I’d say that since about April I have kind of loosened up. Yes, I stressed (hard) about the next step on my career path, but for the most part I’ve kind of just been going with the flow. I’ve always had things in my life lined up, I’m a huge planer, and I actually enjoy being organized but at the beginning of summer I didn’t really have much of that. When I decided to stop playing basketball in Europe my future got really foggy but somehow I had confidence. I guess I thought things would just figure themselves out and it seems they have– with minimal stress.
Last week I got an assistant coaching position for the Division III Southern Maine Huskies.
Ever since high school, really, I’ve thought about being a coach. On the court I’d always see things from everyone’s point of view, I always knew the plays from every position, and as I got older I liked to think about the strategy involved with winning games and possessions. In college and overseas I was a leader and my basketball talent never exactly stemmed from an excessive amount of athletic ability; I’ve been a good basketball player because I know the game.
Now that I’m done playing on an organized basketball team (oh, I’ll still be playing in some way) I want the sport to still be a part of my life. I want to coach athletes and motivate them to be the best they can, work their hardest, and succeed.
I’m excited to experience the sport from a different angle and life from another point of view. I have coached youth teams in the past and had the chance to work with my old high school team this summer and I enjoy watching them learn about basketball. I wasn’t sure high school coaching was where I wanted to be so I looked into college positions close to home.
Coaching at the college level interests me not only because of the basketball IQ at that age but because of life at that age. You do a lot of growing up in college and I believe basketball is a great tool for maturity and learning. I honestly don’t know exactly what the job will bring and neither does anyone else but I have a pretty good teacher to learn from.
Coach Fifield at USM is really the perfect mentor; he has almost 25 years of college experience and knows what it takes to be successful. Like most other things in my life, I’m not entirely certain that I will be a college basketball coach the rest of my life, but when it comes to careers, who is certain?
I know that I always give 100 percent, I love basketball, I am a good teacher, I enjoy seeing people succeed, and that I thrive on new opportunities. This job will require all of these things.
If nothing else, this will be a great chance to try. And if my life so far has taught me anything it’s that you have to learn about things through your own experiences. Just like when I used to complain at dinner: “but I don’t like fish!” and my mother would respond, “well, have you ever tried it?” Good point mom, I guess the only way you will truly understand how you feel about something is if you just give it a try with everything you have.
