Growing up, my parents always told me that you can be whatever you want to be. As a young kid, I always thought this phrase was just one of those things parents say. Treat others how you want to be treated. You can be whatever you want to be. Eat your vegetables. You get the idea. So even though I never really believed that phrase, it was always in my mind when it came to thinking about my career. I guess that’s why parents hammer these things into your head. But, could I really be a doctor, a lawyer, a scientist, even a journalist? Not me. Not the kid who was never in the gifted program, who never took any honors classes, who never got all A’s on his report card. How could someone like me, an average academic student, have a career such as those that’s defined by people with higher degrees, higher GPA’s and higher brain functions than me?

For most of my life, that idea is what I struggled to come to terms with when choosing a career. I never believed that I was smart enough to become a doctor (not that I wanted to be). I never thought for a second I had the analytical skills to be a lawyer (I always hated those critical thinking questions). Whether playing, watching or reading about, sports have always been my passion since I was a young child. I played baseball at a high level for 12 years until college, among other sports. Even at a young age, I was always that kid whose friends would turn to when they wanted to know the stats from last night’s game. Before high school football and basketball games, people would turn to me for a preview and stats about the opposing team like I was the school’s resident ESPN analyst. No matter how many people asked me, it never got old or annoying. It was around this time early in high school that I realized this was my duty. I wanted to take my expertise and share it with my friends and the world because I enjoyed it and I felt like I had something to offer. That was when I realized that this was the role and the career path I wanted to take in life. Sports were my passion and I couldn’t live without them. I truly believe that if you are not passionate about your career that you are not fulfilling your potential and you will be miserable in life.

I joined the newspaper my sophomore year of high school as a staff writer and immediately I was taken aback at the adjustment it required. Much like here at Mizzou, it was largely on the job training and I’ll admit I struggled at first. But really, what better way is there to learn than by practicing yourself? As I quickly improved I began to see how much I enjoyed what I was doing. My junior year I was promoted to assistant sports editor where I began to write editorials, design pages and edit copy, of course. I was pretty set on my career choice and I had been set on Mizzou since the first thought of attending college entered my head. When I learned that Mizzou had the top journalism school in the country I was both excited and frightened to death. It seemed like a match made in heaven, but if I was going to the top school in the country, how was I going to compete with the honors kids of the world? I felt like I was going to Harvard Law School or something.

When I finally got to Mizzou, there was a moment my freshman year that has helped define my college career. Sitting in the auditorium of the Physics building with hundreds of other freshman journalism students, we were lectured about what to expect the next four years. The Dean and other professors spoke about how there’s 800 or so freshman journalism students and how only about 200 or 300 will leave with a journalism degree. As unsure I was in myself before, this statement doubled it. How could I possibly be one of those elite members to gain a degree from the top school in its profession? I didn’t know and I didn’t care. It was at that point that I decided that if I truly wanted to be a sports writer, then I was going to stick it out and do whatever it took to get my degree. As hard as it seemed at the time, I welcomed the challenge and told myself that failure was not an option. After all, if you are going to get a degree from the best school in your profession, it shouldn’t be easy.

As my college career is winding down to its final semester, I’ve evolved as a writer and a person. As cliché as it sounds, I’ve come to realize that everyone has different God given gifts and abilities that make them unique. I am very proud and fortunate with what I have and I will always use what I have to the best of my abilities. It’s always been my belief that what you have in your thoughts will project outside your body for the world to see. Therefore, if you are insecure in yourself and your abilities, everyone is going to see it. I no longer question whether I am good enough to be in this profession or in this school. If I walk into an interview questioning in my head that I’m not good enough to get this job, then the employer is going to read that all over my face. The time has almost come for me to collect my degree and move on to the next chapter of my life. I can’t wait to see what challenges lie ahead next for me. After all, just like Mom said, you truly can be whatever you want to be.