Now that the year is closing, I’m starting to think about what comes next. I’ve had a few job prospects, and this has required me to reflect on my experience as a Victory Scholar. Specifically, I’ve been thinking about the skills that the program has allowed me to develop and how these skills can transfer over to a coaching career in my future. One of the biggest things I’m coming out of Victory Scholars with is confidence.
I definitely had confidence coming into the Victory Scholars program, but it was a different kind of confidence. I was confident in my ability to play basketball and to lead a team, but I didn’t have too much experience coaching yet. Working with different groups here in Ireland really helped me become comfortable in my voice on the court. As time progressed this year, I could feel myself becoming a more effective communicator. I discovered how to explain concepts more concisely, and I learned that players need to be taught differently sometimes. For example, I may need to explain the concept of a pivot in two different ways to different kids. Practice makes perfect, and the Victory Scholars program has afforded me the invaluable opportunity to practice my skills as a young coach.
What comes next? My goal in life is to be involved in basketball as long as I can be. While my competitive playing career may be coming to an end, I still want to give something back to the game. I’ve always enjoyed helping others. Whether it’s helping a teammate with a problem or working through a homework problem with someone, I’ve always found fulfillment in impacting others. The perfect way to combine my passion for basketball and for impacting others is through coaching. In particular, I would love to get back to the college level and help student-athletes have an experience like I had at Grinnell College. My college coaches helped me develop as a player, but more importantly as a person, and I can only hope that one day I might be able to do something similar for a collegiate student-athlete.