If you have paid any attention to ESPN, CNN or virtually any other news outlet over the past 10 days, you probably now are familiar with the name Jeremy Lin. If you still have not heard of him, you really should take 10 minutes of your time to become acquainted with his story. He is suddenly the NBA’s real-life version of a compilation of Rocky, Rudy, Hoosiers, The Rookie and We are Marshall wrapped into one. But his is a story that is more about persistence, hard work, humility and perhaps most important of all – believing in himself.
Despite leading Palo Alto High School to the CIF Division II state title his senior year, including an upset over nationally ranked and perennial powerhouse Mater Dei, Lin was not offered a single athletic scholarship to play in college. On his own, Lin sent a DVD of his playing highlights along with his resume to Cal, Stanford and UCLA as well as every Ivy League School. He was offered an opportunity to walk-on at the schools close to home, but would have to pay his own way – if he made it. Only Harvard and Brown guaranteed Lin a roster spot on their basketball teams, but the Ivy League does not offer athletic scholarships. He eventually ended up at Harvard, even though his new head coach was not sold on his abilities at the beginning.
Jeremy Lin made history when he became the first American born player of Taiwanese or Chinese descent to play in the NBA. There have only been a handful players of Asian heritage to play in the NBA, period – Yao Ming of course being the most famous. The first obstacle he had to overcome was the preconceived notion many probably held about his ethnicity.
In fact Lin has said that while playing at Harvard, he did hear taunts at opposing gyms related to his heritage. Instead of letting this affect him adversely, Lin used it as motivation. And it served him well. By the time he was a senior at Harvard, he was voted unanimously to the All-Ivy League First Team, had been among 30 midseason candidates for the John R. Wooden Award (given to the top player in college basketball), and a finalist among 11 for the Bob Cousy Award. Yet once again, he was overlooked and went undrafted in the 2010 NBA draft.
Making the NBA posed another challenge for Lin. Not only did he not have ethnicity on his side (as noted previously, Lin was the first American born player of Taiwanese or Chinese descent to play in the NBA), but he also did not have any advantage having played in the Ivy League; the last Ivy Leaguer to be drafted was back in 1995 (Jerome Allen of Penn), and it had been 7 years since an Ivy Leaguer had touched an NBA floor (Chris Dudley of Yale in 2003). And to compound the barriers before him – the last time a player from Harvard had played in the NBA was 1954. For those of you counting, that was a period of 56 years. Not the best odds in any aspect.
Undrafted and undeterred, Lin jumped on the one opportunity he received – a chance to play for the Golden State Warrior’s summer league team in Las Vegas (a preparatory league for drafted and undrafted rookies, as well as an opportunity for invited players playing overseas and the NBA development League to make a team). He seized the opportunity, playing well enough in league play to receive offers from the Lakers, Mavericks and Warriors. Eventually Lin signed a 2-year deal with the Warriors. If the story had ended here, the closing scene could rival that of Rudy, with Lin entering the end of a game, and a contingency of Asian Americans cheering him on in his Bay Area home. In fact he had what was described as a cult following, and some people questioned the Warriors’ signing of Lin as being a publicity stunt. His rookie year was tough, with not much playing time, and a 2.6 point average in 29 games. Lin also spent time playing in the NBA D-League to get playing time. Then the Warriors drafted a point guard in the draft, and before the start of training camp this season Lin was waived. And the story ending here is an unbelievable success; an undrafted Ivy Leaguer who defied the odds and played for an entire season in the NBA.
But it’s not over.
3 days later, Lin was claimed off waivers by the Houston Rockets. Less than 2 weeks later, he was released again. It would have been easy to throw in the towel, but he persisted. And as fate would have it, the New York Knicks, who had issues at point guard, claimed Lin off waivers only a few days later. He again assumed his role as a backup, and willingly accepted his assignment to play for Erie of the D-League. Yet again, he took full advantage and shined. Lin recorded a triple double on January 20th (28 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists). The Knicks took notice, and called him up 3 days later.
Whether it was luck or fate, the fact remains that Lin capitalized on every last opportunity that came his way this time. He truly seized the opportunity in a system that fit his style, and with the belief he could succeed. And succeed he has, even if he was crashing on his brother’s couch (a medical student at NYU). With the chance to start, and a thinned Knicks roster due injuries and a death in the family, Lin scored 20, 38, 23, 28 and 25 in 5 consecutive wins (and counting). He also averaged 8 assists and 4.2 rebounds during that span. How is it even possible that he could have essentially come out of nowhere, and perform at such a high level? Eric Jackson of Forbes lists 10 lessons from Jeremy Lin we can apply to ourselves. There are so many ways these lessons can be applied to each of us, but since I am a recruiter I want to take a slightly different approach. I am going to apply each point to the perspective of a job seeker, because there is value to be gained in each tip:
1. Believe in yourself when no one else does – despite the tough job market out there, and perhaps a barrage of rejections, you have to continue to believe in yourself and your abilities – even when it seems like nobody else does.
2. Seize the opportunity when it comes up – you never know when that ideal job is lurking around the corner. Be prepared, because opportunities arise when you least expect them.
3. Your family will always be there for you, so be there for them - I will extend this point to include your entire network (colleagues, friends, mentors, family). Don’t underemphasize the strength of a strong support group, especially during the most trying times.
4. Find the system that works for your style – you may not be having job search success because you may be looking in the wrong places. If a company’s culture or structure does not fit your style, then chances are very slim a position with them would work successfully. It’s important to do your homework, and make sure that an organization is a fit for you before spending time pursuing jobs that won’t pan out.
5. Don’t overlook talent that might exist around you today on your team – often we make assumptions without properly evaluating someone, or the entire situation. You could be overlooking someone who can get your foot in the right door today.
6. People will love you for being an original, not trying to be someone else – don’t constantly compare yourself with others. You bring your own unique talents, skills and abilities to the table. As long as they are positive, they can be a great benefit if displayed well.
7. Stay humble – one of the most important, if not the most important traits I can connect with a thread in the top executives I meet is the dose of humility they all possess. They treat the guy who takes out the garbage with the same high level of respect as any member on the Board of Directors.
8. When you make others around you look good, they will love you forever – this is one of the secrets in effective networking. It is give and take, not just take. Do not approach networking or building relationships solely from a standpoint of getting what you can from somebody else. Give back, or give first, and you will be amazed at the results.
9. Never forget about the importance of luck or fate in life – whether it’s luck, fate or something else, don’t forget to show gratitude. True thankfulness and appreciation garners more good will and “luck” your way.
10. Work your butt off – searching for a job is a process, and should be treated as such. You can’t expect to send a couple resumes off over the internet and have a job in a week. Put together a strategic plan, and be prepared to spend the time needed to execute that plan to success. Beat the pavement and you will see results.
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