Have you had a dream you spent so much time working towards shatter to pieces leaving you feeling lost and unsure about your future? Guess, what? You are not alone. So many of us have experienced this. The key becomes what you do afterward.
Do you stay in the darkness that’s been created? Maybe you decide to turn to drugs or alcohol to heal your wounds. Some people have chosen to turn to gambling or some other form of unhealthy addiction. It’s a hard place to be in and people around you may not understand exactly what you’re going through. It’s okay to feel bad. To feel the hurt and to work through whatever pain you may be feeling. As you work through it, you have to begin to regain focus and create a new dream.
Regain focus and create a new dream.
In my last blog posts, “Living Your Dream” and “Shattered Dreams”, I shared with you the story of Andy Schindling. Andy was able to achieve his dream of playing professional baseball only to have his dream cut short when he was released from the team. He had to make a choice. He could either stay in a place of darkness and self-destruct or determine a new definition of success.
After he spent time asking himself a lot of hard questions and reflecting on what had happened, he thought about another dream he had. He recalled how influential his coaches had been for him and how many people had helped him along the way. He wanted to share that with the youth in his community and help shape their future. Now, the plan would be in motion a lot sooner then he had anticipated. Before this could all happen, he would go through a period of reckoning.
A year before he was to graduate from Towson University, Andy got baptized and dedicated life to Christ. That was a stepping stone to get him on the new journey he would begin. He realized God gave him talents he can use to empower others. Now he just had to figure out how to use them. How would his talents best fit in this world? What he decided wasn’t going to make him much money, but he knew it was the right path for him. The passion he felt for it would become his driving force.
Andy had told himself to never do something for the money. He strongly believes when you chase after money and you’re not passionate about your dream or goal you lose focus and direction. When he figured out what he was passionate about he gained the clarity and focus he needed.
“I want to start a non-profit”
He sat down with a colleague and told him, “I want to start a non-profit.” By this time he had been coaching youth baseball for a few years. Andy saw the voids in the baseball community, not just from the perspective of a player but now as a coach too. He wanted to raise money for kids who can’t afford to play and put development back in the game.
Andy wasn’t sure how to do it, he didn’t have any money saved to start with. What he had was the support of his family and friends. He put his belief in himself but mostly in God, knowing He would provide. The Complete Player Charity (TCP) was born.
In the beginning, TCP provided opportunities for youth to play baseball. It has now grown into so much more. TCP’s mission is to prepare and develop students and athletes for success in academics, sports, and life. The program is now a youth development program with two segments. One focuses on development through the game of baseball. The other focuses on business and leadership development.
The baseball segment not only focuses on the game of baseball but also focuses on the development of the athlete. This program aims to develop boys into individuals allowing them to become mature young men. The team guides them to become the best men they can be while improving their baseball skills.
The business and leadership segment is an afterschool program for 7th and 8th graders for both boys and girls. The program teaches basic business fundamental skills such as accounting, marketing, advertising, and data analysis. The students create a product and a business plan which includes how they will sell, advertise and market the product. One of the goals is to inspire them to think about their future. Instead of going to high school without a vision, they go with a vision and a plan.
Put the pieces back together again…
So, as you can see, Andy was able to take the pieces of his shattered dream and mend them together to create a new dream. He used his experience as a baseball player to create The Complete Player Charity. A program that is working to plant seeds and open the doors to successful futures.
How can you mend the pieces of your shattered dream? Somewhere within you lies the passion you once had. You just have to dig deep inside of yourself and find it. If you find yourself feeling stuck or lost, I encourage to consider working with a coach or counselor. If you would like to find out more about coaching, please send me an email at cowens@infinitycoaching.net.
You can read more about TCP on Andy’s blog. There he shares stories of all the fun and exciting things he is doing with the program. He continues to use his experience as a professional baseball player to shape lives, traveling across the globe.
Carolyn R. Owens has over 25 years of proven experience and serves as a Career Strategist, Executive and Leadership Coach. She is the President of Infinity Coaching, Inc. where she can help you up-level your skills, so you can up-level your income, career, business or life. Infinity Coaching, Inc. provides one-on-one and group coaching, organizational training, personality assessments, and a signature program, the Infinity Coaching Inner Circle. Carolyn is certified to give both The Energy Leadership Index Assessment and Myers Briggs Type Indicator Assessment. You can find out more he about both assessments and other products and services at https://infinitycoaching.net
