There is No Crystal Ball

If I had a penny for how many times I am asked:

“Who do you think you will be a great soccer player?”

“Who do you think should have made team X?”

“Why didn’t the coaches pick player X for this team?”

I can definitively tell you that I would be a multi-millionaire for sure.

I played soccer for more than 20 years from the neighborhood youth levels to premier youth levels in Europe.  I can coach and train with the best youth soccer coaches around.  I could have played for some of the top youth clubs in Europe and maybe played professionally making a lot of money.

But, I did not.

Despite the initial success I achieved at a young age, according to various coaches I was not good enough.

Players better than me were cut, injured, retired–they were just not good enough.  And on paper, we were awesome!

Parents, I say all of that to say this, there is no crystal ball.

I understand that you want to make the best decisions for your children.  (I currently have two)  I want to make the best decisions possible for them and put them in the most challenging environments.

But, despite the exceptional experiences I have and the wonderful times I enjoyed, I cannot tell you who will make it and who will not–whether the children are seven or seventeen.

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