Learning Curves by Rachel

Learning Curves by Rachel - January 2023 Scholarship Essay

One extracurricular activity that I believe should be required is to participate in at least one sport. While I think the sport itself is a great way to stay fit and exercise, I think that being a part of the team is the most valuable part of playing.
First off, the team becomes your family. You have to see these same people every day for multiple hours on and off the court. This may be a big test of patience and tolerance for some people that you deal with, but I see the team as people that you know you can trust to bring you up. Your team has to build chemistry and skill in order to be successful, and when you begin to struggle or doubt yourself, you will always have an army of people behind you to defend and comfort you. You also learn that as a teammate you also have to be there for your other teammates when they have their hard days. Along with this, you also meet so many new people who you never thought you might talk to. Coming in as a freshman in high school, I was very shy and rarely ever talked. Meeting the upperclassmen and the other girls on my sports teams greatly helped my ability to interact and socialize with other people. It forced me out of my comfort zone, and I have grown immensely because of that.
Being a part of a sport also teaches you that if you want results, you have to put in the work. There's no way to cheat the system. If you want to get better at what you do, you have to put in time and effort into the skill you are trying to improve. Playing alongside other excellent athletes also makes you work harder to earn a spot with the starting players. To be an athlete, you have to work hard and play hard. Along with this, another part of being on a team is putting in time to learn how to work as a team. As obvious as that sounds, it's actually an essential ability to have. You learn that you can't do it all on your own, hence the name "team". In order to succeed you have to put complete trust into your other teammates and in turn do your part so they can trust you. Everything you do is together, whether it be winning or losing.
While this may sound great to some people, others might argue that they don't like to run or exercise. This is common for many people and it is totally understandable, but it is also very possible to join a low-impact type of sport such as golf or bowling. Just getting to be a part of a team is extremely beneficial for anyone in the long run.
The lessons I have learned through sports have helped shape me into becoming a better athlete and a better person overall. While there will be plenty of times as an athlete that you will face adversity, the things you learn from working with a team to face these adversities is so much more valuable than whatever problems you might approach.