Eudaimonia: True Vitality in Life

Have you heard the term Eudaimonia? It’s what we should all strive for—true vitality and flourishing in life. It’s not just any one emotion but something beyond emotion altogether. It is a combination of living with virtue and having a deep focus on what you can control. This concept reminds us that we never truly know what is good or bad in the grand scheme. Living with full appreciation of this is what Eudaimonia is all about.

The Beginning of the End: When Football Felt Like It Was Over

Some athletes just get it. Some people know what it felt like “That Day”…

I’ll never forget the day it was all over. Twenty grown men, sitting in a room, unable to gear down or shower up. We were stuck in silence, sitting at our stalls, tears streaming down our faces. We walked out of that room for the last time with garbage bags over our shoulders, wearing the final track suit we’d ever be issued. My teammate turned to me and asked, “What do we do now that we are civilians?” A question I couldn’t even begin to answer.

That day felt like the beginning of the end. When football is the only thing keeping you from going crazy, losing it makes everything feel like it’s over. For days, I would contemplate whether I’d made the right decision to quit or if I should have kept playing. The thoughts would drive me to the point where all I wanted was to sleep or drive to the edge of the earth. It was a feeling we all shared; we even joked about it—“How is Civilian Life?”

The Athlete’s Cycle: Love, Sacrifice, and Craft

Throwback to age fourteen, sitting in a psychologist’s office, and being asked, “Do you feel like this all the time?” I answered, “The only time I don’t is when I’m on a football field.”

Athletes know this cycle well: work out, rest, eat, and back to business. Over and over again, striving to be the craftsman who stands out—stands out to coaches, teammates, scouts, and fans. We make personal sacrifices for the game we love, all for fleeting moments of glory with our teammates.

The Love-Hate Relationship with the World’s Most Powerful Game

Football is a love-hate relationship for many of us. I remember the advice from my mentor, Uncle Mike, who played under Bo Schembechler at U of M. He said, “It’s normal to have a headache throughout training camp. Your head will always hurt—except at the actual point of contact, when all the pain goes away.”

That’s just one of the many snippets that made me both love and hate the craziness of this beautiful game. I played my whole life, and it’s all I ever wanted to do. But surprisingly, I now say I don’t care much for football anymore, either watching or playing.

Reflections on “Concussion” and the Price Paid

I initially avoided the movie Concussion. I feared it would bring back those sick feelings tied to memories of head trauma. But one night, I decided to watch it, and it was tough. Each hit in the film felt like a fresh smack to me, but something unexpected crept in—a sense of gratitude for being lucky, and a deep sympathy for the lives lost in the game.

I wasn’t there, but Aristotle’s idea of Eudaimonia seems fitting here. It’s not just about the moments of joy or pain but the totality of how well you lived up to your potential.

Football as Life’s Best Teacher

Despite everything, the game did incredible things for me. Football gave me career capital, teaching me more about leadership and life than anything else ever could. It taught me to focus on the process, not the result.

When people say, “You always take things in stride,” or “You’re always so calm,” I know it’s a skill I learned on the field. If you’ve ever run straight into a lineup of 12 opponents trying to destroy you, you know how to rise to any challenge in life.

The Lessons Football Teaches: Leadership, Learning, and Change

Football taught me resilience and adaptability. Every play, every injury, every challenge requires a new plan. The game forces you to understand your strengths, weaknesses, and next steps, both on the field and off.

The game taught me the value of relentless feedback and constructive criticism, whether it came from a coach or from within. It also instilled in me the ability to push myself to be the best, even when others may have given up.

Empathy, Game Theory, and Life After Football

For those who haven’t played the game, empathy can be tough. But football gives you an appreciation for the unpredictability of life. The results of any given moment are determined not just by your effort but by preparation, resilience, external factors, and what others are trying to do. In life, as in football, sometimes you win, sometimes you lose—but the bottom line is, if you can, you play.

Final Thoughts: Was It Worth It?

No one will know the full extent of the physical toll the game has taken on me until later. But what I do know is that football made me the person I am today. So, was it worth it? Absolutely.

…. Eudaimonia

Play More Forever, Infinite Games

While “overall” football was “worth it” I do have one regret.

That I didn’t play more infinite games early on.

To be honest I didn’t know what they were. But things like business, guitar, investing, or writing. Anything that from the day we start, ’til the day we die, we can keep learning and improving.

Why play things forever?

Because the most important games in life are infinite games.

Unlike finite games, which have clear rules, winners, and losers, infinite games have no defined end.

For me, football had to come to an end. And unless you’re Aaron Rodgers, or Tom Brady this game tends to come to an end pretty quickly.

But not infinite games.

These are about the long haul, the journey, not the destination.

The goal is not to “win,” but to keep playing, to grow, to learn, and to evolve. Whether in business, personal development, or relationships, the most fulfilling pursuits are those that allow us to play indefinitely.

As Simon Sinek argues in The Infinite Game, when we adopt an infinite mindset, we stop measuring success by short-term gains and start focusing on staying in the game for as long as possible. Life is not about dominating others or being the best for a moment in time—it’s about being better tomorrow than we are today and leaving a lasting impact.

When we approach life as an infinite game, we realize that it’s not about being the best right now; it’s about ensuring the legacy continues.

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