How the Self-Sacrifice Culture in Sports Impacts ATs
there’s no “I” in team
…but there is a “me.”
Self-sacrifice is glorified in sports. Just think of all the phrases that are so common that they’ve passed into idiom and are used from boardrooms to bars across America.
She really took one for the team there!
No pain, no gain!
He left it all on the court tonight!
As Athletic Trainers, many of us grew up steeped in this culture. Now that we work in it, is it any wonder that we have trouble pulling back and setting boundaries without guilt, shame, or a sense of failure?
How do we stay nimble and adaptable, yet set and hold boundaries that keep us able to show up as our best selves day after day, year after year?
How do we teach our athletes and coaches that some of the most inspirational moments we witnessed in sports growing up were reckless and dangerous, and we wouldn’t let them happen today?
How can we leave it all on the court, when we have families to go home to? When sports isn’t a season of our lives, but a livelihood that needs to be sustainable long-term?
As we close out National Athletic Training Month, I’d like to offer you some alternative sports idioms to carry with you instead:
Knock it out of the park.
There are the things you can’t control, and then there are the things you are amazing at. Focus on your strengths, and delivering on those as often as you can. Be exceptional at your craft. It will be valued.
Keep your eyes on the prize.
Our job can be overwhelming at times - with secondary responsibilities, a hectic schedule, and conflict with coaches, parents, and admins that can leave us questioning ourselves. In moments like this, keeping our athletes’ welfare (our “prize” so to speak, while others may have their eyes elsewhere) as our north star can help us stay steadfast.
You miss 100 percent of the shots you don't take.
Go for that promotion or job, Sign up for that certification course you’re interested in. Break into a new job setting.
It’s a game of inches…and we fight for that inch.
Change in the profession can be frustratingly slow. But when we add up the inches, it IS happening. And we can all be a part of it.
And last but not least - It ain’t over til it’s over.
Our lives have seasons, just like our sports. The need, or even just the desire, to change jobs, settings, or industries doesn’t mean you’ve failed or given up. It can be an opportunity to show a whole new population what an AT can do for them, and to experience the personal and professional fulfillment you deserve.
