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By Darren Becket - Pepperdine University - Class of 2011 & Collegiate Baseball Player
Why do we play sports as kids? Do we play them because we know that one day we will be making millions of dollars playing our favorite sport, or do we simply want to be more popular at school so that we are seen as being strong willed and athletic? What ever happened to just having fun?
Growing up around sports that filled my time schedule to the brim I know what it's like to feel pressure from parents, coaches, and peers to perform at a higher level than deemed possible. That's not to say that at certain times I didn’t need that extra push to perform well, but a constant nagging to be the best, and perform like the best, had a particular strain on my livelihood over the years. Playing baseball started to become work at this point. I was constantly having to sacrifice the life I wanted for a game that wasn’t offering me what it used to. To be blunt, I enjoyed baseball because to me it was amazingly fun! Three hours on a collegiate baseball field would pass by as if it were ten minutes. I would come home after a long day of playing multiple games feeling excited. And, up until the day that I felt playing sports became work, I never didn’t want to be on a baseball field. It was my home, my sanctuary. Nothing could phase me out there because I was in control.
I tell my story to others, including myself from time to time, as a reminder to have fun and enjoy whatever sport or activity you are involved in. Playing a sport was never about where it can get you in the future, or what kind of business deal could come out of it. It is, and always will be, a game that you enjoy so much that you would give up anything for. As kids and teens we are still exploring who we are and what we enjoy doing on a day to day basis. So consider this blog a CALL TO ACTION. Find a sport that you enjoy playing and that you find really fun. Most of all, be patient when finding a sport that you enjoy. It’s not about how good you are in a sport that determines if you really enjoy it, but by the way you feel when playing that particular sport.
Having fun is a huge part of growing up and finding out who you are. Playing a sport that brings out this quality in you can brighten your life, including the peers around you. So enjoy a day at the ballpark, or round up some friends for a friendly five on five soccer game. Having fun never felt so good!
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Sunday, January 30, 2011
LEADERSHIP INSIGHT FROM A TEEN
I was speaking at the National Association of Student Councils (NASC) Conference in Nevada this weekend and one of the high school students in the audience had a great insight about leadership.
As a student leader he realized the importance of being energized as he walks the halls at school. That if he is stressed out and in a hurry this will be noticed by the students he leads. He could miss out on the opportunity to connect with others through eye contact and greetings.
Influential leaders have good connections (however small) with their followers. And stress can impact those connections because it can sap one's energy and ability to be "on".
If you are a student leader and want to explore ways to reduce the stressors of being a leader I encourage you to connect with a LIFE REVOLUTION Coach!
Clark Souers
President
LIFE REVOLUTION
As a student leader he realized the importance of being energized as he walks the halls at school. That if he is stressed out and in a hurry this will be noticed by the students he leads. He could miss out on the opportunity to connect with others through eye contact and greetings.
Influential leaders have good connections (however small) with their followers. And stress can impact those connections because it can sap one's energy and ability to be "on".
If you are a student leader and want to explore ways to reduce the stressors of being a leader I encourage you to connect with a LIFE REVOLUTION Coach!
Clark Souers
President
LIFE REVOLUTION
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Interview with David Cristini - Famous Teen Tweeter
Clark Souers, President of LIFE REVOLUTION®, recently had the pleasure of interviewing David Cristini, author of #everygirlisbeautifulandspecial on Twitter. This high school student has over 55,000 followers!! He also has over 10,000 views on YouTube at egibitow. David is on a quest to help every girl realize that they are beautiful and special.
To learn more about this amazing young man and how he is helping increase the self esteem of numerous teenage girls, read on!
CLARK: What inspired you to begin sending Tweets that would help girls feel better about themselves?
DAVID: I first started trying to help girls feel better about themselves and realize that they are beautiful by creating a group on Myspace and Facebook called every girl is beautiful in their own way. After a couple months I decided to make a youtube video trying to help girls realize that they are beautiful and special. I had a twitter for a while and I was not using it that much but then I realized that i could spread the word about what I'm trying to do and help more girls. So I started a hashtag called #egibitow (every girl is beautiful in their own way). I put it at the end of all of my tweets and tried to make it a trending topic. Then one day I got Jordin Sparks to tweet it and it became a trending topic. That meant the world to me because I knew that I was helping girls and inspiring them. After that other celebrities started posting it too. I decided to change my hashtag to #everygirlisbeautifulandspecial after a while so more girls and other people can understand what I meant. This is what I put at the end of all of my tweets. I just really care about girls and they deserve to feel good about themselves.
CLARK: It’s so refreshing to find a teenage boy who genuinely cares about girls and how they feel about themselves. Can you pinpoint a specific event or series of events in your life that caused you to be passionate about helping the world see that every girl is beautiful?
DAVID: I do not think I can pinpoint a certain event. I just saw and realized that girls don't feel beautiful. So I decided to help them feel better about themselves. Since I have started helping girls I think that my passion to help the world see that every girl is beautiful has grown. I want to be able to help girls out with other things besides their self-esteem. In the future I would like to help girls that are struggling with family, friendship, relationship, and addiction issues. I am also trying to do that right now by giving them advice on things that they are going through. God has a plan for me and I know that he will lead me in the right direction.
CLARK: The girls who receive your advice must be grateful. How have you seen this advice impact them?
DAVID: I think that by posting my youtube video and tweeting #everygirlisbeautifulandspecial I have impacted girls that I did not even know about. I give advice to girls on my twitter and I hope that I impact or inspire every girl that follows me or sees my video. By giving advice to girls it gives them hope that there are actually good guys out there that will care about them and treat them with respect. It also helps them feel better about themselves and it impacts them by helping them remember that someone thinks that they are beautiful and special. I received an email from a girl saying that she never tweets me but she reads all of my tweets and that what I am doing is amazing. I did not even know her but I still impacted her. I know that God has put me in this position for a reason and that you can impact people all around the world without even knowing they exist.
CLARK: You have sent more than 65,000 tweets! How in the world do you find time to send so may tweets and keep your grades up?
DAVID: I try to reply to my fans as much as I can but most of my 65,000 tweets are from the summer. I had more time to send tweets. Since school started I usually try to reply to my fans once a week and I try to post a tweet everyday. I think it is important for me to talk to my fans because it helps my relationship with them to grow. It also gives me the opportunity to help them realize that they are beautiful or help them with any other things they are going through.
CLARK: I’m impressed with how you keep a good boundary with your tweets – we at LIFE REVOLUTION® believe that setting boundaries is a great way to avoid stress. Thanks for sharing David! Many adults are concerned about how social media is negatively impacting teens. But you have demonstrated how someone with a big heart can harness the internet to positively impact others in big and amazing ways. Keep up the great work!
To learn more about this amazing young man and how he is helping increase the self esteem of numerous teenage girls, read on!
CLARK: What inspired you to begin sending Tweets that would help girls feel better about themselves?
DAVID: I first started trying to help girls feel better about themselves and realize that they are beautiful by creating a group on Myspace and Facebook called every girl is beautiful in their own way. After a couple months I decided to make a youtube video trying to help girls realize that they are beautiful and special. I had a twitter for a while and I was not using it that much but then I realized that i could spread the word about what I'm trying to do and help more girls. So I started a hashtag called #egibitow (every girl is beautiful in their own way). I put it at the end of all of my tweets and tried to make it a trending topic. Then one day I got Jordin Sparks to tweet it and it became a trending topic. That meant the world to me because I knew that I was helping girls and inspiring them. After that other celebrities started posting it too. I decided to change my hashtag to #everygirlisbeautifulandspecial after a while so more girls and other people can understand what I meant. This is what I put at the end of all of my tweets. I just really care about girls and they deserve to feel good about themselves.
CLARK: It’s so refreshing to find a teenage boy who genuinely cares about girls and how they feel about themselves. Can you pinpoint a specific event or series of events in your life that caused you to be passionate about helping the world see that every girl is beautiful?
DAVID: I do not think I can pinpoint a certain event. I just saw and realized that girls don't feel beautiful. So I decided to help them feel better about themselves. Since I have started helping girls I think that my passion to help the world see that every girl is beautiful has grown. I want to be able to help girls out with other things besides their self-esteem. In the future I would like to help girls that are struggling with family, friendship, relationship, and addiction issues. I am also trying to do that right now by giving them advice on things that they are going through. God has a plan for me and I know that he will lead me in the right direction.
CLARK: The girls who receive your advice must be grateful. How have you seen this advice impact them?
DAVID: I think that by posting my youtube video and tweeting #everygirlisbeautifulandspecial I have impacted girls that I did not even know about. I give advice to girls on my twitter and I hope that I impact or inspire every girl that follows me or sees my video. By giving advice to girls it gives them hope that there are actually good guys out there that will care about them and treat them with respect. It also helps them feel better about themselves and it impacts them by helping them remember that someone thinks that they are beautiful and special. I received an email from a girl saying that she never tweets me but she reads all of my tweets and that what I am doing is amazing. I did not even know her but I still impacted her. I know that God has put me in this position for a reason and that you can impact people all around the world without even knowing they exist.
CLARK: You have sent more than 65,000 tweets! How in the world do you find time to send so may tweets and keep your grades up?
DAVID: I try to reply to my fans as much as I can but most of my 65,000 tweets are from the summer. I had more time to send tweets. Since school started I usually try to reply to my fans once a week and I try to post a tweet everyday. I think it is important for me to talk to my fans because it helps my relationship with them to grow. It also gives me the opportunity to help them realize that they are beautiful or help them with any other things they are going through.
CLARK: I’m impressed with how you keep a good boundary with your tweets – we at LIFE REVOLUTION® believe that setting boundaries is a great way to avoid stress. Thanks for sharing David! Many adults are concerned about how social media is negatively impacting teens. But you have demonstrated how someone with a big heart can harness the internet to positively impact others in big and amazing ways. Keep up the great work!
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