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Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Determination, hard work, persistence all pay off
Central Indiana, IN
By: Mary-Rachel Dick
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Photo(s) By: Kyle Danztler/MyActionPortraits.com
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Alright Mary-Rachel, standby on the sideline, going live in 5…wait what was I going to say again…4…I’m not old enough to do this I just graduated …3…Just smile, you can’t go wrong if you smile right?....2…Oh, please say I don’t have anything in my teeth… 1….Oh, wow…
My debut as sideline reporter on the Big Ten Network and this is what was going through my head. The day I had practiced and prepared for my entire life and there I stood on the field at Ross-Ade stadium, speechless. So nervous I was almost numb.
But then it hit me. Just a few feet behind me, the All-American Marching Band began to play what I was convinced had to be the loudest rendition of the Purdue fight song. And trust me, as a Purdue grad and die hard Boilermaker fan since birth; I’ve heard more than my fair share of Hail Purdue on football Saturdays. But on this day, my favorite fight song did more than just pump me full of pride before the game. It saved me. Or maybe a bit more accurately, it finally knocked some sense into me.
Here I am presented with the opportunity of a lifetime and all I can think about is what part of my morning breakfast buffet might be stuck in my teeth. Nope, no way. I worked way too long and too hard to go out like that. This was my one shot to make that all important first impression. The chance to prove my ability not only to myself but to all of those people who doubted me along the way. The people who said I had to “start small and wait a few years” before someone like the Big Ten Network would even take me seriously.
But they were wrong. Hard work, persistence, and a strong dislike for the word “No” landed me exactly where I wanted to be just three months after graduation: handling the live sideline reporting duties at Purdue’s home opener against Eastern Illinois for, yes, the Big Ten Network!
It’s been almost a year since my sideline debut in Ross-Ade Stadium. From that day on I never looked back. Working with the Big Ten Network the last several months has been nothing short of incredible. The places I’ve been, the people I’ve met, and, yes, the mistakes I’ve made have all been invaluable in these early stages of my professional career.
People often say to me, “You’re so lucky, you have a real dream job.” Yes, I agree it is my dream job, but “lucky”? No way. As far as I’m concerned, luck doesn’t exist. You make your own luck with determination, persistence, and hard work.
So I’m sure you’re thinking who does this girl think she is?! One year out of college and all of a sudden she feels entitled to preach to me about how hard work, persistence and determination will lead me to success blabbity…blabbity… blah. What does she know?!!
Obviously, I’m no expert. But hear me out. Incorporating this trio of persistence, hard work, and determination to achieve goals in my life is something I learned to adopt long before I began working for Big Ten Network.
In fact, its roots stem all the way back to the good ol’ recreational fields at Lawrence Park where I fell in love with the sport that, in hindsight, changed my life: soccer.
As a freshman at Lawrence Central High School, I was able to make the varsity soccer team and letter all four years. I’m very proud of that accomplishment, but believe me; no one would have predicted it when I first started playing. Let’s just say I was anything but the next Mia Hamm. Yet my coaches must have seen something in me.
I’m not going to lie, those first few years, I rarely saw any playing time, but I didn’t get discouraged. With the support of my parents I dedicated myself to becoming a better player and by my senior year of high school I was an All-County and All Conference selection player.
If you can see it and you believe it, you can achieve it. If someone says you can’t do something, prove them wrong. Put it out there and never give up. Shock yourself. For that matter, shock the world.
And always remember these words that I got from a poster that once hung at my dentist’s office: Shoot for the moon, because even if you miss, you’ll land among the stars.
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