Handling Defeat
I have been a competitive tennis player since I began getting private tennis lessons at eight years old. It took a while for me to catch on to the sport, but as soon I felt prepared enough I started entering tournaments. This continued up until I started high school, and at this point I was winning my age division in nearly every tournament I played.
When I tried out for the high school tennis team at the beginning of the year, I was the only freshman placed on varsity, and not only that I was the number one rank. I was now forced to play the first ranked girls from other schools in our area, and many of these girls were seniors and committed to play college tennis. Week after week, I lost my matches, and it really began to tear me down and damage my confidence. Never before in my life had I faced such defeat, it just seemed like a vicious cycle of losing and embarrassment.
Even through the phase of consecutive loss, I was greeted with an outpouring of encouraging words from all of my family and friends. Although it was hard for me to relate to them, they eventually started to instill the confidence I once had back in me. Playing the difficult opponents was something I would learn from and improve on with each loss. Eventually, I started playing at a higher caliber than I ever had before, and by the end of my senior year had earned the title of third place in the state of Texas.
Facing this level of defeat after years of success was one of the most challenging things I have ever experienced. Through this challenge; however, I was fortunate to have an incredible learning experience on handling loss and picking yourself back up after times of hardship. I have used the skills I learned in this experience in my college career as well. Coming from high school, where I won nearly every competition, ranging from senior class president to homecoming queen, into Texas A&M was tough. I have been turned down from more organizations in one year than I have been my entire life. I felt as if I was a freshman on the tennis team again faced with constant defeat. Now I know not to let a rejection letter tear me down. I have learned to lift my head up and try again because the only true loss in life is when you let an opportunity slip by without even pursuing it.
When I tried out for the high school tennis team at the beginning of the year, I was the only freshman placed on varsity, and not only that I was the number one rank. I was now forced to play the first ranked girls from other schools in our area, and many of these girls were seniors and committed to play college tennis. Week after week, I lost my matches, and it really began to tear me down and damage my confidence. Never before in my life had I faced such defeat, it just seemed like a vicious cycle of losing and embarrassment.
Even through the phase of consecutive loss, I was greeted with an outpouring of encouraging words from all of my family and friends. Although it was hard for me to relate to them, they eventually started to instill the confidence I once had back in me. Playing the difficult opponents was something I would learn from and improve on with each loss. Eventually, I started playing at a higher caliber than I ever had before, and by the end of my senior year had earned the title of third place in the state of Texas.
Facing this level of defeat after years of success was one of the most challenging things I have ever experienced. Through this challenge; however, I was fortunate to have an incredible learning experience on handling loss and picking yourself back up after times of hardship. I have used the skills I learned in this experience in my college career as well. Coming from high school, where I won nearly every competition, ranging from senior class president to homecoming queen, into Texas A&M was tough. I have been turned down from more organizations in one year than I have been my entire life. I felt as if I was a freshman on the tennis team again faced with constant defeat. Now I know not to let a rejection letter tear me down. I have learned to lift my head up and try again because the only true loss in life is when you let an opportunity slip by without even pursuing it.
"Bad times have a scientific value. These are occasions a good learner would not miss."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
-Ralph Waldo Emerson