Personal Statement: A Career As A College Basketball Player

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Personal Statement Though not initially obvious, there are many parallels between the court and the clinic. As a college basketball player, I learned that being an effective leader did not mean that I had to be a constant bundle of energy. Rather, I realized over time it is more important to understand your teammates and what makes them tick, and to translate that knowledge into separate leadership styles to match each individual. This is crucial when working with an extremely diverse group of attitudes, personalities, and mindsets. I believe people would describe my style as steady, positive, and upbeat – opposite of my head coach in many ways. Countless times I would pull a teammate aside who had been berated and explain in a constructive …show more content…

In 2015, I was chosen to be part of the USA Team Delegation to attend the World University Games in Gwangju, South Korea, as a Medical Intern. There, I was struck by the varied approaches to performance enhancement and the more holistic approach to medicine in general, exemplified through different stretching methods and ways to harness an individual athlete’s chi, or energy. In the Athlete’s Village, I experienced acupuncture from a smiling Korean doctor as he explained how they try to use less prescription medicine for their …show more content…

Patients who refused to visit the practice, patients who declined to admit that their high blood pressure was secondary to their refusal to take their losartan. Luckily, my provider had been seeing these people for many years, and knew the techniques that would yield in the greatest cooperation. As I watched and listened, I obtained a deep understanding of the value of a relationship between the patient and the provider. Where one might have struggled to gain patient compliance, my provider knew when to implement a stern tone, and when to dial it back and become more comforting. Teamwork, patience, leadership, problem solving, and overcoming adversity refined and perfected my college athlete experience and I am excited to apply these themes to my potential next chapter in the medical profession! Doctors and athletes deal with many of the same day to day obstacles and both need to “read the defense” to decide on the best response. One must be able to deal with the heartbreak of a failure, whether that is a missed last second shot or an unsuccessful surgery, and still wake up the next day with the confidence to know that next time you will

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