George Vasels

12/10/10
CLST 271
Professor Livermore
PROJECT – PERSONAL GOALS AND LIFE LESSONS

“The Peaceful Warrior Way- My lessons learned in life through

‘Socrates’”
Early on in the semester, as a class we were asked to fill out a note-card with some

information about us. I mentioned that I wanted to change the world in some way. I want to have

an influence on people, whether that is through my software that I create as a software engineer,

or through making a lasting impression on enough people to cause a positive change in this

chaotic world. I also said that I wanted to aspire in athletics. It is a dream of mine and sports is a

key element of who I am. Most importantly, I wanted to make my father proud, because he is not

here physically, but he is watching over me. I want him to see that I tried my best to fulfill my

dreams. I want to tell my story of my growth, and explain how I started to utilize and apply the

teachings of Socrates into my daily life, which in turn is driving me closer to my goals through

the sport of Volleyball, which I one day aspire to excel at.

I consider my family to be very athletic: my mother and father both come from sports

backgrounds, and stressed the importance of sports in my youth. Growing up, I was exposed to

many sports, and the one sport that stuck with me was volleyball. I fell in love with it, and I

committed to it, striving to be the best. At one point I was rated in the top 100 players in the state

of Illinois. However, in high school I was working selfishly for my own gains to play collegiate

volleyball, focusing on being the best individually. I wanted to have everything done right and be

the best at it.

My senior year I joined a high caliber volleyball program that had connections to many

of the top collegiate programs in the nation. In the first week of training I sprained my ankle,
George Vasels
12/10/10
CLST 271
Professor Livermore
PROJECT – PERSONAL GOALS AND LIFE LESSONS

and sat out for three weeks. Because I was falling behind physically, I started doing more

strenuous leg strengthening programs so I could jump higher. I didn’t listen to anyone telling me

that I was doing too much, because I was determined to get stronger than everyone else. Two

weeks after I was able to start playing again, I got tendonitis in my knees. But that didn’t slow

my breakneck training. I was desperate to play in college, to live the dream of playing for a gold

medal in the Olympics. I picked up the training even more and was working out through all the

pain. The coaches were upset at me that I was not getting any stronger, and I was not getting any

gains ultimately because my body was too hurt. The coaches thought I was not taking the

training seriously, and because of that I was not recommended, and I received no offers to play

from any teams.

In college, I was more determined than ever to prove my ability to play on a division 1

NCAA team. I was still completely independent and too stubborn to seek help. I trained harder

than I’d ever trained before, and the knee got more painful: I couldn’t even walk on it. I had no

choice but to see a physician about my knee. My physician diagnosed me a with chronic

tendonitis and told me that I would be lucky to have my knee be 50% healed, and I would not be

able to play at a high level again.

I was devastated. For the next few weeks, I was completely lost in my own turmoil and

anguish. Then, I was introduced to Dan Millman, an author who wrote Way of the Peaceful

Warrior. He was just like me, striving to be the best and attempting to selfishly be number 1 to

move on to a better team. He got into a freak incident and shattered his femur in 7 different

places, and the doctors told him that he would be lucky to walk ever again, let alone compete in
George Vasels
12/10/10
CLST 271
Professor Livermore
PROJECT – PERSONAL GOALS AND LIFE LESSONS

gymnastics, the sport that he dedicated his life to. He met a man who he called Socrates, who

helped him realize the true meaning of life, and how to fight our internalization and blindness to

our own faults and shortcomings.

His story allowed me to see life in a different way: my hopelessness dissipated, and the

initial thought that my dreams and goals were over went away. I was able to take out the trash,

and I moved forward. I dedicated myself to get better, seek help, and see the beauty in

everything. I became mentally happy, and I knew that I would get better. I relate significantly to

Dan Millman. I learned that it isn’t about proving people wrong. I did not want to prove that

doctor wrong that I would not get better. I wanted to prove to myself that I had the heart and soul

to grow and get past this obstacle. I became a new, rejuvenated person. I went to physical

therapy, I listened to the advice I was given, and two months after starting the healing process, I

managed to not just get 100% better and defeat the tendonitis, but I managed to heal myself. My

heart and mind needed a change. I became able to appreciate everything around me. I became

selfless. I learned to let people in and to trust, and that I cannot succeed in life without letting

people in to guide me in the right direction. Now, in my junior year of college, I have started

back on my journey to get that chance to play at a high level. I became positive that I can do it. I

am happy and proud of my work each and every day, and it has translated both in sport and in

academics. This experience has shaped me to be a better person, and will never go back to who I

was. I am now able to appreciate the best in life.

I want to share some of the teachings of “Socrates”, the wise character from Dan

Millman’s book and the movie Peaceful Warrior:

George Vasels
12/10/10
CLST 271
Professor Livermore
PROJECT – PERSONAL GOALS AND LIFE LESSONS

“A warrior does not give up what he loves, he finds the love in what he does.” My problem

before was that I was always worried about simply not being good enough in the majority of

aspects of life: athletic capabilities, academic performance, etc. These thoughts overshadowed

the love I had for everything, including my love for competition, my love for athletic growth,

and my love for intellectual growth.

“A warrior is not about perfection or victory or invulnerability. He's about absolute

vulnerability.” This was an extremely important lesson to me. I changed from having the

mentality of a perfectionist, to the mentality of a person who wants to grow to my fullest

potential. By realizing that I have flaws and I am vulnerable in these areas. Academically, I was

mentally weak. By this, I mean my confidence to do well was limited. I embraced this

vulnerability, and built on it, and now I know how to stay strong when things get stressful.

“Life has three rules… Paradox, humor, and change.” I learned that life is a paradox because

Life is a mystery. Time should not be wasted trying to figure it out. The rule of humor is

important, because as people we have to appreciate our journeys to our dreams more than the

outcome of our dreams. A sense of humor needs to be kept, especially about ourselves. It gives

us strength. Because we can laugh at our faults, we grow from that. Life also changes. Nothing

ever stays the same. This is the most important rule, because after thinking about it, and realizing

that every single moment is a unique moment, I was starting to appreciate how beautiful the

world is. When I look at everything around me now, I find everything to be beautiful.

My mentality on life now after this experience is the following: “Clear mind, full heart,

nothing to lose” I push myself every day to become the best I can be. I love the work I put in,
George Vasels
12/10/10
CLST 271
Professor Livermore
PROJECT – PERSONAL GOALS AND LIFE LESSONS

and my mind and body are both at a state of peace. I don’t get as stressed as I used to, and I no

longer try to be a perfectionist, because that implies invulnerability. My vulnerability is why I

succeed today. Thanks to the teachings of “Socrates”, I was able to see the light and move on to

a better phase of my life.