To my younger self Brian Hayden,
Well, I hope you are having a great day. I am here to give you some advice so you don’t fall into the same traps I did. And I know you are probably like, “I can be playing Fortnite right now,” cuz that’s the big thing in your time. And it also is in my time. But if you can just hear me out, I want to share with you what I have learned over the years. For example, I always ended up behind on work and turning in assignments late and getting half credit. Or not knowing what 7th grade had in store for me after the sixth grade. If you make the right choices, you will not have to worry.
Alright the first piece of advice, don’t think that because you are young you can mess around in school and not pay attention in baseball because that will all come back to you when you are older. If you mess up and become extremely lazy and disrespectful in baseball, then if a high school wants to recruit you and asks about you and what kinda player you are, then your coach will tell the scout the truth. Then the high school would not want you to play for them. And there you go, that’s one way to ruin your baseball career. Also one more thing, I am a good leader right now so trust me when I say this: Try to be a leader because if you are a leader, then people will start looking at you differently and coaches will notice that. If you get a headstart on everybody, then it would be worth it in the future.
Just to let you know, in the future you will play for a very cool baseball team called the Chicago Cubs RBI and that will open up a bunch of opportunities. I know you’re probably thinking “I am the best already.” But when you are relaxing and playing video games or watching tv there will be someone out there that is working twice as hard and getting twice as much practice in trying to get better and take your spot on the team. So you should also work all the time so you make sure that they don’t pass you. Push yourself over your limits to achieve a new limit.
In school, if they assign you an essay or a big assignment try to get ahead of it cuz trust me you don’t want to get behind on a big paper or project — I’ve already experienced that myself. I remember when they assigned a big science fair paper we had to write and I kept telling myself that I would do it the next day. I kept pushing it off until it was due, so the night before I found myself at my desk at 2 am just writing the paper and being very tired for school the next day. Then I received a grade that I was not happy with because I knew that if I started the day it was assigned I would have gotten the grade I wanted. If you did the homework when they gave you time in class, then you would probably get a score that you are satisfied with.
Last but not least, you should think about high school and do research so you would know how important it is to get good grades in 7th grade and take it seriously. I remember after I took the high school test, my mom and I were talking in the kitchen about what were the averages for each high school for having a chance to get in. I came into 7th grade with the mindset that I thought I was a big shot. But the one thing I didn’t realize is how important it is to focus and pay attention. It was all because of how I prioritized video games and friends more than actual school work.
I know that you have been succeeding in a lot of things. One of the things I’ve noticed is that you always have positive energy in baseball. Also great job for surviving online school. It was not easy and it takes a lot of guts to keep going even though there was pressure. The last thing I’ve noticed is that you are helping around the house and keeping Mom and Dad happy. You have also been taking care of the puppy, Wichita. So keep up the good work and try your best and don’t give up. Now keep on the right path cause your future awaits. Good luck.
Sincerely, Your older self
By: Brian Hayden — Thorp Scholastic Academy — Cubs RBI Scholars Class of 2027