Tim Tebow and Success
Man of faith excelled in sports through meaningful work, family background, and 10,000 hours.
By Noah Couwenhoven | High School Education Major
Tim Tebow lines up on the 50-yard line. It’s Friday night lights down in Florida, at Nease High School, and Tebow is leading the team. He gets the snap and rolls out to the left. As a defender is coming his way, Tebow catches his leg on the defender’s helmet as he tries to juke him. POP. He feels a snap and searing pain shoots down his leg. The coach sees he is limping and tries to take him out, but Tebow refuses. As the game goes on, he starts falling over and is not able to put much pressure on his leg. However, this doesn’t stop him from rushing for a 20-yard touchdown and throwing for two touchdowns to win the game. (Tebow Plays on Broken leg)
Tebow never stopped working. At the University of Florida he was always the first to arrive at practice and the last to leave. He was always working on his game, whether it was at his quarterback training facility or squatting the most weight at his team lifts in the morning. Amazingly enough, with all the fame and attention, he never lost sight of his faith. Today he has a Tebow Foundation and volunteers all over the world to give to the poor and hurting. This foundation also helps with natural disaster clean up.
In Outliers: The Story of Success, Malcolm Gladwell writes about some success being given, but Tebow’s success was not given. He is considered an outlier, defined by the idea,“If you work hard enough and assert yourself, and use your mind and imagination, you can shape the world to your desires” (Outliers). Gladwellian ideas of 10,000 hours, family background, and meaningful work helped him achieve his goals.
Hurricane Irma hit on September 11th, 2017. Tim Tebow was in the middle of his baseball season for the Syracuse Mets, but knew he must go and help his community. He dropped everything and took the next flight out of New York. He served the victims in Florida food, water, clothes, and smiles! Tebow doesn’t merely serve needy people in his community, he often travels to the Philippines to serve the people there. The Tebow Foundation, which he started with money from the NFL, serves hospitals, orphanages, and people on the street. During Tebow’s last trip to the Philippines, he gave inspiring messages to people in jail and those hospitalized. Tebow said in an interview with ChristianityToday “My work here is just as important as my professional career. We are just getting started because there is so much to do, and there are so many people who need our help.” He has been making a huge impact in the Philippines. Tebow said some 3,300 people have received medical treatment who previously didn’t have access to health care. One way The Tebow Foundation serves in America is through helping lower income, or under insured, families with hospital bills. Tim’s goal is to shine light into parts of the world where darkness seems to make life impossible.
Malcolm Gladwell defines meaningful work as something that yields a sense of independence, work that engages the mind, and a connection between work and reward. This definition fits Joe Flom from the story in Outliers. Joe is a man who started his own law firm. Being Jewish, he wasn’t able to get job. Rather than let racism keep him down, he decided he would take matters into his own hands. His firm became one of the most successful in America. Flom was compelled to keep moving forward as he engaged in this meaningful work. He found that working independently allowed him to succeed in his area of passion. This engaged his mind and provided him with great reward for his hard work. (Outliers Ch. 5)
Meaningful work looks different for everyone. Tebow and Flom have both done meaningful work by engaging their mind and having a sense of independence in their work. Even though they do completely different work, they still have a positive impact on others and themselves. These two men are successful because they use their time, talent and drive to accomplish what they think is important based on their value systems.
Tebow stands with the Heisman Trophy high above his head. With flashing lights and loud cheers, Tebow became the first sophomore ever to win a Heisman. How did he do it? With 10,000 hours of work and dedication to the game. Being at one of the top colleges in the nation, Tebow was always working and improving his game. Getting up at 6am for team lifts and practice from 3–6 got him there fast. Malcolm Gladwell explained 10,000 hours as one of the keys to success. Tim Tebow is certainly an example of that. When you consider he began football as a young child and continued this sport, non-stop through college, one can easily see how he put in over 10,000 hours. Of course this is only one of the reasons Tebow experienced so much success in football.
“Practice Makes Better” is one theory Gladwell had in his book. The Beatles are known as one of the best bands ever, deriving their success from much more than talent. They spent countless hours studying music styles and practicing their unique sound. They performed every opportunity they got. At first they weren’t very good and not many people liked their music. Rather than give up, they started playing 7–8 hours a night 7 days of the week. When someone is willing to put in this kind of work, they will certainly develop their talent to its highest level. Eventually the Beatles started getting good and people stopped to take notice of their talent. In just two years, the Beatles performed in 1,200 concerts. This is an unusual amount of performance time. The average band doesn’t perform in this many concerts during their entire career. (WisdomGroup.com).
Sometimes we mistakenly believe actors or athletes are successful solely based on their natural talents. We forget about the non-stop work, behind the scene, which is to be credited for their monumental success. Not everyone has this level of drive, but Tim Tebow and the Beatles did which made them so accomplished in what they did with the talent they were given.
On August 14th, 1987 in Makati, Philippines Tim Tebow was born. His father Robert Tebow and mother Pamela Tebow were missionaries at the time, with Tim’s two older brothers. When Pamala was pregnant with Tebow she was diagnosed with amoebic (Colon Infection) and fell into a temporary coma. The doctors advised her to abort him because of the side effects of the medicine she was on. She, and her husband, decided against it and trusted the Lord would take care of everything. When he was born, Tim was malnourished; however, other than that he was a perfectly healthy boy (TheFamousPeople). Tebow was born into a family of servants for the Lord. They gave up a comfortable life to live a poor life in the Philippines. Despite being physically poor, they were a family rich with God’s love. When Tim Tebow was 4 years old, they moved to Jacksonville Florida where he lived on a farm. He was homeschooled because of his family’s desire to train up their children in the ways of God.
Growing up on a farm taught him many life lessons; one of which was an incredible work ethic. They had to wake up early all summer long to do the chores around the family farm in Jacksonville FL. Only when the work was done, could they hang out with friends or play sports. Tim’s two older brothers were always beating up on him and making him work harder and harder. In high school the football coach held Tebow back from working out too much. He just didn’t know when to stop (Tim Tebow: The chosen one. Part 1). Growing up with a competitive family that valued hard work, Tim Tebow was able to leverage his talent by following his family’s example. He is a successful athlete and humanitarian due, in large part, to his upbringing.
Bill Gates is one of the richest software developers ever. He has made his success, not just from hard work, but from his family background. In Outliers, Gladwell tells the story of Bill Gates’ success which describes how he got to where he is today. When Gates was young, computers were very rare. The average public school didn’t have access to computers. However, Gates went to a private school that his parents enrolled him in. At this school, he had unhindered access to computers and other technology. Bill and his friend Paul Allen, who is now co-founder of Microsoft, certainly had an advantage to their success due to their family background. It is no coincidence that the two founders of Microsoft went to a school where they had rare access to computers (Outliers).
Sweaty palms and butterflies fill everyone’s stomach as the 2010 NFL draft goes on
Both Tim Tebow and Bill Gates had an advantage growing up due to their family background. Tebow’s experiences on a farm taught him how to work for something he wanted. Having older brothers who pushed him, helped Tim achieve greatness in sports. Bill Gates privilege of attending a private school, where he had access to a computer, played a huge role in his creation of Microsoft. Gladwell tells us family background has a huge impact on your success ,and these two stories of very successful men prove it to be true.
Tebow stands in the living room of his parents’ house in Jacksonville, Florida with all his family members. Sweaty palms and butterflies fill everyone’s stomach as the 2010 NFL draft goes on. Finally the broadcaster
announces, “In the first round, and 26th pick in the NFL draft, the Denver Broncos select Quarterback Tim Tebow.” Cheers roar all around and Tebow stands in amazement (Tim Tebow: Everything In Between, 49:50). A goal he has been chasing since he was six is finally a reality.
Tebow has been on a crazy journey with awesome people cheering him on the whole way. His solid faith in God has shown him the real meaning of life. It’s not about being “the man” but about being the best version of you. Glorifying Him in everything you say and do. Tim Tebow has used meaningful work, family background, and 10,000 hours to give him the ability to spread God’s word and be a hero to many people.
WORKS CITED
Sablich, Justin. When Tim Tebow Comes To Town. The New York Times. May 10 2018, https://docs.google.com/document/d/1H7mTmt9LjIFZWghjSsUN8daQfpY95QyrJo8LQ1aoJ-M/edit 11/4/19
Plthomasedd. Tim Tebow and the “Hard Work” Myth. Radical eyes for equity. September 1 2013. https://radicalscholarship.wordpress.com/2013/09/01/tim-tebow-and-the-hard-work-myth-no-excuses/ 11/4/19
Czarina Ong, Tim Tebow Talks About His Mission Trip To The Philippines. Christian Today Aug, 29th 2016 https://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
Scholarly
Tebow, Tim. This Is The Day. WATERBROOKS. September 25th 2018
Tebow, Tim. Shaken. WATERBROOKS. 2017
Tebow, Tim, and Gregory, A.J. Rise: Believing in Yourself When Others Don’t, WATERBROOKS. October 3rd 2017
Tebow, Tim. Through My Eyes. WATERBROOKS. 2011
Gladwell, Malcolm. Outliers:The Story Of Success, New York Little Brown and Company. 2000
Alternative
Tebow, Tim. Tim Tebow shares incredible story of John 3:16. Above Inspiration, YouTube, Jan 10th 2019
Tebow, Tim. Tim Tebow: Everything In Between. Wubby213, YouTube, Jan 3rd 2013
King, Peter. Tim Tebow With Tim Rohan. MMQB May 5 2017 https://art19.com/shows/the-mmqb-podcast/episodes/96a849fd-30b3-41e7-886b-7ef77c90ad5f April 16 2019
Tebow, Tim. Tim Tebow The Chosen One. Latoya Cassandra, December 28th 2017 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VePLo3EH8SA
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Noah Couwenhoven, a freshmen from Ham Lake, Minnesota. While seeking a degree in high school education, Noah loves working with kids with special needs, playing football and baseball, and cookouts with his family.
WHAT I’VE LEARNED
Research makes a good story a great story.
Speaking loud and clear in front of the class builds confidence day by day and you don’t even notice.
Malcolm Gladwell’s unique ways of writing pull you in and want to make you read more.
Sharing our book club book with friends talking about no other than Scott Winter.
Fun writing activities challenge you to think on the spot and let you share your specific writing style with the class.
Naming Dog’s is fun. It allows you to be creative with your writing and paint a clear picture for the reader.
Class Speeches cause me to have slight mental breakdowns before I speak. I get butterflies in my stomach and moist palms. I need to learn how to relax before I speak.
Snacks help fuel you when you are working on a long paper.
Tricking your Professor is easily done if you take a group selfie right after class. That way he thinks you met outside of class, but really you just ran out of the classroom quickly to snap a selfie.
The first day of class before I had no idea what this course was about. Scott Winter came in with an energy that was contagious and helped me enjoy class for the first time in a while.
(Editors note: This paper was written as a part of GES160 Seminar class at Bethel University in St. Paul, Minn.)
