Nash’s Note: I first read Jake’s writing on one of my favorite websites, MacStories, and I’ve followed his career as he’s moved from MacStories to now public relations for Moleskine Digital Studio. I never thought he’d also be writing for my site. That’s the cool thing about the internet, and more specifically, Twitter: all of my favorite passions and interests can be curated and followed without anything extra. Along the way, you find others that share those similar interests. And sometimes, you collaborate.

The Tap-In (and how to setup your chances in life)

Anyone who’s ever played soccer can tell you the easiest kind of goal. It’s called a “tap-in,” and the sequence of events that lead to a tap-in typically go like this.

A midfielder—who, you guessed it, plays in the middle of the field—passes it to the forward, whose job it is to score goals. The forward weaves their way down the field, carrying the ball with them, thinking about ways to put the ball in the back of the net. But a lot of the time, the forward needs help—another forward, or a midfielder sprinting down the field. When the forward gets to the box, they’ll hear a shout, signifying one thing: someone else is open, and they have a chance to score. So the forward does what’s best, passing the ball across the field to the open teammate, who effortlessly places their foot behind the ball and taps it into the net. Goal.

A lot of us look at the forwards in our lives—the company we’d like to work for, the person we’d like to meet, the job we want—and let them keep dribbling. We think they don’t need us because they are doing pretty well on their own, creating possibilities of scoring by themselves. But what we don’t see is that sometimes, they take the shot and miss, or they don’t get it off at all. With someone running beside them, they may have been able to succeed in ways they couldn’t before.

I’ve learned over the course of life that it’s always important to make that run. To give the effort. You don’t always get the ball, and that can sting after putting in so much work. It’s crucial, however, to put yourself in the position to score so that you can, on occasion, take an opportunity that wasn’t there before. Without the work, you never get your chance—but when you do what you can to make things happen, you just might get your moment of glory.

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