Tell your story. Is it heroic, romantic, tragic?
You write your narrative as you live your life. Develop a great story. You choose whether you spend your time or invest it. You decide whether you become a giver or a taker. You surround yourself with people who cast a unique reflection upon you.
As a medical student, very long ago, I went to a psychiatric hospital and interviewed a patient. We were taught to ask patients certain questions to assess their judgment and insight. I questioned a young man in a locked ward, "what does 'people who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones' mean?" He replied without hesitation, "a man lives in a cage surrounded by mirrors." He wasn't living the dream.
Yes, whom we surround ourselves with casts profound shadows upon us. Which is why our families pass judgment on our associates, fearful of the potential negatives that can 'rub off' upon us.
The Greeks considered the study of philosophy important as philosophy helped them shape living a good life. In fact, the Greeks had a word, EUDAIMONIA translating to "human flourishing", which was the goal of applied philosophy.
" Flourishing" in basketball parlance translates loosely to "playing quality basketball." Winning and losing don't correlate strongly with playing well as we can play poorly and win or play well and lose, depending on the opposition and how they play.
I asked the girls if any women were the heroes in action movies. Their first response, "no". "What about the Hunger Games?" "Oh, yeah, Katniss." They need to know that women are warriors in everyday life...both in the military and outside. Our girls need to be able to say, "I lived."