Jack Choros: I Can Win With My Brain, Part 2

Yesterday in Part 1 of my conversation with Jack Choros, who was born with a physical disability called cerebral palsy, Jack shared with us his goals for 2015 and how he is honing his technical writing skills and building his business network.

Many of us have big dreams but we fail to take the first step to turn our dreams into reality. Today in Part 2 Jack tells us about his big dream of working with a professional team in The National Hockey League (NHL). To accomplish his goal, he volunteers for a Junior A hockey team in Mississauga to learn as much as he can about the game.

Jack is not discouraged by the fact that when he was in school he never got picked to play on any sport teams. To the contrary he has wholeheartedly embraced the encouragement of Mrs. Bell, one of his elementary school’s teachers. When he was six years old Mrs. Bell told Jack very bluntly that he would never win a championship in hockey with his legs but he could with his brain.

Today, Jack is hopeful that by boosting his knowledge of hockey and becoming proficient in hockey analytics and statistics that is used to evaluate players’ performances he will one day make to the NHL. His ultimate dream is to win the Stanley Cup as a general manager for professional team in the NHL. Eleanor Roosevelt said “The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams.” Jack is clearly a man who believes in the beauty of his dream to one day work with a professional hockey team in the NHL.

Please enjoy reading my conversation with Jack Choros. I hope you are inspired. I also hope you too can be a source of encouragement and motivation for Jack on his journey to the NHL.

In what specific capacity would you like to work with a professional hockey team? Why professional hockey? Where does your passion for hockey come from?

In terms of working in the hockey business, I’ve always dreamed of winning the Stanley Cup as a team general manager. These days in order to become the general manager of a team, you either need to have competed previously as a player at a professional level or worked your way up by proving your value in hockey analytics (which is the analysis of hockey statistics as indicators of performance), as a talent scout who watches and analyzes teams and games at lower levels, or be a former player agent who is well-versed in sports law or collective bargaining and labour relations.

In this day and age, hockey analytics and stats are being used in coordination with one another in order to evaluate players and that is where I hope to make an impact and work my way up. I currently volunteer for the Mississauga Chargers, a Junior A hockey team. I am also exploring opportunities with their Ontario Hockey League affiliate the Mississauga Steelheads about how I can help them succeed and also advance my career prospects. I have a lot to learn about both scouting and statistical analysis and I believe these are great stepping-stones for me along the path to success.

As far as where my passion for hockey came from, I had always wanted to be like the boys and participate in sports growing up. However, I never had the opportunity to participate in sports at school the way I wanted to, partially because I was physically limited and also because other kids would exclude me from activities. I then realized that if I wanted to fit in I would have to know a lot about sports, so seeing as how we live in Canada I gravitated towards the game of hockey.

When I was six years old, I was in the gym one time with my teaching assistant Mrs. Bell and I looked up at the championship banners on the walls of our elementary school. I told her that one day I was going to win one of those banners and help a team win. She mentioned that I wouldn’t be able to do it with my legs but I could do it with my brain. That was in first grade and that is when I realized I had a dream.

Of course life can take you on a weird path sometimes and recently my freelance writing has led me to an opportunity with an analytics blog. So even though at the age of 29 I’m just starting to make progress and connections in the business, I now realized I could have started the process a decade ago. While I am may be starting a little late, I am hopeful that I will find the path to turn my dream into reality.

Ironically enough I ran into Mrs. Bell three years ago while she was helping someone else onto a wheel transit bus and she reminded me of our encounter in my school’s gym when I six years old.

What challenges do you see yourself facing in 2015 and how do you plan to overcome them?

Believe it or not, I have always believed that the hardest part about overcoming a physical disability is not the physical part, but rather the mental aspect of it.

My main challenge is trying to grow as much as I can this year. I have to get over the fear of failure and the fear of feeling pain. Without pain there is no growth and people logically know that, but most of us never get past it. We eventually start to procrastinate and delay the chance to evolve into the person that we were always meant to become. I know who I was meant to become and it’s time to accept that and take the steps necessary to reach my goals.

In overcoming both my mental and physical hurdles, the biggest thing will be my ability to break down my big dreams into smaller daily goals. My daily goals will keep me encouraged and feeling successful. The more successful you feel the more energetic and enthusiastic you are and the more likely that you will make it through the tough times and push harder when necessary rather than quitting. I think it’s hard for any of us to wrap our heads around that idea when times get tough, but I believe it’s a big key to success.

It’s time to implement it in my own life and there’s no better year than 2015 to do so.

Tell Us About Your Business

I started working as a freelance writer nearly 2 years ago. However, I’ve really been at it for almost 5 years considering that I worked for free for various sports sites to get my name out there. I currently write for one or two sports media properties at any given time and also write advertising copy for a local newspaper company.

With the New Year upon us, things have changed for me and I’m in the process of finding new clients and new business opportunities. My goal is to take myself from freelance writer to content agency, so that I can have employees who focus on the writing while I pursue my passion in the hockey business. I am using writing as the tool that will position me as an expert in the professional hockey industry years from now. Writing is one of the primary vehicles I am using to chase my true dream of working with a professional hockey team.

Are you inspired by Jack?

How can you be an inspiration to Jack?

What challenges do you see for yourself in 2015?

How do you plan to confront your challenges?

Please come back next Wednesday for the conclusion of my conversation with Jack Choros. Next week, Jack will share his amazing story about climbing the 1776 steps of the CN Tower and an important lesson he learned from a chance meeting of a former professional ice hockey goaltender on a Go Transit train ride.