Ignore the Doubters

You know what all successful people have in common?

They've been doubted. Hard. And not just by strangers on the internet, but by the people closest to them.

The coach who said "be realistic." The teammate who said "you're not good enough." The scout who said "you don't have what it takes."

I call these people "dream taxes" – little payments you have to make on the way to doing anything worth a damn.

The Doubt Economy

I've been doubted my entire career. By family members, by teammates, by coaches, by teachers, by everybody.

When I started playing late at the age of 11, nobody thought I'd be able to make rep hockey. Once I got to rep hockey, nobody thought I could be on the A-team. When I got to the A-team, nobody thought I could play junior.

For a moment, they were right. I couldn't make a junior team.

So at 17, I packed my bags and moved to Sweden to play junior hockey there. I trained as hard as I could for two years, came back, and earned a spot in the BCHL. That's when the scholarship offers started rolling in.

Everything's hard. You just got to choose your hard. And once you choose it, don't let negativity into your brain.

But here's what those doubters didn't understand: their skepticism wasn't a warning sign – it was a green light.

If everyone believes in your path, it's probably not that special. The really good stuff – the game-changing stuff – always looks crazy at first.

The Math Teacher Who Almost Had Me Figured Out

Growing up in Vancouver, I had this math teacher – super nice guy, genuinely cared about his students. Every day after school, he'd walk past my house on his way home.

And every single day, he'd see me outside training. Relentlessly. Rain or shine (and in Vancouver, it was usually rain).

One afternoon, he stopped at my fence. With genuine concern in his voice, he said, "Mike, you should focus more on your math than on training, or you're not going to get into college."

As much as I appreciated him pushing me academically, something about that comment lit a fire in me. Here was someone who saw me working harder than anyone he knew, and still doubted what I could achieve.

I never said anything disrespectful back. I just nodded, went inside, and trained even harder the next day.

Fast forward: I ended up with 17 different colleges that wanted me – all because I never let a doubter take control of my brain.

That math teacher wasn't a bad guy. He just couldn't see what I saw. He couldn't feel what I felt. And that's fine – he didn't need to.

Why People Doubt Young Athletes

Understanding why people doubt you is like having the answer key to a test:

1. They're projecting their own fears – When someone says "that level's too high for you," they're really saying "I would be afraid to aim that high"

2. They're thinking statistically – Most people look at the odds. They see thousands of junior players and only a few make it to the next level. They forget that statistics don't apply to individuals with extraordinary drive.

3. They're protecting you (or so they think) – Some doubters genuinely believe they're saving you from disappointment. It comes from love, even if it's misguided.

Every elite athlete has faced this. Jordan was cut from his high school team. Tom Brady was a sixth-round draft pick. Steph Curry was told he was too small.

What separates them from the thousands of athletes who never make it? They believed in themselves when nobody else did.

The Secret Power of Doubt

Here's the counterintuitive truth for every young athlete: doubters are rocket fuel if you know how to use them.

When a coach says your skating isn't good enough, that's not the end of your journey – it's your cue to be the first one on the ice and the last one off. When a scout passes on you, that's not a final verdict – it's your signal to train with even more purpose.

Each doubt can become a tiny coal you throw into your motivation furnace.

But—and this is crucial—you have to be selective about which doubts you listen to. Technical feedback from a knowledgeable coach? Listen to that. Random negative opinions about your potential? Use them as fuel, not guidance.

The Implementation Gap

Here's what separates the athletes who make it from those who don't:

Winners implement despite doubt. Everyone else waits for validation before pushing forward.

I know players in juniors who are still "getting ready" to fully commit. Still waiting for the perfect coach or the perfect opportunity.

Meanwhile, the players who advance are out there getting better every day while being doubted every step of the way.

The implementation gap is your opportunity. When your competition is paralyzed by what others think, you can race ahead by simply putting in the work.

Your Anti-Doubt Playbook

So how do you, as a young athlete chasing your dreams, practically deal with doubters?

1. Focus on your day-to-day process – Your daily habits matter infinitely more than anyone's opinion of your potential.

2. Build a doubt filter – Ask yourself: "Does this person want me to succeed? Do they know what they're talking about?" If the answer to either is no, their doubt gets filtered out.

3. Find your true believers – You don't need many, but you need a few people who genuinely believe in your potential. They're your sanity check when doubt storms hit.

4. Document your progress – Keep track of how far you've come. Nothing silences doubt like tangible improvement.

One junior player I know kept a training journal. On the first page, he wrote down all the reasons people said he wouldn't make it. Every time he hit a milestone or improved a skill, he'd add it to the journal. That record of progress became his shield against doubt.

The Final Truth

If you're playing junior, trying to get to college, or pushing for the pros – remember this:

Your journey is YOUR journey. Not your parents'. Not your coach's. Not your teammates.

The path to anything worth achieving in sports is paved with people telling you it can't be done. The ones who make it aren't necessarily the most talented – they're the ones who believe in themselves when no one else does.

When you hear those doubts creeping in – look at them as confirmation that you're pushing boundaries. The higher you aim, the more doubters you'll attract.

And that's when you should lean in even harder.

Because as long as YOU believe in your dream, and as long as YOU put in the work day after day, your potential is entirely up to you.

No one else gets a vote.

Mike

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