Professor Project: Mike Wild
Always seeking to help others
By Connor Hanson | Journalist
Mike Wild is a certified athletic trainer and instructor at Bethel University. Mike attended Daemen College in Buffalo, New York where he finished his master’s degree in exercise science and athletic training. He teaches a weight training class at Bethel, and is an athletic trainer when he isn’t teaching. He now is the athletic trainer for the Bethel men’s hockey team, and teaches health education classes.
Why Bethel?
“Just needed something different … more of a teaching experience overall. I needed a new challenge after being at Daemen University for 9 years and knowing the ins — and — outs of things. I was looking for a Christian college, so I applied and the rest is history so to say.”
“Its not working with people and seeing where they go, rather, it’s seeing them accomplish their goals.”
What was one success or failure in your career?
“Success for me is whenever you have a student athlete put in the hard work, and you get to see them get better and achieve their goals you established together. I'm thankfully blessed that I get to experience multiple students battle adversity and come back through it to achieve or accomplish their goals. It’s not working with people and seeing where they go, rather, it’s seeing them accomplish their goals.”
Why do you teach?
“I love learning, and teaching is an expression of that learning … But I also love learning in a practical way, so obtaining information but also being able to apply it. I love teaching because I get to see the faces of students light up when they start to apply it and understand it .. Not just memorize it and then dump it, but actually apply it, critically think about it and understand the concepts … and then have them continue it into their lives. I find this a fun aspect of teaching.”
If you weren’t a professor, what would you do as an occupation?
“Probably go back to clinical work, and work directly with patients. Here I get the best of both worlds. I get the opportunity to teach and be in the classroom. I get to come up with a lecture, but in the afternoon I get to work with people, or go to practices. I would be doing more doctor office type things probably.”
“It’s not just monkey say monkey do, do this cause I told you to.”
Who or what has influenced you the most? What are your other influences?
“Biggest impact was Jeff Sage. He was my Athletic Trainer and is still the Head Athletic Trainer at Daemen University … he also teaches there and does 50 other things, and when I say 50 I mean he gets two hours of sleep and does them well. He takes time to care about you as an individual and build into your life. He wants to see you grow, and he is good at having your back. There are things I know now where I haven’t done it, but he can explain it to me very well. It’s not just monkey say monkey do, do this cause I told you to. I also had a great co-worker Kari, and she is a rehab whiz … she really helped me to rehabilitate an athletes injury by breaking it down and being creative with exercise. I heard a quote earlier this week and it says … As you climb your ladder in your career the bottom spokes are the strongest, and those are my two strongest spokes.”
“I think we have a false hope in super powers.”
If you could have any superpower, what would it be?
“Wisdom to know how to balance work life. Wisdom to know when you’re working with patients or students to know when to address things, but also have a time requirement. When we think of superheros in our society I feel like we want things instantly … But being able to have quality time and being wise in what you say is really meaningful to someone. I think we have a false hope in super powers.”
What is your most embarrassing teaching story?
“I try to move on and get over my embarrassing moments as fast as possible, so I tend to forget them. I am an engaging person, so I will laugh at it and move on.”
“People can’t take away your faith, so have a steadfast faith that you know you are sure of.”
What is the best advice you’ve ever been given?
“My late grandfather would always tell us grand kids … get an education because there is one thing people can’t take away from you and that’s what you have learned. Since then I have kind of added to that, and it’s not always just an education, but make things a learning situation whether it’s bad or good there is always something to learn. I’ve added more things to that, and one thing is your faith. People can’t take away your faith, so have a steadfast faith that you know and that you are sure of. The second is your attitude. You get to chose those three whether you want to pursue them or whether you want them to die.”
What do you love about Bethel?
“I’m still adjusting to Bethel because I have only been here for roughly 4 and a half months … For me it’s learning different things. Things are a lot different here. It’s been a hard learning from an adjustment side of things. The way Bethel does things is a lot different than I am used to .. It sounds weird to say that’s a love thing, it can be a harder pill to swallow, but when you take a step back it’s a learning opportunity. Do I like it? Do I not like it? I love the manual therapy of that aspect. The other part is the men’s hockey coach here. Working with him has been a blast … He is a man of truth, a man who charges after God and doesn’t care what others think, and he is in pursuit of the truth and applying it.”
What would you wish to change about Bethel?
“Minnesota nice. I came from west New York, and not every person is relational. I have heard of Minnesota nice, but I didn’t know what it was until I was here. When I first moved here and asked people of any surrounding churches, they would just tell me what churches I should go to or seemed interesting, but I never actually got an invitation to church from these people. It’s weird to me because usually people would just say ‘hey come along’, but that’s how it was in the environment grew up in.”
What is one critique you have of Bethel’s student community?
“Its how busy students are that they don’t completely understand who they really are. It’s not a knock and it might be part of the Minnesota culture, but you understand ideas because it’s a high academic school, but when you start to look at the meanings of it in a different scenario it doesn’t happen as organically. They aren’t able to take a step back and ask, what is the meaning of life? You have all those questions in classes, but can you apply it to your life.”
What is the best moment you’ve had here in your time at Bethel?
“I don’t get excited by things very often. It’s a negative characteristic. When I bring everything in, its the learning of balance of clinical and teaching workload. Also, when Lee Strobel came here for chapel last year was a very cool and neat thing to see.”
“If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.”
Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
“A past pastor of mine would tell a joke … ‘If you want to make God laugh tell him your plans.’ I don’t know. I have goals and aspirations. I want to be a head athletic trainer some day, but I don’t know if it will fit in with a family. In 10 years I want to be open to God’s leading's. Life changes so much and so fast that doors could be opening or closing. At the the end of the day I want to be sustaining through all the situations for God’s plan.”
What do you do if you see a student and can’t remember their name?
“I ask them. I straight up ask them. I’m from New York and just call it out. It’s easier to do that then to try to make it up. I put myself out there because that’s how you build relationships, not by avoiding them.
What’s the worst job you ever had?
“Worst job which turned into a great experience. I work did building maintenance. I cleaned bathrooms, vacuumed the floor, dusted, wiped down tables and it was terrible … But if I have kids I will make them have a maintenance job. You become to understand that they are people and individuals. Some people there were treated terrible and I hope I never treat someone else like that. Some people thought you were low life, and it helps me think how do I treat people now? When someone comes to clean my office do I just say ‘hey thanks’, or do I say ‘what’s your name, and by the way you matter to God, so you matter to me.’”
