Tim Tebow and Meaningful Work
Success on and off the field.
By Sam Wilhite | Business Marketing Major at Bethel University
On January 8th, 2012 Tim Tebow was battling the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the playoffs. With just seconds remaining in regulation, Broncos and Steelers tied at 23, Pittsburgh had a field goal to win the game. In the meantime, Tebow is praying to God, begging Him for a shot at overtime. The kick is up in the air, and it is no good. Tebow throws his hands in the air as he points up to the sky, giving God all the glory. The Broncos start with the ball and they line up on the 20 yard line. On the very first play of overtime, Tebow hikes the ball and finds number 88, Demeryuis Thomas, lugging down the field for an eighty yard walk-off touchdown. The crowd of 75,970 erupted in celebration. Tebow leaped into the air and bowed down to one knee, thanking God for this incredible blessing of beating the Pittsburgh Steelers. Steelers fans were stunned as they had realized that they just got “Tebow’d” (TheDenverPost).
Tim Tebow is a Heisman trophy winner and led the Florida gators to a National title on January 8th, 2009. He continued to play a short time in the NFL with the Denver Broncos, New York Jets, and a few other teams. He then played minor league baseball. Tim Tebow is known for not only his devotion to sports, but his strong faith in God. Tim Tebow’s success stems off of Gladwell’s ideas about meaningful work, family background, and 10,000 hours.
In an interview with Welch, Tebow said, “If you’re normal and you’re average, you fit in with the crowd, but you never have a chance to be special” (P: CNBC Umoh). That is what Tebow lived by throughout every moment on the field. He knew that there was a more powerful meaning to life than to throw the ball into a receivers hands or to plow over a defender. Regardless of any situation, he always knew to give the Glory to God. He used the big stage as a platform to show the world the love of Christ, and that was his ultimate goal. He emphasized the importance of being special and showed people that being average should never be the goal.
Tebow was born in the Philippines and lived there for most of his early childhood. Since then, he has made it his goal to give back to where he started. In Tebow’s eyes, his work in the Philippines is even more important than his sports career. Tebow said, “We’re just getting started because there is so much to do, and there are so many people who need our help. We want to continue giving people hope, giving them love they’ve never had their entire life and introducing them to a God who loves them and has a plan for their life. I just think that when you’re in a place like the Philippines, you realize it and it hits you just how important this is” (ChristianityToday). Tebow prioritizes God’s desires for him over his own.
In Outliers, Tebow’s meaningful work can be compared to the story of Joe Flom. Joe Flom was a Jewish man who struggled to find a job due to his race. He used these difficulties to push him by beginning his own firm that was one of the most successful in America (Outliers). Tim Tebow’s devotion to life beyond sports is what he is known for today.
Tebow’s most powerful moment in his life was this moment: “I grabbed my mom and I went to the couch and I said, ‘Mom I want to ask Jesus to come into my heart.’ And I got on my knee and I asked Jesus to come into my heart, forgive me of my sins, and make me a child of God’ (Godtube). Tebow always had access to Christ-following people. Never once did he question his faith.
Tebow grew up with the privilege of living on a forty-four acre property that helped him accel to the man he is today. Tim and his siblings would wake up early everyday as his parents assigned them chores to maintain the property. Although, Tim’s parents did a lot for him to prepare him athletically as well. Tebow’s father, Bob, built his sons a batting cage between the pool and the pasture (BleacherReport). Timmy had no problem with being an aggressive football player as his brothers would beat on him in every type of sport you could think of. That prepared him to be a stronger kid for his age. A kid that Tim played baseball with growing up, Blake Sanders, explained how unnatural Tebow was growing up. He said, “I’ll never forget the first day he showed up to the field. There we were, seven, eight years old; we were small kids. Tebow, from the first day I met him, I’ll never forget — he stood out. He’s always had a bigger build. He’s always been a specimen” (BleacherReport).
In The Chosen One, it showed that Tiger Woods’ family background can relate a lot to Tebow’s background. Each of them had an abundant amount of support from their parents, especially Tiger. Earl Woods describes his treatment towards Tiger and said, “What I learned through est was that by doing more for myself, I could do much more for others. Yes, be responsible, but love life, and give people the space to be in your life, and allow yourself room to give to others. That caring and sharing is what’s most important, not being responsible for everyone else. Which is where Tiger comes in. What I learned led me to give so much time to Tiger, and to give him the space to be himself, and not to smother him with dos and don’ts” (The Chosen One).
Tebow and Bill Gates each took advantage of their family background and made the most of it. Gates’ parents provided a way for Bill to have access to computers all the time by enrolling him into a private school. Gates took advantage of that privilege and made the most of it (Outliers).
Without a supporting and loving family, Tim Tebow would have never accomplished everything that he did. He learned how to be a man of God, and how to work hard in order to become successful.
Heput up 3,280 yards passing, 32 touchdown passes, 895 yards rushing, and 23 touchdowns. In one season (NCAA.com.) Malcolm Gladwell writes, “Researchers have settled on what they believe is the magic number for true expertise: 10,000 hours” (Outliers). All the hours put into the sport paid off when Tebow reigned as the best football player in college football. The highest honor in college football: The Heisman trophy. Tebow’s philosophy since he was a little boy was “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work as hard” (Tim Tebow “Hard Work Beats Talent). Tebow didn’t run every extra sprint or do an extra rep of bench press just to get better at sports. His mind was centered around glorifying God in every single thing that he did.
He believed that if God gave us the capability to do all these things, why not do it to our fullest potential and honor Him? In the book he wrote, Tebow quotes, “If I didn’t work as hard as I could, then I think it would be a bit like saying, ‘God, thanks for giving me this ability, but I don’t really care about it. I’m going to do something else, and I’m not going to work quite as hard” (Through My Eyes). Tebow’s goal growing up was to be the best football player he can possibly be, which means to be an NFL quarterback. In order to do so, he knew that he would have to work out, run as much as possible, spend extra time in the playbook, and help lead in every way he can.
In order for Tebow to become the football player that he was, he had to master the 10,000 hours rule. Mastering 10,000 hours is the closest thing to perfection as it gets (S: 10,000 Hours to Perfection). Tebow knew growing up that if his talent was not the best, his work ethic had to be the best.
Tim Tebow felt called to change the verse beneath his eyes for the National Championship against the Oklahoma Sooners. God had put the verse “John 3:16” on his heart for a specific reason so Tim obeyed and placed the verse in his eye-black. Tim was blessed to win the Championship and a few days after, his coach told him 94 million people searched the verse “John 3:16.” Exactly three years later on January 8th, 2012, Tebow was preparing to play the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round of the playoffs. After upsetting the unbeatable Pittsburgh Steelers off of a bomb of a throw, reporters were running to Tebow asking, “Timmy, did you realize what happened?” Tim said, “Yeah, we just beat the Pittsburgh Steelers. We are going to play the Patriots.” The reporter replied, “This is exactly three years from the time you put ‘John 3:16’ beneath your eyes. Not only that but you threw for 316 yards. You had a passing rating of 31.6. You averaged 3.16 yards per carry. Your yards per completion were 31.6. The time of possession was 31:06. And the overall ratings for the night were 31.6. And during the game 90,000,000 people googles the name, ‘John 3:16’ and it is the number one thing on social media right now” (The John 3:16 Story | Tim Tebow). Because Tim Tebow listened to God and wrote this verse beneath his eyes, it ended up impacting millions of people. Malcolm Gladwell states, “If you work hard and assert yourself, you can shape the world to your desires” (Outliers). That is what Tim Tebow lived by. He was so confident in what he believed in that he stirred many minds and helped people find hope in Jesus.
WORKS CITED
Christian Resources, Lifeway. The John 3:16 Story — Tim Tebow. www.youtube.com/watch?v=nyxjRcyrj8s.
Couwenhoven, Noah. “Tim Tebow and Success.” Medium, Gladwellian Success, 22 May 2019, medium.com/gladwell-outliers-and-success/tim-tebow-the-greatest-ever-4532a0d1f88d.
Czarina Ong Mon 29 Aug 2016 13:24 BST. “Tim Tebow Talks about His Mission Trip to the Philippines: \’There Are so Many People Who Need Our Help\’.” Christian News on Christian Today, www.christiantoday.com/article/tim-tebow-talks-about-his-mission-trip-to-the-philippines-there-are-so-many-people-who-need-our-help/94171.htm.
Gladwell, Malcolm. Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers: the Story of Success. Bookcaps, 2012.
Klis, Mike. “Klis: Tim Tebow Left Mark on Memorable 2011 Broncos Season.” The Denver Post, The Denver Post, 7 July 2016, www.denverpost.com/2013/04/29/klis-tim-tebow-left-mark-on-memorable-2011-broncos-season/.
Klis, Mike. “Tim Tebow, Broncos Stun Steelers in OT, Win 29–23 in NFL Playoffs.” The Denver Post, The Denver Post, 9 Jan. 2018. Web.
Miall, C. “10,000 hours to perfection.” Nat Neurosci 16, 1168–1169 (2013). Web.
Richmond, Sam. “Tim Tebow: Heisman Trophy Win in 2007 Was First by a Sophomore.” NCAA.com, NCAA.com, 8 Dec. 2015. Web.
Ruthumohnews. “Why Tim Tebow Says You Should Never Strive to Be Normal.” CNBC, CNBC, 22 Feb. 2018. Web.
Smith, Gary. “The Chosen One.” Sports Illustrated 23 Dec, 1996.
Sneed, Brandon. “Tim Tebow Can’t Help Himself.” Bleacher Report, 31 Oct. 2016. Web.
Tebow, Tim. Through My Eyes. HarperCollins, 2012.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sam Wilhite, from Eden Prairie, Minn., pursues a degree in marketing from Bethel University to someday work as a salesman in a small company in Minneapolis. Wilhite loves to play hockey, hang out with friends, and eat Chipotle.
WHAT I’ VE LEARNED
Malcolm Gladwell taught me 10,000 hours is the ultimate key to mastery.
I learned how to work with my peers through Google Meets, so we will never meet at Royal Grounds at 10 p.m ever again.
The Kelly Hinseth interview helped me understand meaningful work on a whole other level after learning about Nick Wolfe’s background.
Eric Adler showed me to finish where I started, which means that if I have a strong intro, I have a strong conclusion.
Do not tell your story to the world; show your story to the world.
Name the dog. I fell off my bike when I was a kid. I cried for 2 hours straight.
Short sentences are good. Short and simple.
Scott Winter really makes it obvious that he likes the Wild even though the Colorado Avalanche are better.
