Resourcefulness and Initiative

At this point I had a good idea of what I needed to do to prepare myself physically for the next level, but did not know what I needed to do to give myself a chance. 

I started by making a highlight reel. My dad helped me create copies and, together, we sent the film and a letter to every NFL franchise. We got one response. The New England Patriots invited me to come down in the spring and work out with them. Although the workout didn’t result in a contract, I received candid feedback that I was close, which was all I needed to keep going.

The first break was the discovery of a fledgling spring professional league named the Regional Football League. The teams were all in the south and the concept was to capitalize on the south’s pride in their college programs. Each team had first picks of players who had competed in college in their region. For example, the Mobile, Alabama team had the right of first refusal on any player from Alabama, Auburn, Florida State, etc., with the expectation being that players from the region filled out most of the roster. However, since each team had a few roster spots for players outside their region, this was my chance to join the league. 

I reached out to every team and heard back from one, the Mississippi Pride, out of Jackson, Mississippi. Shortly thereafter, I was on a plane to Jackson (self-funded) for a workout and interviews. After a few days, I left with an invitation to camp and no guarantees. 

Without resourcefulness and initiative, my playing days were over. I learned from previous experience the importance of advocating for yourself. Successful self-advocating has two components: First, to advocate confidently, you must take the action and do the work to create capability that is genuinely worthy of self-promotion. Secondly, you cannot be discouraged by organizations that are not interested in you, but rather, motivated to turn over every stone and explore every option.  

If we’ve done the work to be capable at our craft, what opportunities do we need to pursue? Where can we find these opportunities? Let’s harness that R & I. – Spiral up