Juggling It All

“There may be people who have more talent than you, but there’s no excuse for anyone to work harder than you.” - Derek Jeter

He is right. I know there are people who are more talented at what they do than me, and maybe they work harder than I do. With that said, I will do everything in my power to catch them. There are no easy ways around excuses. We all have thoughts that run through our mind steering us toward the easy way out. When you think you’re too tired, too busy, not good enough, it is how you conquer those thoughts that define your path. Mentality and perspective are key components to overall well-being and balance as a whole. When I think about school, lacrosse, and building a career, the balance of it all is a blessing. It is also often frustrating because I can not give my full time to just one. But then, that truly wouldn’t be a representation of who I am.

Each one of these factors in my life is not “juggling it all.” It is about fitting what I love into one harmonized schedule and working harder every day. Each thing is not categorized into a specific slot; one is not a sport, one is not school, one is not work. They are all a piece of me. Things I genuinely love. I want to be the best student, defender, and fitness instructor I can be. I will not be any of those things if I do not put in extra efforts to get there. Life is all about the perspective you take. We could all complain we’re too busy, that’s easy. But what if you raise that bar higher? What if you realize what you’re doing is nothing compared to the person next you? That’s how I feel every day. I always look up to achieve what the people around me are. My parents, siblings, coworkers, teammates, peers - they set the bar not me. With a lot of admiration and competitiveness, it is that inner drive that allows us to juggle what we do but never allows us to settle. You need to go above just getting by; it’s the extra time you see people put in that get them ahead of the rest.

Let’s go even further than that. We are all where we are for a reason. If you want something, you need to invest yourself. You may fail a thousand times, but every progress and lesson learned is a step forward. Balancing all of these things are anything but easy. There is no excuse for any of those people to work harder than you. It is all about perspective. Who is it going to feel more rewarding to at the end of the day? Nothing worth having is ever handed to you. I have learned this both through experience and through watching others. So if you ask me, how do I juggle it all? Simple, I don’t. Your life is what you make it.

-- Amber