At this point, Tim Tebow is well aware of how people feel about him — as we all are, really. Some people actually root for him to succeed because he is, by all accounts, a great human being with an upbeat demeanor. And some people are far more skeptical of Tebow, especially after he’s tried his luck at baseball, where he’s a minor-leaguer in the New York Mets organization.
This upcoming season, his third in professional baseball, Tebow figures to play in Triple-A for the Mets and could even be in line for a big-league call-up by the end of the 2019.
The Tebow tale still draws differing opinions in baseball circles. Some people root for him for chasing his dream, even if, at age 31, he’s not your typical baseball prospect. Other people roll their eyes at Tebowmania, thinking that he’s only getting a shot in baseball because of his name and popularity and that a player without this celebrity wouldn’t be given the same chances.
Where ever you fall on Tebow, this is worth listening to. At Mets camp over the weekend, Tebow was asked about people not liking him. His response was incredible — like right out of a book of inspirational quotes.
“You’re always going to have critics and naysayers and people that are going to tell you that you won’t, that you can’t, that you shouldn’t. Most of those people are the people that didn’t, that wouldn’t, that couldn’t.”
Here’s the text of what Tebow said:
“It’s really about keeping perspective and not letting other people define you because they sure want to. Shoot, I try to encourage young people all the time to not let the world or outside sources define you because you are always going to have critics and naysayers and people that are going to tell you that you won’t, that you can’t, that you shouldn’t. Most of those people are the people that didn’t, that wouldn’t, that couldn’t.
“Don’t be defined by the outside sources. You go after your dreams. Succeeding or failing is not making it to the bigs or it’s not necessarily fulfilling that. It’s having to not live with regret because I didn’t try. I just feel for all the young people who don’t go after something because they are so afraid of failing that you are going to live with a lot more regret than if you would’ve and you failed. I’m very passionate about that.
“I think the reason people don’t go after things is because how much you will be criticized. What if I fall flat on my face? Fear and doubt and all these things creep in. I just don’t believe that is the healthiest way to live. I don’t want to have to live with fear or doubt every day, regardless of what everybody here says about me. It doesn’t define me.
“I’m grateful that doesn’t define me. There is one thing that defines me and that’s what God says about me. Besides that, I get to go live out my dreams and help as many people along the way as possible.”
As you can assume, people are reacting to Tebow’s words here. The video had one million views by Sunday night, then two million by Monday morning and was near 2.5 million at the time of this post.
Whether Tebow ultimately becomes a successful baseball player in the big leagues remains to be seen. But there’s no arguing that his dedication and attitude are at a Major League level.
