Ali Shiravi: Fight For the Ball

Ali Shiravi shares about how he developed the assertiveness to excel in soccer and other areas of life.

“Fight for the ball, Ali,” said my dad, sounding supportive yet serious. Driving back from another soccer game, he started his normal spiel on my performance. Yes, I knew it was constructive criticism. But for some reason, every game and post-game talk felt the same.

It was routine: get the ball, dribble, then pass or shoot and afterwards sit in the car and listen to my dad dissect my lack of aggression. Most post-game talks usually resulted with me in my bedroom, contemplating if I made the right decision or not. But this time, something was different in his voice. Every word he said about assertiveness seemed to click. 

This time, the motivation to “fight for the ball” engraved itself in me. Many people assume players in sports have this aggressive personality, but I lacked this assertive mentality that would help me compete. All the fancy dribbling and the strong, accurate shot I had honed were great distinguishers, but the one skill I lacked was the courage to “fight for the ball.”

 An abundance of strength and towering height would only be an advantage if I clinched the motivation and took it to heart. From then on, I would commit to every challenge, sprint for any ball and defend to the point where people question if I’m even a striker. Confidence is not inherent but gained through commitment. 

To this day, I pour my soul into everything I tackle. From soccer to my business and finance competitions, to my work in robotics, I assert myself. I take initiative in projects and steer prototypes to completion. In fact, I am even working on creating a non-profit business incubator, preparing other passionate business students to have that “fight-for-the-ball” mindset for their own goals. But no matter what you truly are fighting for, keep that same mindset. With a Perspective, I’m Ali Shiravi.

Ali Shiravi is a sophomore at high school. He loves to play sports, go to the gym, listen to music and is heavily interested in business, finance and economics.