If you told all of your friends and family that you were going to be the best female hockey player on your team, in your area, in your state or province, in the whole country, in the whole world…what would they say?

Would they think that you’ve gone crazy?

Here’s why that’s a good thing.

If you are a player who stays inside your comfort zone, goes along with the crowd and does what others expect you to do, no one will say anything when you just keep doing what you’ve always done.

But when you start doing things that are out of the ordinary, unexpected and even outrageous - the things that are really going to take your game to the next level - your teammates, coaches, parents and friends are going to think you’ve lost your mind.

To be the best, you have to be a little bit different. You need to stand out from the crowd. You can’t just do what everyone else is doing. You have to dream bigger and do more. You have to set more goals and go get them.

When I decided that I wanted to become a great female hockey player back when I was 14, my friends thought I was a little nuts. I would be over at the outdoor rink every night working on my skills and playing pick-up hockey. I would get up early to do extra off-ice training before school. I wouldn’t eat the same junk food they ate (at least not nearly as much of it), because I knew that crappy fuel would affect the way I felt and played. I would go home and go to bed early so that I could be at my best the next day.

They just didn’t “get it”.

And that was fine by me. I knew what I wanted and I was willing to do all the little things that no one else wanted to do. Now, I definitely went overboard, by doing too much of the wrong things and not enough of the right things, but my commitment and focus is what allowed me to go from being a “human pylon” at the age of 14 to a Division 1 player in less than 5 years. There were hard choices to make along the way, but those were the choices that got me to where I wanted to be.

Once you start taking massive action in the direction of your dreams and people start thinking that you are a little crazy, they won’t be surprised by the lengths that you are willing to go to reach your goals.

They may not understand why you are so driven, passionate and committed, but no one will ever be surprised by the challenges you accept, the risks you take, the places you go and the dreams you chase.

What are you going to do that will separate your from the crowd today?

What steps are you going to take in the direction of your dreams?

Work Hard. Dream Big.

~ Coach Kim