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1. The Top 10 Tips for a Championship Education
- University of Michigan Press
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1 1 C HAPTER The Top 10 Tips for a Championship Education 1. Believe in Both of You: The College Student and the College Athlete Theimportanceofmaintainingyourself-confi denceincollegecannot beoverstated.Ifyoupracticegoodstudyhabitsandhavethedesire tosucceed,youwilldojustthatateachandeverycollegethatoffered youadmission.Knowthatthisistrue,remindyourselfdaily,andnever questionyourintellectualabilities. Thereisamindgamethatgetsplayedoutateverycollege.Very simply,studentsworrythatthey’renotuptothecollege’sstandard. Unfortunately,collegesdoverylittletoallaysuchfears.First-year studentslookattheirpeersintheresidencehallcafeteria,atthecollege convocation,atthefi rstlectureorthefi rstteammeetingand COLLEGE KNOWLEDGE FOR THE STuDENT aTHLETE 2 worrythatthey’rejustnotassmartastheotherstudents.Thereality, however,isthathowwellyoudoincollegeisnotjustabouthowsmart youare.Instead,thekeyisdevelopinggoodstudyskills,discovering yourinterests,meetinggoodstudentsandfaculty,andfinding your ownidentity. Moststudentathletescometocollegewithastrongbeliefintheir athleticcompetence.Infact,itispartofyourcompetitivespiritto believethatyoulandedonacollegeathleticteambecauseyoubelong there.Youmayhavebeenrecruitedbyafew,evenmany,schoolson thebasisofyourathleticprowess.Butjustlikemostnewcollegestudents ,moststudentathletesdonothavethatsamelevelofconfidence intheiracademicabilitieswhenstartingcollege.Thisdichotomyof feelingsoconfident intheathleticarenayetlackingconfidence in yourselfintheacademicarenacansometimescreateaself-fulfilling prophecythatcanlandyouinacademictrouble.Youwanttobe successfulinbothathleticsandacademics.SeealsoTip7onpages 45–47. Oneofthemostvaluablelessonsyoucanacquireasasuccessful collegestudentathleteisabouttransferableskills:howtotransferthe athleticskillsyoualreadypossessandhavetrainedtowardperfecting totheacademicareaofyourlife.Youhavetrainedtobefocused andprepared,tohaveconfidenceinyourself,andtobelievethat practicemakesperfect.Thesesameprinciplesapplytoacademic success. Effortalsoplaysacriticalroleinathleticandacademicsuccess. Anyseasonedathleteknowsacoachwouldchoosetheathletewith lessnaturalabilityandastrongworkethicovertheathletewithmore [44.223.70.167] Project MUSE (2024-03-29 10:28 GMT) 1: The Top 10 Tips for a Championship Education 3 naturalabilityandapoorworkethic.Justastherewillbeathletesbetter thanyouandnotasgoodasyou,therewillbestudentssmarterthan youandlesssmartthanyou.Yoursuccesswillbedetermined,inlarge part,bywhatyoudotoattaintheresultsyouwant. Eventhebrighteststudentsatthebestschoolsexperiencefeelings ofacademicinadequacy.Youhavetheadvantageofbeingtrainedto believeinyourselfaspartofyourathleticdevelopment.Payattention tothefeedbackyougetfrominstructorsasahelpfulindicatorofhow youareactuallyperforming,asopposedtohowyouthinkyou’reperforming .Beaspreparedforanexamasyouwouldbeforagameor meet.Don’tbeembarrassedtoaskquestionsoraskforhelp.Believe inyourrighttobeastudent,believeinyourabilitytobesuccessful, andallowyourcompetitivenesstofl owintoyouracademiclife.Above allelse,believeinbothpartsofyou,thestudentandtheathlete. 2. Learn to Be a College Student Chancesareyouvisitedyourcollegewhileyouwerebeingrecruited; sothatwhenyouarrivedoncampustostartcollege,youalreadyhad somefamiliaritywithit.However,onceyoustartgoingtoclass,you willappreciatethatyoudidnotfullyunderstandwhatcollegewould belike.Collegeisanentirelydifferentuniversethanhighschool,both athleticallyandacademically.Theeasiestwaytodescribethedifference isthatcollegeismoreofeverything—moreexpectationsand demandsbothathleticallyandacademicallyandmoreindependence inhowyouliveeachday.Simplysaid,collegeisnotGrade13.Thisis truebothacademicallyandathletically. COLLEGE KNOWLEDGE FOR THE STuDENT...