Professional Athletes, Team Sports

Extensive experience (in elementary and high school and in college sports) and a track record of high performance in their sport are required to become a professional athlete.

Professional athletes should begin learning their sport early, probably in elementary school or high school. They should be prepared to train constantly and dedicate themselves to success in their field. Athletes must be team players who understand how their particular skills fit together with those of their teammates.

If you want to be a professional athlete, you must be fully committed to succeeding. You must work almost nonstop to improve your conditioning and skills and not give up when you don't succeed as quickly or as easily as you had hoped. And even then, because the competition is so fierce, the goal of earning a living as a professional athlete is still difficult to reach. For this reason, professional athletes must not get discouraged easily. They must have the self-confidence and ambition to keep working and keep trying. Professional athletes must also have a love for their sport that compels them to want to reach their fullest potential.