Confidence is Carlos Correa's secret sauce
People who achieve success have one thing in common: confidence. When you believe you can do something, when you know you can accomplish something, you do. And this couldn’t be truer in sports.
This week, on Extraordinary Happens I talk to Astros Shortstop Carlos Correa who reminded me how important confidence is when reaching for your dream. At just 21 years old, Carlos is the reigning American League Rookie of the Year with a record-breaking debut season, but it’s his extraordinary story about getting to Major League Baseball and his confidence to succeed that inspires me most.
Carlos grew up in Puerto Rico and at age five, his father took him to the ballpark for the first time. A few years later, he told his dad he needed to learn English so he could speak for himself when he made it to the big leagues. Carlos had a dream from a young age. He set goals for himself, did the work and expected success.
“Every single morning I would jump out of bed because I had to work toward accomplishing something and that was becoming one of the best players in my draft year, and then eventually when I got drafted, get to the big leagues. I have high expectations, I visualize a lot and I dream a lot. I did the work. I put in the work and I sacrificed a lot in order to make those dreams come true. That’s the bottom line. A lot of people dream, but they don’t want to pay the price and sacrifice everything you have to sacrifice in order to be successful.” – Carlos Correa
Carlos had an extraordinary breakout year. He is incredibly humble, yet at the same time, he’s unbelievably confident. He told me that his confidence comes from preparation and it helps him manage his emotions during the tougher moments of the game.
“Self-confidence is the foundation of all great success. If your confidence is up there all the time – no matter if you’re doing bad, if you cannot find your barrel to the ball, if your swing doesn’t feel good – your confidence has to be there anyway. I learned that last year. Sometimes I’ll be tired, something will hurt, but my mentality is what got me through it.” – Carlos Correa