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Just as a massive tree starts off as a small seed, every athlete has hidden potential that is ready to blossom.

Have you ever heard someone say they saw “potential” in you? Potential is the seed for every athlete, a base block from which a sports career can grow. Every person has the capacity to grow. Like the walnut-sized seed of a sequoia tree, every skinny little kid has within them a talented basketball player, a do or die long distance runner, or a swift and agile tennis star. The funny thing about potential is that it needs to be unlocked. Not every seed grows into a massive tree.

Latent Potential

Surprisingly few athletes are able to unlock their true potential. The factors that play into unlocking potential vary with each individual, some athletes’ home lives limit their growth while others just can’t seem to push themselves hard enough.

The key to unlocking potential lies outside of circumstances and moves beyond any limiting factors: all athletes must maintain strict discipline to shatter their limitations. Athletes must work hard, make right choices, and pick the right friends. These “soils” will help the seed of your potential grow, so don’t let bad choices wreck the good things you’ve got going for you.

“Bad Company Corrupts Good Character”

Being disciplined about the friends you choose is in some ways the hardest form of discipline. Peer pressure is tough whether you’re the quiet kid at school or the star athlete.

For one of Jaime’s sons, who now plays in the NFL, he had to make a hard choice to be a buzzkill by leaving a friend’s house when inappropriate movies were being watched. Even as an athlete, Jaime’s son had to show incredible discipline and courage by making a socially unpopular choice, not to mention waking his dad up late at night to come pick him up!

“You Reap What You Sow”

Like a farmer working the land, athletes have to “work the soil” to create fertile ground from which the seed of potential can grow. The keyword here is “work,” and if you’re an athlete, you know this to be true. But it can be easy to just do the “bare minimum” amount of work by not hitting the gym, by not practicing at home, by surrounding yourself with people and situations that will make you lazy, or by only doing just enough to stay on the team or put in your time at practice. And if your goal is to thrive and succeed at athletics, this just won’t cut it.

In life and sports, we have successes and failures, good days and bad days, sad times and joyful times. The point is that no matter what, you have to always make the best choices possible to reach your potential and achieve your goals. The right attitude, the right discipline, and the right work ethic are all crucial to being the best you can be.

Article for this topic by Daniel Martin.
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Key Points:

  • Latent potential. The key to unlocking potential lies outside of circumstances and moves beyond any limiting factors: all athletes must maintain strict discipline to shatter their limitations.
  • Bad company corrupts good character. Being disciplined about the friends you choose is in some ways the hardest form of discipline. Peer pressure is tough whether you’re the quiet kid at school or the star athlete.
  • You reap what you sow. Like a farmer working the land, athletes have to “work the soil” to create fertile ground from which the seed of potential can grow.

Quote This:

Football is a metaphor for life. -Emmitt Smith

Talk About It
  1. What is your initial reaction to this topic? What jumped out at you?
  2. Have you ever felt like you achieved your full potential? Why or why not?
  3. “Every seed has potential, but not every soil is suitable for full growth.” What are some “unsuitable soils” or challenges you’ve had to overcome in your athletic career?
  4. What “good soils” will help the seed of your potential grow?
  5. Are there situations you’ve had to walk away from in order to pursue a disciplined lifestyle? Or are there times you realized you should have walked away but didn’t? What happened?
  6. What are some situations you’ve seen where people have “reaped what the sowed?”
  7. Emmitt Smith said “football is a metaphor for life.” How do you think your sports reflects life? How does it reflect what you put into it, like life?
  8. Write a personal action step based on this conversation.