Dear Next Wave โ Lisa Mordell
May 12, 2019 | Women's Volleyball
Dear Next Wave,
My four years at Tulane were some of the best of my life. During my time in New Orleans, I learned how to become a more advanced student and more developed athlete. More importantly, I was able to learn so much more about who I am as a person and who I want to grow into. These next few years definitely won't be easy, but they'll beย exciting and valuable, so take advantage of every opportunity that will push you to better yourself. Most of what you will learn will come with time, but here are some of the things that I wish I knew before I began my freshman year of college.
Branch out from your team.
Don't only stay friends with your teammates and get trapped in a bubble โ because it's something that's very easy to do โ especially when you're inย season. If you have the opportunity to branch out and become friends with other athletes, do it. It will make you a more well-rounded person, athlete and student.
Try not to stress.
Don't stress too much about the little things that are going to happen everyday. If it's not something that you'll be thinking about in a week, or even a day, it's not worth it. Don't let those moments deter you from everything else that you could be doing and enjoying. Something that I wish I knew when I was a freshman, is that I'm always going to figure out a wayย to get everything done. Just as long as you put in the work, it's going to turn out the way its supposed to.
Understand that losing is a part of the process.
Probably the hardest part about transitioning to college athletics is going from being a big fish in a small pond to being a small fish in a big pond. I went from winning three state championships in high school to winning two conference matches in my freshman year at Tulane. But look at what we were able to do this past season to finish out my volleyball career! It's important to remember that the end of the day, our identities as a student-athlete areย not defined by those losses.
Reach out to upperclassmen.
Something that really helped me when I was younger, and something that I would encourage you to do, is talk to the upperclassmen and learn what they do to cope with the stresses of everything, because it's a lot. Once you learn what they do, you can start applying some of their strategies to see what works best for you.
Your team will become your second family.
Everybody always talks about how their relationship with teammates turns into a bond between sisters, and I really didn't think it would actually be that way until it was. The hardest part about leaving volleyball is leaving them. It's just a special relationship that you will have with these girls, because no one is able to understand what you went through except for them. I can't wait toย see how my teammates are going to continue to grow after our four years together. And it's also pretty cool because now I have someone to visit in every city.
Your coaches will teach you so much more than just volleyball.
I have been taught so many life lessons from our veryย experienced coaches who have been through so much. They have enhanced both my people and leadership skills and have also become mentors in my life, both on the volleyball court and off. They've taught me more than I thought thanย I ever thought I couldย learn about academics, family, lifestyle and faith. It's also pretty cool that this past season I got to have a former teammate and personal best friend as our assistant coach, which made my senior year that much more amazing.
Take advantage of all that Tulane has to offer.
Two of the resources that I would say to take the most advantage of are the mental health resources that our university is helping provide for us and also ourย administration and athletic directors. They want to help you, and those are the connections that later in life could provide something really big for you in the end.
Embrace the NOLA culture.
New Orleans is such a special city, one unlike anywhere else in the world. Tap into the culture. There's festivals and parades every weekend, and everyone is really here to lift each other up and make the city better. There's so much pride here, especially after Hurricane Katrina, and it's such an amazing place to live. I can't wait to see how it's going to grow even more in the future because it has a long way to go beyond the growth that's happened over the past decade.
Don't allow yourself to stay within a certain box.
There is so much more to each student-athlete than just sports and academics. It goes beyond that, to who we are as people. When you branch out of that box, you find so much fulfillment in other things and understand more about who you are. Having the opportunity to do that now before you get into the real world is really important.
Sincerely,
Lisa Mordell
Class of 2019
Bachelor of Science in Neuroscience/Economics
Master of Science in Neuroscience
Follow Tulane volleyball on social media at @GreenWaveVB on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Follow Tulane Athletics on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram.
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Tulane University is located in the city of New Orleans. It is a city built on tradition and resiliency. The lessons Green Wave student-athletes have learned through their connection with this university and city have BUILT doctors, lawyers, business leaders, conference champions, all-conference players, all-Americans, professional athletes and NCAA tournament teams. The city of New Orleans has shaped us into who we are today. We are One City. We are Tulane. We are NOLA BUILT. Check out our story at NolaBuilt.com.
