One of my favorite things about sports is that there isn’t just one way to compete.
Some athletes grow up surrounded by teammates while others spend most of their time competing alone.
I’ve been thinking about that a lot lately.
I spent most of my athletic career on a basketball court. From my days as a Bryant Lady Hornet to my years as a UCA Sugarbear—and even lacing them back up for the (Not So) Senior Olympics—I learned the game with four teammates standing beside me and another set ready to have our backs from the bench.
Win together.
Lose together.
Celebrate together.
Figure it out together.
Basketball taught me that sometimes your best contribution isn’t scoring the most points and garnering headlines in the newspaper. Sometimes it’s setting the screen nobody notices. Making the extra pass. Playing defense. Encouraging a teammate who’s having a rough night. Doing the little things that never show up in a box score but somehow make all the difference.
That’s the beauty of team sports.
Success is shared.
Failure is shared.
Responsibility is shared.
No one wins a championship alone.
But over the years I’ve found myself drawn to sports on the opposite end of the spectrum.
Golf. Tennis. Track. Swimming.
Even curling—which, as you know by now, I’m still holding out hope I might have some hidden Olympic talent for.
Individual sports fascinate me because there is nowhere to hide. When you have a great day, you’ve earned it. When you have a bad day…well…there’s nobody else to blame.
There’s something incredibly admirable about that.
It takes a different kind of discipline to stand alone, knowing every success and every mistake belongs to you.
And maybe that’s why, at least for me, the question has never really been which sport is better. Because while sport is universal, different sports shape us in different ways. Of course there’s crossover. Team athletes still have to be personally accountable, and individual athletes still rely on coaches, family, and supporters. But each type of sport strengthens a different muscle.
Team sports teach you how to trust other people.
Individual sports teach you how to trust yourself.
Team sports remind you that your role matters, even if you’re not the star.
Individual sports remind you that preparation is personal.
One teaches collaboration.
The other teaches accountability.
One teaches sacrifice for the group.
The other teaches ownership of your own performance.
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I will say though, even though I was always a “team sport” athlete there are aspects of every team that are very personal. For example, I always knew I had the support of my teammates when I was on the free-throw line, but it was my personal preparation, training, and thousands of practice shots from the line gave me the confidence to believe the ball was going through the hoop..
I’ve seen that same transition in my professional life. For years, I worked as part of large organizations. There were teams to lean on, departments to collaborate with, and people whose strengths balanced my weaknesses.
Then I found myself leading a startup nonprofit. I have an incredible Board of Directors and volunteers, but the day-to-day success or failure often comes down to whether I show up prepared to make the next decision.
Looking back, it feels a lot like moving from a team sport to an individual one. And it’s given me a whole new appreciation for both mindsets. And here’s what I’ve realized. Life eventually asks us to use both.
There are seasons when we need to be incredible teammates.
Good spouses.
Reliable coworkers.
Supportive friends.
Volunteers willing to carry someone else’s load.
And there are seasons when nobody else can do the work for us.
Nobody else can make the decision.
Nobody else can put in the effort.
Nobody else can own the outcome.
Those moments require the mindset of an individual athlete.
Maybe that’s why I believe every kid should play something. Not because I care whether they become the next college recruit. Not because I think everyone needs a scholarship. But because sports have a remarkable way of preparing us for life.
Whether it’s learning to trust your teammates…Or learning to trust yourself…Every game is teaching something.
And maybe the greatest athletes aren’t the ones who master only one style of competition. Maybe they’re the ones who learn when life calls for each.
Because at the end of the day, we’re all part of a team somewhere.
And on the days we’re not…
we’d better be prepared to compete with ourselves.
Because we’re also responsible for the person we become.
And that’s how the ball really bounces.
Read more from How the Ball Bounces with Bekka in the archives at www.mysaline.com/bounces.
About the author: Bekka Wilkerson is a lifelong lover of all things sports. Raised in a super athletic household it was no surprise when she too began to love sports at a young age. It seems like from the time she could walk she had a softball bat in her hands, but her true athletic passion came from all things Basketball. That love served her well as a Bryant High School Lady Hornet and ultimately earned her a full scholarship to play at the University of Central Arkansas – among many other adventures.
These days Bekka can be found running around Saline County with her husband, Speedy, or chasing one of her grandsons. She is also the Executive Director of The EMpact One Foundation, a Saline County Nonprofit Organization that helps young people stay connected to extracurricular activities through tuition assistance and equipment provisions.
Reach out to Bekka with questions and/or ideas about things you want to see in this column at [email protected] and learn more about The EMpact One Foundation at www.empactone.org.
