Author: C.J. Aragon

Every year college rodeo coaches across the country search for the most talented athletes to fill their rosters with. We are all searching for the next rodeo stars.
I am right there with the rest of the coaches, recruiting at rodeos across the country. But over the past few years I am starting to believe that people who have the following ten characteristics will be successful in our sport. Talent is great, but talent alone is never enough.
Here is a list that many of you have probably read before. I give this list to my students at the beginning of each year. The most talented students are normally not the most successful, unless they have the majority of the following characteristics. Very simply put, talent alone is simply not enough to be successful.
10 Things That Require Zero Talent.
1. Being on time. Time management is a great skill that truly requires no talent. You will make time and be on time for what you truly desire.
2. Work ethic. Don’t let others out work you in the practice pen or the classroom. We are in a competitive sport and if you allow yourself to get outworked in the practice pen, expect the same results in the competition arena.
3. Effort. What does your 100% effort look like? Do you give it every day?
4. Body language. How you move and express yourself around your coaches, teammates and judges shape who you are and how you are perceived. It may not seem like a big deal but it is.
5. Energy. Everyone has energy to devote to a goal especially the first few days, and the decision of how much to give. Those who can show up every day with energy will energize others. It is contagious.
6. Attitude. If you have a great attitude others will gravitate to work with you. If you have a poor attitude people will go out of their way to avoid you.
7. Passion. Every great competitor I have ever met has had passion. It is easy to work for what you are passionate about.
8. Being coachable. Most coaches have worked with people in your situation before; their experience can be invaluable if you allow it to be. Many times contestants only see the picture in front of them, while many coaches are working with you for the big picture. To reach the results you both desire you must work to be coachable.
9. Doing extra. I see this all of the time; the students who reached their goals first were the ones who consistently worked at their craft beyond what was required.
10. Being prepared. There is great truth in the saying: Failing to prepare is preparing to fail.

Being a great student athlete is about easy choices. In fact it is amazing how many things in our life are determined by the easy decisions we make every day.
As a student every day you have so many easy choices. Every day is full of easy choices.
The decisions you make, and how easy they are to make are simply a reflection of your priorities.
It is easy to choose to go to class, if you want to be successful. It is also just as easy to choose not to go to class. You make the choice, you live with the consequences. If it is important to you to get good grades and graduate, it is an easy decision to go to class.
It is easy to make the decision to go to the gym every day. It may be even easier to make the decision not to go to the gym. You make the easy choice and you either get the benefits from going to the gym or continue along the same path. If you don’t view being in shape as a priority for your sport, it is easy to choose not to go to the gym.
Going to practice is also an easy decision for many. But it is also just as easy to skip a day of practice. You make the choice to work to get better, or you stay where you are at. Either way you made the decision long before you entered the rodeo. For those that want to be great it is an easy and simple decision. They are there every day ready to work. Excited to work hard in the practice pen to get better. They very rarely find any excuse to miss practice. Their priorities made their decision on practice an easy one every day.
All of the decisions we make are easy to make, whether they are good decisions or bad decisions they are easy to make.
The daily decisions you make are one of the single most important factors in deciding how successful you will be.
Those that can make the easy decision to miss practice are usually the same ones that will never make a career of rodeo or any sport.
Our priorities and goals make our daily choices easy. Everybody that competes at a high level made the choices and commitment to get there. And for those people the choices were easy.

One of the most important qualities of a great athlete is the ability to listen. It is a very difficult skill to learn, but one of the most important if you want to be able to improve. You need to be able to listen to your coaches, your peers, judges and many others to be successful.
Here are some problems I see with young athletes when it comes to listening.
First, listening to reply, not to learn or improve from what they are being told. The only reason they hear what you are saying is so that they can reply. When you listen simply to reply your comprehension of the message plummets, simply put you do not hear what is being said. When you are listening to reply you do not hear what is being said because you are thinking about your reply. You are thinking of the justification for your actions or you are just thinking of an excuse. Listen to hear the message.
Second, being able to remove emotion. What do I mean by that? Most of the time when you have a good performance you get plenty of praise and it is easy to listen to how good you are. Where it becomes difficult is when you don’t do well, when things don’t go your way. Most of the time you will be upset after a poor performance or practice and many times this is when your coach will be there to help you. This is the time when it is important to remove emotion. You might be upset, angry or disappointed, but you need to be able to hear the message your coach has for you in these circumstances if you don’t want to repeat the performance.
Third, listen to get the big picture. This is the tough one for many people. Many people hear only what they want to hear. Some will hear only the positive things a coach has to say and ignore the things that they need to work on the most. Some will hear only the negative things and think their coach doesn’t like them. I am pretty sure some don’t hear anything. Whatever the case may be, try to listen to get the big picture. Many times young athletes only see the actions of their last run or ride, and don’t understand why they are being coached a certain way. A good rule is to ask yourself why it was important enough for my coach to tell me that, and how will it make me better. If you don’t understand, ask. The most important part of being a good listener is to understand the message.
Everyone has different ways of relaying messages to you. How well you are able to listen and understand the message will be very important in how you develop as an athlete.

One of the most important things a coach can provided to a student athlete is honest feedback. Some of the best coaches I know are great at providing honest evaluations and feedback to their athletes.
But providing assessment of a performance, is a two way street. If you want, and need, coaching from your coach, parents or peers it is a process.
I believe the most important aspect to the feedback process is to make sure the athlete receiving the feedback responds appropriately. Most coaches and parents know what I am talking about, we see one of two reactions. The first reaction is that the student will take the coaches feedback and work to improve at the next given practice opportunity. This is the ideal result. The second is that the student gets mad at the coach. This is not the desired outcome. The student in many cases will get angry with the coach, or even blame the coach, many times ignoring the fact that there is a problem that needs to be fixed. You may not always hear what you want to hear, but for you to improve you may need to listen and take the feedback appropriately if you want to continue to improve.
It is also important to remember that giving and receiving truly honest feedback is not comfortable. For this reason it is actually difficult to find people that will give you truly honest feedback on your performance. Many people will sugarcoat their assessment, because they don’t want to hurt your feelings. Sometimes you won’t get good feedback because there is no easy way to tell you that you really didn’t do that well. Other times you cannot get good feedback because people you are asking don’t really have your interest in mind. For these reasons it is very important that you are able to find someone who is willing to be honest with you. Find someone who will have an uncomfortable conversation with you. Someone who wants to see you do better and will tell you the truth.
The final problem I see is that if you are winning you still need to be working to get better. I see it every year, students come in with a distinguished high school career, the won a lot. Unfortunately they only had high praise in high school and did not get the needed honest feedback to keep improving. When they get to a level where the competition is tough they usually struggle. They needed the honest feedback and assessment long before they ever received it. Many times this slows or completely stops their improvement as a student athlete.
Your coaches need to know as a student athlete you not only listen to their feedback with an open mind, but that you’ll take that advice to heart, as well. For you to grow as a competitor you need to seek honest feedback. I guarantee you won’t always get the best advice, but show those helping you that you value their opinion and will always do your best to use their feedback to improve, and the majority of the time you will improve.

I have been involved in rodeo for a long time. And I see a recent trend in the sport that has me concerned.
I am concerned about the way many of the current contestants conduct their business.
In recent months I have read many social media posts about contestants leaving their trash around rodeo grounds. I have witnessed it personally at the majority of the rodeos I go to as well. It is bad at many of the pro rodeos, the problem carries down to college rodeos and even carries down to high school rodeos. If you doubt it yourself, walk through a parking lot at a pro rodeo, a college rodeo or a high school rodeo.
Just recently at one of the first winter rodeos of the year, I watched many contestants throw their trash out on the parking lot when trash barrels were only feet away. Barrel racers left used syringes all over in the parking lot. Contestants broke into locked stalls. Others treated the gate, committee and sponsors poorly. A few contestants’ actions can reflect on our sport as a whole.
I have also watched as contestants call out rodeo judges on social media. I am not siding with the any call, either way, I just don’t believe that social media is your best avenue to resolve the situation.
I do find it interesting that I have never saw a post where somebody calls out a great call by a judge.
I don’t think that a social media post will benefit you in the future in any positive way. Judges are on social media, and they are talking about it. Sponsors are on social media and they are talking about it. Most importantly younger contestants see the example you are setting.
Unfortunately for them when they follow in your footsteps, their association may have rules against social media posts about rodeo officials, and they may find themselves in more trouble.
The sad part is the trend is starting from the top down. A few top contestants are setting the example and it then becomes easy for others to follow their lead. People are watching them, and doing the same things that they see their idols doing.
I am not saying that all of the top contestants are bad, in fact I will say that the majority are really good people and do a very good job of taking care of their business. The problem is the few disrespectful rodeo contestants that are giving the entire group a bad reputation. Maybe, just maybe, we can start a new trend and have the younger generation be the good example we are looking for in the future.
My hope is that as a professional rodeo athlete your performance and conduct inside the arena is just as important to you as your conduct and performance outside of the arena. It is important to realize that in your lifetime your actions outside of the arena will determine your character, and your character will be what the majority of those who know you remember you for.

The New Year brings new hope to athletes in all sports. Along with the New Year everyone likes to set goals for the year. Here are a few tips from observing those who are successful at reaching their goals and holding themselves to a higher standard.
Write your goals down and share them with those who will help you achieve them. This adds a level of accountability to your goals. If someone shares them with you, take the responsibility to be part of their journey. It is rewarding to reach your goals, it is equally rewarding to help others reach theirs.
Once you have them down you need to develop a plan of action to help you reach your goals. Daily goals, weekly goals, monthly goals, yearly goals. You should have a detailed plan to reach all of them. The more detailed the better.
The next step is to make the commitment. Each goal and person will make a different level of commitment to reaching their goals. Most of the time the success or failure of reaching your goals depends solely on your level of commitment.
Once you make a commitment, you need to stay focused. It is easy to be committed for a few days a week, stay focused on your commitment. Stay focused on your goals. Focus your priorities to achieve your goals.
Be purposeful with your actions. Make sure your actions reflect your commitment to achieving your goals. Make sure your practices are purposeful. Your actions should be purposeful over a long period of time, not one or two days a week.
Visualize what you want. Know what you want and put a time frame on it. This year’s State Champion? This year’s regional Champion? This year’s National Champion? This year’s World Champion? None of them happen by accident. The person who earns each of those titles this year will have put in the time and effort into achieving the goal.
Have a belief in what you want, no one will help you achieve your goals if you don’t have confidence and a belief that you can accomplish them. Surround yourself with those who believe in you and your goals.
And finally there is no time like the present to get started. Everyone has the same time frame each day to work towards their goals. Others are working today towards their goals, start today on your journey towards reaching yours.
Hopefully I will see you achieve your goals this year at the High School National Finals, the College National Finals, or at the Wrangler National Finals Rodeo.

For high school seniors there are plenty of opportunities to earn scholarships.

Here are a few tips that I think may help as you look to find the school that is the right fit for you:

• I just want to keep it real. Less than six percent of all student athletes are on a full ride scholarship. Not rodeo students, all student athletes, every sport, every college. Football, basketball, baseball all sports combined amount to less than six percent on true full ride scholarships. And when you really look at the full ride scholarships, they are in the big revenue sports such as football, and basketball, the sports that fill stadiums and generate revenue for the schools. Rodeo has never filled a 100,000 seat stadium six or eight times a year like an SEC football team will. Scholarships are there—full rides are scarce.

• The dollar amount of the scholarship should not be the determining factor for your choice of schools. I know students that made the choice based simply on dollars. They took a $3,000 scholarship to Rodeo Time University where tuition is $12,000 per year and turned down a scholarship of $2,000 to Rodeo Tech College where tuition is only $4,000 per year. They took $1,000 more in scholarship money but the choice really cost them thousands of dollars. Look at the big picture and make wise decisions.

• Many times the schools that make the best offers scholarship wise, have the least to offer in other areas. Check out the dorms, the academic programs you are interested in, the practice facilities, the stalls, the coaches. How many times a week you can practice. How long do you practice in the fall and spring seasons. Does the school offer tutors for you, athletic trainers. Will your classes transfer to other schools? How big is the team? Make sure you are a good fit for the school and the school is a good fit for you.

• There are a lot of other scholarships available. From having attended three different colleges and working at a couple as well, there is much more money available in academic scholarships than there are in athletic scholarships at every college you will look at. From your freshman year of high school on, your high school grades can help or hurt you when applying for scholarships when you get to college. When combined with athletic scholarships, academic scholarships can be huge, they can truly help you earn that full-ride. Many of the students that I have had that had the best scholarships were on rodeo scholarships combined with academic scholarships. You are a student athlete first, and if you truly are, there can be financial rewards.

• Apply for as many scholarships as you can. Local scholarships. High School Rodeo Scholarships. Foundation scholarships. Search for scholarships on the internet. There are thousands of scholarships available if you are willing to put in a little work. Don’t be afraid to write a few essays, or fill out some applications. I know several students who have earned over $5,000 for just a little effort in applying for scholarships.

• Know the employees in your colleges Financial Aid Office on a first name basis. If they know you are willing to apply and put forth effort to get additional scholarships they will help you out.

• By NIRA rules Letters of Intent cannot be signed until March 1st of your senior year. Start the recruiting process now contact the programs you are interested in now. Visit schools, visit coaches, do your research on the school and rodeo programs. When March 1st rolls around you should have a good idea of which school you are interested in attending. Don’t be fooled or pressured into signing your LOI before March 1st.

• Once you land a scholarship on a rodeo team make yourself an asset to the team. Get good grades, chances are you can earn an academic scholarship in the future. Score lots of points, you may earn a better rodeo scholarship. Treat college like a job, and be a great employee, chances are you may get a raise in some form of a scholarship.

Final thought—Scholarships are a privilege not a right. When you receive a scholarship it is fair that the coach/college have expectations for you to do well in the classroom and in the arena. You need to be a good student, a good athlete and a good representative for the school. If you don’t hold up your end of the deal, don’t expect the college to keep you around.

One of my favorite quotes is “Success is not a goal, it’s a byproduct.”
So what is success a byproduct of? Your daily effort at practice?
One thing that always amazes me every year is how much time some students are willing to spend in the practice pen. They spend a lot of time there, and they don’t accomplish much because of their approach to practice. Here is my advice to many students every year it’s not how much time you put into your practice that counts.
Practice with a purpose, other than spending a lot of time in the arena. Just because you spend a lot of time in the arena does not mean you are making progress or even improving.
It’s always what you put into that time in the practice pen that matters. It is how you practice that ultimately makes the difference between your success and failure, between you reaching your goals or falling short. Time is a terrible measuring stick in the practice pen. Progress and improvement are what you should strive for.

When you commit yourself to train mentally and physically the quality of your practices will improve. Make your runs matter in the practice pen. Make consequences for poor runs or poor efforts in the practice pen. Eventually you will perform like you practice. You can’t practice on cruise control and then go expect to perform at a high level.
As a high level athlete you need to be willing to directly connect what you are doing in practice pen with the ultimate performance that you’re training for in the future. When you are able to do this you will get the very most out of each practice session.
Don’t just practice. To be a top competitor you must have a practice plan and be able to prepare to get better. Don’t practice and hope to get better, Practice with the purpose and intent to get better every day.
Don’t just go through the motions.
Understand why you’re doing what you’re doing in the practice pen today and how it will help you when you have entry fees up in the future.
Success is not a goal, it’s a byproduct of your daily practice efforts. What are your practices producing?

C.J. Aragon was named the 2008-2011 Grand Canyon Region Coach-of-the-Year. 2014-2015 WJCAC Coach-of-the-Year, 2016 Southwest Region Coach-of-the-Year, and 2010 National Intercollegiate Rodeo Association Coach-of-the-Year.