You're never going to make the team...

I’ve got a story for you today.

I had just turned 14 and was going into high school. And one thing you have to understand about my life at the time.

I was into basketball. Like, really into basketball.

I was that guy who’d obsess over Kyrie Irving’s dribbling skills.

The one who’d play for 5+ hours/day on the weekends.

The one who’d watch Kyrie highlights on repeat, even if it meant staying up late and coming in bleary-eyed to school the next day.

So, of course, being the young gun hotshot basketball player I thought I was, I went into High School with one goal.

Make my High School’s basketball team.

So, I went and signed up for tryouts.

I was sh*tting myself, but I was desperate to make it.

All my hours were dedicated to making the team.

I was skipping lunches, playing in between free periods, and playing at my local gym for 5 hours after school, all just to get some extra hours on the court.

Then Tryouts came.

They rounded us all up in the big hall where the court was.

There must’ve been about 40-50+ of us in total.

They had us run sprints, 3v2 drills, back-to-back full-court 3 point drills, defense drills & full-court games.

And at the end, the coaches lined us all up and started reading the names of the people who had made it.

My heart was pumping and my chest felt like it was constricting.

It was becoming difficult to breathe.

I was more stressed than I'd ever been before in my young, naive life.

One by one, names were called.

8 people had been named already, and still I hadn’t been.. Then 9, 10, 11 names were called out, none of them mine.

They had told us at the start that only 12 people were going to make the team.

“And the final player who’s going to make the team is…. Teddy V!” The coach said.

My heart sank into my stomach.

I had not made the team. 

My life felt like it was over.

But of course, I was young and dumb, so my life was not over.

And after that horrific failure, I dedicated myself to working even harder.

I’ve since then, managed to get invitations to play basketball for several D1-D3 college teams.

And what was the trick I used to get to this level?

Investing in a coach & pushing my boundaries.

After I failed to make the team I signed up for personal 1-on-1 coaching sessions with one of the best coaches in my area & I also doubled up on my workout sessions to increase my speed, vertical, fast twitch muscles, etc..

You see, with a coach, you can more quickly and efficiently improve what you’re doing wrong and double down on what you’re doing right.

They help you plan and strategize your way to success. 

And actually, this is one reason why I’ve decided to start coaching digital creators & agency owners who are trying to grow a profitable personal brand on X.

Because I’ve been where you are.

Lost, directionless, and without a plan - throwing everything you have at the wall and just hoping something sticks.

So, if you need 1-on-1 assistance with your brand, I’m opening up 1 slot for my new coaching program this month.

I’m only taking on 1 client to prove my quality so that the 2nd client who signs up will only get the highest quality.

What you’ll get is weekly calls and 24/7 access to me within Slack.

I’ll help you optimize your profile, get higher engagement, and strategize your content so you can build an authoritative brand from the poolside like me.

If you’re interested, reply to this email with “COACHING” and I’ll send you some more information.

Until next time,

P.S. For this month only I’m throwing in my Second Brain of Content Notion OS - the same content ecosystem I use to create & plan content in under 2hrs/week (which I normally sell for $21) for FREE for anyone who signs up to my new coaching program.

This is the only month I will ever run this offer, so get in quick if you’re interested.

P.P.S; if you enjoyed this story email, message Cormac on X.

The guy’s an insane email copywriter.