Impact— 6/26/23

“It’s not the size of the dog in the fight. It’s the size of fight in the dog.” The ageless quote that never seems to go away.

Today, we’re not talking about competitors, we’re talking about impact.

At the height of my career, I was playing in stadiums filled with 15,000 people. Now, in the twilight years and no longer a full time professional, we are looking at a few hundred people in the stands a night.

Today, I impact significantly more lives in front of those few hundred than I ever could have in front of ten’s of thousands.

Our footprint on the world, our impact, is one of the most important things (if not the most important) that we can leave. My mother always told me, “make sure you leave the world a better place than you found it,” and those words ring truer with each passing day.

Playing semi-professional basketball is a mixed bag to say the least. The only things that ever mattered to me as a pro were winning, production and validation. As a semi-pro, impact and winning are the only two pieces of criteria in my basketball world.

Over the course of the season, through my business, I have a sponsorship agreement with the club I play for. In return, I receive four court side seats which I give away to various charities, organizations and families that could use the night out.

A few games I have partnered with the STEPs organization, who are committed to providing support to individuals with disabilities, mental health issues and needing support in society.

This week, I had the pleasure of hanging out with three of the coolest people I know

Warming up for a game, looking across the court at who you will be matched up with, going through your routine visualizing executing a game plan and fighting the pre-game jitters completely leave when I look across the baseline and I see whoever it is in my seats for the night.

It’s the smile, the laughter and the star-struck gaze they have. To us, this is nothing — for the pro’s it’s their “offseason.” To others, it’s a chance to play the game at a high-enough-level on weekend’s.

If there is one thing I have learned, it’s that the perspective of life is all about how you choose to measure it.

In front of 15,000 people, the only thing that could have mattered to 18 year-old me was what they thought about me. 15,000 opinions mattered. Now, it’s what 4 people think about themselves. Can four people who go through adversity every single day, who needed some help, forget some of their troubles for a moment? If so, then I have made a small impact for a brief moment and the world is momentarily a better place.

My father gave me two pieces of advice that, while separate, are connected. The first was, “to treat the janitor like the CEO. Everyone deserves your respect.” The second piece of advice was, “be kind to everyone you first meet because you have no idea what they are going through on a daily basis.”

I remember when things were hard for us financially as a kid and my mother went to pay for groceries but her card was declined. Embarrassed, hurt and feeling the weight on her shoulders of needing to provide for two young kids, she began to shuffle off. The older woman behind us in line, stopped her and kindly paid for our groceries, gently saying to my mother, “It’s okay, we all need a little help sometimes.” Maybe a small gesture at that time, but it stuck with that 13 year old boy for his entire life, and has paid that favor forward every chance he’s gotten.

The impact we make on the lives of others can never be overstated, nor can it be overvalued. The world is a difficult place for all of us. Make it a little bit easier by understanding what your impact can be.

Stop measuring yourself against the accomplishments of others. Instead, ask yourself, “what did I do for someone else today?”