Diary of a Striker with Bethany Balcer: Playing for the Right Reasons

July 16, 2021
By Bethany Balcer

Diary of a Striker is a Girls Soccer Network exclusive series from Bethany Balcer of OL Reign. Balcer will be giving readers an inside look at her journey as a professional player all season long. New posts drop every two weeks!

I’m going to jump right into this entry today because it’s about something that is very important when being an athlete of any kind: why do you play?

It’s a question I was asked often growing up. I played because it was fun, because I was good at it, and because I liked being a part of a team. When you’re young, it’s fun to do something you love with people you love. As I’ve gotten older, why I play has evolved a lot. I play to better myself and the skillset I’ve been given, and also to help a team reach a goal. However, it’s easy to play for the wrong reasons and to get sucked into a selfish mindset.

There are some times in my career where I have only thought about myself. How can I get better? What do I need to do to get noticed more? How can I succeed? And while these questions might be valid, they will ultimately leave you on an island. I’m all for self-improvement as well as refining your skills, but when your only goal when you step out on the field is for self-gain, you’ll lose sight of what it means to be a team player and miss out on valuable lessons.

In the professional world, it can be easy to let the fame and notoriety take over. When you score goals and get noticed, it’s nice. It’s validating. At any level, it’s obvious to see that fans can place value on you based on performance, and if you let that get into your head, you’ll start to believe it too. But that is not the case! Whether you start every game and play every minute or sit on the bench, or don’t make a roster, your value is just as important as the next. If you start to believe that your value is tied to your performance, you are boarding a rollercoaster of a ride that will leave you on high highs and low lows. It’s important to center yourself and recognize your worth goes far beyond how often you step on the field.

And that brings me back to my first point of a selfless mindset. The whole team is more powerful and more successful than the individual. When I’m playing for my teammates around me, and when I work hard for them so that they can be better, that will result in the healthiest team culture. This should be something we all strive for. I obviously want to get better for my own sake, everyone does. But that’s not my main goal. I want the TEAM to succeed. I want those around me to get better. And ultimately when the focus isn’t on you, that’s when you have the most growth and development!

I have to constantly remind myself that it’s not about the awards or the followers or all the goals I could score that I play. It’s to reach my full potential with others. It’s to serve the girl next to me on the field. It’s because it’s fun. It’s because being on a team teaches you so many life lessons that reach far beyond the sport. Our world tells us that “it’s all about you.” Reality check: it’s not! Whatever your reason is for playing, make sure it’s healthy and brings out the best in you. And remember, your value is not tied to your performance!

Photo by Jane G Photography @janegphoto