In high school, I was on a competitive rowing team for four years. That entailed about three hours of practice six days a week, with weekend-long races once a month. As I’m sure many people who participated in a team sport can agree, despite the fact that it took up so much of my time, I loved my team and enjoyed every hour I put in, because my rowing team played a huge part in forming my personality in preparation for college.
It’s difficult to quantify how much I put into rowing and how much I got out of it, but one thing I certainly gained was confidence, as is a common result of being part of a team. Whether it’s making friends, speaking up as a team captain, or advocating for yourself to a coach or teammate, being on a team presents so many opportunities for confidence development. Not only that, but being able to work effectively with others is an important variable for success in a group sport. With rowing, and most other team sports, teammates put both their successes and failures in each other’s hands — meaning no one person wins, and no one person loses. This creates a sense of trust and responsibility within each person on the team, as no one wants to feel like they were the one to let their team down.
It’s skills like these — confidence, effective group work, and responsibility — not to mention the time management skills required to be a student-athlete, that allowed me to grow and carry the same strengths into college. The skills transferable from team sports are what make them so valuable, and why it is so difficult to just let go of the team that was formative in so many ways.
After my last rowing race, I was crying with some of my other teammates, and one of them said to me: “It will always be a part of us and always a part of who we are.” I believe wholeheartedly that that statement is accurate and encompasses why I felt so bittersweet about leaving my rowing team. On one hand, it’s sad to leave your best friends and your routine of going to practice regularly. However, the things you learned about yourself from being on a team and the skills you take with you into the future are not going anywhere, which means, that somewhere inside of you, the team will continue to exist.
Two years after letting go of rowing, I still recall experiences I had on my team any time I’m in a group setting at school, and I feel myself building on the confidence I gained while rowing. Being part of a team sport is an experience I wouldn’t trade for anything, and I feel lucky to have learned so much from it.