Stay Out of the Portal (Bot9 #301)
One of the best movies of the 1990s was Total Recall. The action and sci-fi sequences were great, but it was the mind-bending deeper questions the film explored that made it great. Early in the story, Douglas Quaid heads to Rekall, a company offering memory implants of vacations, and has this interaction with Bob McClane, the lead salesman:
Bob McClane: “What is it that is exactly the same about every single vacation you have ever taken?”
Douglas Quaid: “I give up.”
Bob McClane: “You! You're the same. No matter where you go, there you are. It's always the same old you. Let me suggest that you take a vacation from yourself.”
This past week, I had the opportunity to speak to a friend who coaches baseball in the Power 5. While we started the conversation about a couple of our young players, the conversation quickly shifted to the NCAA transfer portal and how it is changing all college athletics. In many ways, the conversation from Total Recall and the transfer portal are intimately related. We’re raising a generation who seems to miss the fact that no matter where they go, they’re going to be the same.
One of the most effective techniques in coaching is changing the goal. We have to change what our young athletes believe to be the most important goals. It’s not the label, the destination, or the thing to put on a resume. It’s who you become on the journey. Deion Sanders has become a coach and he tweeted these words of wisdom this past week - “Please stop chasing offers and chase greatness. Chase a 3.5 GPA or better. Chase good manners, chase character, chase passing the SAT & ACT score, and chase the Lord because you’re gonna need Him.”
No matter whether a player goes to this school or that school, gets a scholarship or has a roster spot, the player is going to be the same person unless he transforms his life. One of the most impactful interactions I had with a mentor was with my JV basketball coach as I decided to get into teaching. When I did a day of observation at my alma mater, he wrote me a small, impactful note which read, “Stay out of the teacher’s lounge.” He felt the lounge represented a den of complaining and negativity. For me, in this moment, I’d encourage all of our young baseball players to stay out of the transfer portal. Life is found through long obedience in the same direction. Stick with your current school and see how your circumstances change as your perspective changes. Don’t be the same old you. Continue to grow, improve, and learn the value of loyalty and obedience.