I wrote this at the end of 2017 as I was transitioning out of volleyball as my primary career and trying to figure out where to go next. I decided to post it now for all of the athletes graduating who might be going on to new and different things. As for me, some of this still applies but I have, at least, found my next step. To learn more about what I'm working on, you can go to shift7.com
I was never one of those kids who knew exactly what they
wanted to be when they grew up. I didn’t have clear strengths and weaknesses in
high school or know what I would study going into college. But there are two
things that I’ve always known in my
life. The first was that I was going to play volleyball. The second was that I
was going to do something other than play volleyball.
The volleyball part came first, naturally, because there’s a
time limit on an athletic career. And because that dream was clear. The first
time I ever saw the National Team play was in 2000 at the Sydney Olympics. We
watched every match that was televised. I remember the moment that something
inside me clicked and I thought, “I want to do THAT.” I wanted to wear red,
white and blue, represent my country and, more than anything else, I wanted to
play volleyball at the highest level of the game. Eleven years later, after
achieving other dreams—of winning state championships, playing in college,
going to Stanford— I walked into the National Team gym. And for five years I
got to live my dreams.
Then I decided to walk away. I could make a living playing
volleyball right now. I could still be training in the USA gym. But I know,
I’ve always known, that I have other things to do. Plus my biggest dream wasn’t
making that team or winning medals or going to the Olympics; it was finding out
how good I could be. Could I step on the court with the best in the world and
play this game at the absolute highest level? And I found out I could. So I was
ready for a new dream.
