Essay Example on Character & Respect: Keys to Success in Life

Arguably, success in life largely depends on one's character and how we relate with others. Building a positive and enviable character, and cultivating healthy relationships with other people are entirely under one's control. However, it was not until when I had bad encounters with my high school basketball coach that I realized that having an appealing personality, and being humble and respectful towards others is the wisest decision one can make. Being disrespectful and arrogant to others is a bad attitude, whose consequences are regrettable for a long time. I learnt this lesson from an undesirable experience with my high school basketball coach that was caused by my attitude towards him.

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In high school, I enrolled for a diploma course that would prepare me for a career as a journeyman electrician. While pursuing this course, I developed a passion for playing basketball, which began as a hobby but, within no time, I was selected to play for the school team. My exemplary performances during major interschool tournaments earned me admiration, with some professional basketball teams scouting me during these tournaments. Additionally, I received more accolades than any other player in all the tournaments that I participated in. My parents, nonetheless, feared that these achievements would make me become self-absorbed and eventually lose sight of more accomplishments in my high school education. My father, who is a Navy Seal, always taught me to remain disciplined and focused even after every success that I achieved. Similarly, my mother, who heads the Department of Children and Families, kept reminding me to exercise modesty even as I got rewards for my basketball performances. However, I did not heed this advice.

Having been one of the most sought-after young basketball players, I qualified for a full scholarship that the school offered its student-athletes. This scholarship was a welcome relief for my parents since they were struggling to finance my three elder siblings in university and me in high school. The school, nonetheless, made it clear that I would only continue benefiting from this scholarship if I adhered to the school's moral code. One of the stipulations in this code was that student-athletes should not show a negative attitude towards their coaches or instructors or disrespect them whatsoever.

My swift rise to prominence in the basketball court, unexpectedly, made me think that I would argue with my coach whenever I felt that his tactics were not befitting my style of play. Unfortunately, these thoughts marked the beginning of my downfall. I started being arrogant and developed a negative attitude towards the coach, which deteriorated my relationship with him gradually. During one match, the coach decided to substitute me in the third quarter for having played dismally. Irrespective of the fact that I was returning to the team after suffering a hamstring injury, I was discontented with the coach's decision since I felt that I needed to play the entire match to regain full match fitness. My discontentment resulted in me taking my jersey off as I left the court and hurling offensive remarks at the coach. Unhappy with my behavior, the coach referred me to the disciplinary committee, which adjudged me to have behaved rudely and disrespected the coach. For this reason, the committee suspended me from the team for one academic year and revoked my scholarship.

Conclusion

This punishment made me regret my behavior towards the coach for the remaining course duration and I even regret it today. The ill-fated experience, which started when I developed a negative attitude towards the coach due to pride, taught me the importance of being humble and respecting my seniors. I, therefore, made a conscious decision not to allow my successes to be a source of pride that would make me feel superior to others.