Editor’s Note: Please welcome writer Joe Yevoli to LaxAllStars.com! Joe was an All-American lacrosse player at Virginia and Syracuse and won a national title with the Cavs in 2003 when he was a 2nd Team All American. Joe is currently the Head of Lacrosse Marketing at GC, a NYC company that builds free scorekeeping and stat software for teams. He played professional lacrosse for the San Francisco Dragons, Denver Outlaws, and New York Lizards and was a 2006 MLL Rookie of the Year Runner-up. Follow Joe and follow GameChanger Lacrosse on Twitter.
[mks_separator style=”solid” height=”4″]
There’s one question I have asked almost every guest on the GameChanger Lacrosse Podcast (Subscribe on iTunes!). For me, it happens to be the most interesting question.
It’s usually the interview question every player and coach struggle with the most. So, what’s the question?
“If you could do your college playing career over again, what would you do differently?”
I’m interested in this question for many reasons. First, if I were a young player playing today I’d want to hear the advice of more experienced players, the players I admire most. Good advice comes from personal experience. The best way to avoid making the mistakes of others is to hear about those mistakes from the people who made them.
Second, and I can be honest about this, I have a lot of regrets about my playing days. In the 10+ years since I’ve played college lacrosse I’ve learned A LOT.
There are many things I wish I knew when I was playing. With a younger sister in her sophomore year of college, and two younger brothers in high school, I wanted to take some time to lay out a few of the things I would do differently if I could do it all over again:
Track Your Progress
Back in high school my dad got me in the gym as soon as it was healthy for me to do so. I got into it from the beginning, and ended up going to the gym consistently. It showed in my year-after-year improvement from freshman through senior year of high school.
I gained weight and was noticeably stronger. However, you can’t dramatically improve what you don’t measure. I plateaued when I reached a certain level. I improvised every workout and didn’t track my personal records. As a result I had nothing to improve upon.
I’m stronger today than I was in high school and college and that’s because I track my performance like I should have back then.
Prioritize Your True Goals
When you’re in high school and college your world is relatively small. Chances are you have minimal life experience and the things that are happening in your small, inexperienced world seem WAY more important than they actually are. It’s hard to focus on the bigger picture when you barely know it exists. I appreciate the importance of work-life balance.
It’s important to make time for your friends and personal relationships. But, looking back on it, my goal was to be the best lacrosse player I could be. My priorities should have been something like this:
- School
- Lacrosse
- Family / Close Friends
Missing a few parties in favor of studying, shooting on the cage, and going to the wall is inconsequential in the long run. Although at the time it seemed like missing these events would be something I’d regret. Now that I’m older (wiser?) and more mature, I can tell you that they are NOT important and you won’t regret missing a few social activities to put in a little extra work.
Mentally Prepare
I’ve become a big believer in, and practitioner of, meditation. I currently meditate 20 minutes a day, everyday, and it’s dramatically affected almost every aspect of my life in a positive way. I’m calmer, able to focus longer, and overall I feel happier. Meditation gives you the ability to better control your thoughts and, therefore, better control your mind.
Here’s what never occurred to me until about a year ago: there’s a mental aspect to everything physical.
Your ability to push through pain and get one more rep is mental. Your ability to work harder than the person next to you in the last few minutes of the fourth quarter is mental. Your ability as a college athlete to successfully go to school, practice, the weight room, back to class, study, sleep, and then wake up and do it all over again is mental.
New York Knicks President Phil Jackson is making the Knicks take mindfulness lessons. There’s a reason the guy has 13 NBA Championship Rings.
One of my favorites proverbs of all-time is, “If there’s no enemy within, the enemy outside can not hurt you.”
Enjoy It More!
I remember a few days after UVA won the National Championship in 2003 my dad said to me, “Enjoy it while it lasts, ‘cause it may never happen again.” As much of a downer as this seemed at the time, he was, as usual, 100% right.
I had the privilege to play college lacrosse for two of the sport’s best programs. Rarely did I ever stop and take it all in, enjoy it, or be in the moment (see #3). I remember how mad I was when I had to wake up at 5:30am for practice.
Fast forward to today and I’d give anything to relive that. Even if it was just for one day. If you’re playing high school or college lacrosse right now, you’re one of the luckiest people on the planet. Enjoy it while it lasts, because it won’t last forever.
What Would I Do Differently?
Here’s the funny thing about writing an article like this – I bet coaches and former players are nodding their heads in agreement. I’m also sure only a few high school and college kids appreciate what I’m saying.
I remember one night my dad came home after hanging out with a few of his high school friends. I was a junior in high school at the time.
He pulled me aside and said, “Joe, please don’t take this age for granted. You have a great opportunity ahead of you. Don’t waste it.
While I don’t think I wasted it, I do think I left some things on the table. And, it’s certainly not his fault that he couldn’t get his point across to a young, stubborn, thick-headed teenager.
Today, you don’t need to be surrounded by former players and coaches who played at the highest level to benefit from their expertise. There are plenty of content providers producing valuable information on how young lacrosse players can make the most of the opportunity they have in front of them.
That’s why I’m writing this, and that’s why I’ve created the GameChanger Lacrosse Podcast.
We’re giving you a blueprint for success. Don’t waste it.
