Meet Shelby Petty, a UCI Business Economics major and elite athlete with a fierce work ethic. UCI is part of a 95 university strong coalition known as the American Talent Initiative, which seeks to highlight hard-working students like Shelby who #ActivateTalent despite the hardships they face.
Shelby plays on UCI’s Women’s Soccer Team as a Division 1 student athlete; an impressive feat. During her journey to collegiate athletics she was met with constant opposition and discouragement from other people who didn’t believe in her.
“Throughout my soccer career, I’ve dealt with people that either doubted or felt threatened by my athletic abilities” she said. “My entire life, people said I wasn’t fast enough or that I wasn’t good enough or I didn’t deserve the playing time I got, but I knew I would prove them wrong.”
So, that’s exactly what she did. In the words of Thomas Edison: “Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration.” Shelby kept throwing everything she had at her dream and, as one might expect, she eventually attained it.
“Maybe I didn’t have the raw talent that other players had, but the one advantage, the greatest advantage I had over them was my work ethic and dedication” she said. “I had the drive to try to improve every time I touched the ball, and the commitment to fight for what I wanted, which was to play college soccer.”
Shelby has been chasing her aspirations relentlessly since she was a child: her dream is nearly a decade in the making. She remembers what it was like growing up and wanting desperately to reach her goal of becoming a member of a college soccer team.
“Since the time I was eight years old, I spent almost every weekend traveling for club soccer tournaments, pursuing my ultimate goal of playing college soccer” she said. “From the time I was a freshman in high school, I was sending dozens of emails to college coaches every week before my games to encourage them to see me play. After two years of relentless effort and fighting through the obstacles my high school coach had unfortunately created for me, I committed to play for UC Irvine.”
Shelby worked incredibly hard to get where she is today, and she credits all she has accomplished entirely to the unflinching work ethic she’s maintained throughout her years: “Of the thousands of talented youth soccer players who could have played at UCI, I was one of the lucky few they chose” she said. “I attribute that entirely to my relentless pursuit of my dream.”
Shelby’s story reinforces her own long held belief: “If you keep your head down and work hard, you can accomplish your goals and prove all your doubters wrong. No matter what other people say or do to put you down and try to stop you, never let it get to you, because you are capable of greatness. The adversity you’ve faced in the past is exactly that: in the past. But, it can serve as a learning opportunity that informs how you handle difficult situations in the future.”
On top of being an extraordinary student athlete, Shelby is Vice President of Anteater Ambassadors Network, an organization focused on volunteer work and professional development. She is also part of the Campuswide Honors Program (CHP) as well as Editor of the CHP’s creative works journal, Neon Anteater Renaissance. Shelby sees every day in college as an opportunity to better herself, so she is wasting no time in securing the future she wants for her life.
“UCI has many resources to help you grow as a person and a leader, it is just a matter of finding the opportunities that are the right fit for you” she said. “College is one of the best opportunities you will ever come across in your lifetime; it enables you to grow as an individual and refine your skills and abilities in many aspects of your life, whether it be through academics, leadership, or other extra-curriculars. Having the ability to chart your own course for your life, beginning with choosing a major, gives you control of your future; you get to decide where you want life to take you and a college degree is crucial to having that freedom.”
There’s a lot of potential for growth that comes along with attending a four year university, but success doesn’t come easily for anyone. While some may have natural talent and others may be constantly troubled with factors relating to their socioeconomic situations, Shelby thinks it’s possible for anyone to achieve their own measure of success as long as they’re committed.
“People from all walks of life are talented in their own ways, but talent is nothing without hard work” she said. “ If you have the work ethic to backup your gifts, then you can achieve anything you set your mind to if you seize every opportunity that comes your way and make the most of them.”
Once again, a driven UCI student has shown the world that hard work is all it takes to #ActivateTalent. Learn about the American Talent Initiative or read more student stories here.