Ep.21 How I dealt with Adversity in my Career, Omar Zeenni | Life through Sport Show

In today’s episode, I’m going to share 2 stories from the 9 month period from my playing career that would shape me as a player, a person and how I coach today. I guess you could say that this time was a driving force behind why I started this podcast. Because as I reflect, it taught me everything I needed to know about adversity, discipline and the realities of life. Here were a few of my takeaways and things that I try to communicate to my goalkeepers today:
Your confidence MUST stem from a proper structure of training habits, nutrition, gym and mental training. . . Achieving this takes thankless work, with the awareness that, self doubt is inevitable but, even at your lowest, this foundation will give you a sense of identity, and trust, that you’ve done the work … and that shot to your confidence is merely a minor setback vs a fatal one.
The second takeaway is that bad habits have a way of creeping up at the most inopportune times.
• If you lack the discipline to correct them, they can create a level of doubt that has you playing off fear versus instinct.
• So don’t wait until you’re hit with adversity to address them, be proactive and stubborn about getting this done.
Lastly, is that everything in life has a process attached to it. And while it’s difficult to know exactly when you’ll be faced with adversity, it’s crucial to have a structure in place that can be used to rebuild yourself.
• Each process will ask a different level of patience but, as long as that foundation is there, you will have the clarity needed to guide you through it.
Now, let’s get into the first story where, my lack of foundation and trust in my own process would turn into a continued spiral that would cost my starting job with the LA Galaxy academy. It was through this time that I felt a sense of isolation and lack of identity . . . but, as I came to understand, it was my first really test with adversity and one that would prepare me for the rest of my career.
Timestamps
0:00 Intro
2:00 Story 1: How I lost my starting job
17:00 Story 2: How I got to UC Davis

[@Ryanonfire03]

Thank you for sharing this Omar. These stories can apply even to just normal work/life not even just being a GK, Soccer Player, or Athlete. 🙏🏼

[@progkacademy]

thanks ryan 🙏