This is the first story of eight for our Super 8 Stories Series. Tonight’s account comes from a very talented baseball player, but an even more compassionate human being. I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know Max through the baseball community, and have always been impressed with his view of the world and how he strives to make it better.
Maxwell’s writings focus on discipline, because it took his own discipline for him to climb the ranks of Baltimore R.B.I. program baseball player to projected MLB 1st-Round pick next spring. I knew Max would give us something short and sweet to chew on from his own experiences in his life. Tonight, in the leadoff spot for the story series, is the University of Maryland’s clean-up hitter…
“My name is Maxwell Costes, I’m a Junior Psychology Major at the University of Maryland, and I also play for the baseball team.
Discipline is the most important aspect of any persons repertoire of life skills, at least it was for me when I made my way to Maryland. I was the last person to commit in my class, and within my class we had kids that were way more prominent than myself, kids that were Perfect Game and Under Armor All-Americans, and kids who were their states’ player of the year. Admittedly, coming into Maryland I figured that I wasn’t going to play much as a freshman anyway, so I dedicated myself to becoming the best version of myself that I could be, so when my time came, I was ready for the opportunity.
My greatest strength, in my opinion, was my ability to sacrifice for something that I wanted. Many Friday nights I gave up on partying and was at the field hitting off the tee in the cage, I would wake up early on Saturdays to run and and get ground-ball work in before football games, just anything and everything I could think of to try and give myself an edge.
I began to see the fruits of my labor in practices and team scrimmages, and eventually, I found myself in a starting role. You can say the rest is history. What’s helped me progress even further is the fact that I never stopped doing these things that got me here in the first place. There’s an old adage, “Before enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood and carry water.” What the saying means is that whatever it took to get you to the great place your at, never stop doing those things.
Discipline is the one thing that never fails, because hear me and hear me well, motivation alone will fail. I can’t tell you how many days I didn’t wanna do extra work, I don’t wanna get up and go work on Saturdays, but I knew I wasn’t willing to sacrifice what I wanted. In the end, I figure that my story is one that shows how important the concept is… and how your life can completely change if you are willing be disciplined about what you want.”
A very true and relatable account for all student-athletes alike. And a very true account for anyone looking to progress in their life. If your methods ain’t broke, don’t fix ’em. Rely on the fundamentals and the rest will take care of itself.
Max can be found @maxwell_costses on Instagram if you’d like to continue to follow his journey.
Thank you, Maxwell!
-B.F.
Super 8 