"A rejection is nothing more than a necessary step in the pursuit of success." -Bo Bennett
According to the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association), more than 480,000 students compete as NCAA athletes. The table below shows how many NCAA athletes move on to professional careers in sports like basketball, football, baseball and ice hockey. Professional opportunities are extremely limited and the likelihood of a high school or even college athlete becoming a professional athlete is very low.
I would like to share the story of my younger brother, Derek Brim Jr. and his journey from college, to professional, to an every day hard working young man. He was once a part of the 1.6% represented in the chart above representing football. Although he did not continue in the NFL, he did not let rejection define him. He used rejection to redirect his life to make a positive impact.
I am blessed to have two amazing brothers - one older and one younger. My younger brother Derek and I grew up very close. He is 17 months my junior. Like siblings, we argued and fought, but one thing we had in common was that we both loved sports. My brother's forte was football.
Boy Brim or Brim, as most people call him, always had drive, motivation, and a vision. I admired Derek's tenacity ever since we were younger. He may not know it, but I always tried to emulate my work ethic after his, especially when we grew older. I was tall at a young age whereas Derek didn't get his growth spurt until college. So that meant he had to work harder than his teammates and competition. Like most football players, Derek started playing little league football (Buffalo Vets) at a young age. He then played football at Canisius High School, became a walk on at the University at Buffalo, eventually received a scholarship and starting position for the Bulls. Upon receiving his degree in Electrical Engineering in 2013, Derek became an undrafted free agent for the Buffalo Bills. Today, Derek works full time at NRD as an Electrical Engineer and is the founder of Derek Brim University (DBU), which specializes in functional Defensive Back training amongst other things.
Recently, I had an opportunity to speak with Derek to reflect on his journey and how it made him the person who he is today.
Who is Derek Brim?
I grew up in Buffalo, NY and graduated from Canisius High School and University at Buffalo. While I was at UB, I majored in Electrical Engineering and played for the UB Bulls. I excelled on and off the field and eventually signed an NFL contract upon completing my collegiate career. However, before all of that, I am a son, a brother, and someone who is a hard worker. What do you to today?
Today I work as an electrical engineer for a local company called NRD.
Describe your journey as an student – athlete.
My journey as a student athlete was challenging. I started as a walk on for the UB Bulls while diving right into my prerequisite classes for electrical engineering. I came on as a wide receiver at the time. Looking at the depth chart, I knew that I had to change my position in order to get on the field. I approached my coach and he allowed me to start working with special teams. Approximately one year later, I was moved to free safety, and eventually received a full scholarship.
Approaching my coach was a risk, but I put my career and future in my own hands. I was not going to let anyone define it for me.
Overall, I was presented with a lot of obstacles. Every obstacle I’ve overcame as a student athlete made be better.
Describe your work ethic growing up.
Growing up my work ethic improved as I matured.
I always worked hard growing up, sometimes it seemed as if I had to work harder than others which I learned was ok.
My goal when I started playing football was to reach the highest stage and I achieved that. Even though it ended in a way I didn’t imagine, I’m grateful I was blessed to achieve a lifelong goal. Without the adversity and obstacles, I don’t believe I would have gotten there. They made me stronger and forced me to develop the correct mentality to reach my goals.
What is your greatest accomplishment as an athlete?
My greatest accomplish as an athlete is between earning my athletic scholarship and signing an NFL contract.
As an athlete what is the hardest challenge you had to over-come?
The hardest challenge I had to overcome was getting back to the highest level. Not physically hard, hard as in getting the opportunity. You have to change your mentality at every level. There are multiple people competing for the same spot. If it was merely physical, most can do it, but you have to change your mental state. How do you describe rejection?
Rejection is an obstacle. It’s someone or something that’s getting in the way of your vision. The bigger your vision is, the more obstacles will be presented to you.
How did you handle rejection and how has it shaped you to be the person you are today?
I take it personal. Not in the sense of being upset at what was said. I believe I should improve upon myself, so eventually rejections becomes a yes.
I also realize that rejection is based off of opinions which you can’t worry about controlling.
The only thing you can control is improving upon yourself. Rejection is a part of life.
Describe the vision behind DBU (Derek Brim University)?
I want to help young student athletes achieve their dreams and goals regardless if it’s in football or not. I want to teach athletes everything I’ve learned on my journey to prepare them for the future. A lot of what I’m teaching is football knowledge related to the defensive back position. There’s also an aspect of it where I try to give them the knowledge, tools, and wisdom to be successful. Athletes want to know for example, “what is college like?”, “how do I manage my work”, “what should I major in?”, etc. I often speak to them about having the correct mentality to get to where they want to go in life.
Every athlete that comes to train with me, I want to be a positive influence in their life and be a catalyst for them reaching goals.
I want every athlete that trains with me have the opportunity to go to college and receive a degree. What inspires you?
My journey inspired me. There's been plenty of times where I wanted to give up on things a long time ago. I felt like no one believed in me but a select few people. I felt like people gave up on me and I felt overlooked at times. When I felt like giving up, the inner me told me to never stop believing in myself. Ultimately, no one can care more than you can. Improving my mentality was the thing that kept me going. Also, the people along the way that do believe in you, you appreciate. I want to show kids too that someone believes in them.
Any advice you would give a recent college grad stepping foot off the field for the first time?
Life doesn’t stop after football.
Use the life lessons for success learned from football and apply it to life. Attack life with the same attitude.
If people are interested in training with you, where can they find you on social media?
Derekbrimuniversity – Instagram
Derek Brim Jr. – facebook
dbufootball@gmail.com
Comments