passion for the game. She was one of the most humble players to ever pick up a bat and was always the hardest worker on the field.  

As I began high school, I started to understand my identity as a softball player, so I wasn’t emulating every move Caitlin made anymore, but I made sure I had instilled a few of her qualities into my game:

HEART, HUMILITY and SPEED.

Even though her and I don’t play anymore, I still strive to perform the first two words in my every day life.

I strive to do everything with my WHOLE HEART or not at all.

I want to be great at whatever I do but also be HUMBLE.

The last one, SPEED, I made my difference maker on the field. I set out to be the fastest and smartest baserunner I knew because, in my eyes, that’s what set Caitlin apart from most.

What I love about this game is that when it’s all said and done, the character you’ve developed from playing it is going to stay with you throughout your entire life.

You are going to grow in so many ways as you age, but those important characteristics you learn will probably stick with you forever.

Find your role model. Find out what qualities make them who they are. Then, emulate their great qualities, but take pride in what makes you special.

...That’s how we all win.