Coach

My junior high track coach was another influential person in my life. Her name was Coach Holt. At my first track meet I ran hard and tried my best, but still came in second to last place. I was prepared for her to express her disappointment or anger at the finish, but she did not. Instead, Coach Holt said that by the end of the year, I would win district. I could not believe it. What could she have possibly seen to make her believe that I was capable of winning when I had just finished next to last? It was definitely not natural talent. At that point, it didn’t matter what she saw. That she saw something, that she believed in me that was enough to make me start believing in myself. She didn’t just plant the seed of self-confidence; she taught me that self-confidence and desire to achieve are just the starting point. Success comes through hard work, dedication, and determination, and continually pushing yourself to do better. I trained hard and ran almost every day. I would run down my stairs and up the hills at my house, if my parents were not home to take me to the track. All my hard work paid off. I won district that year in both events I competed in. Not only did I learn the value of hard work, I also learned the importance of believing in yourself and other people.