What I am about to write does not apply exclusively to League of Legends, but to every game, every sport, every facet of our lives. But I'll talk about League of Legends because, well, it's what this blog is for.
League of Legends is an online game (sport as of June 2013), where two teams of five compete against each other to destroy the other team's home base. I myself also play it, and am currently level 30 (max level) in the Latin America North server, as well as the Western Europe server.
When you start off in League, chances are you will not be very good. You'll die a lot. You won't get many kills, if any. And since the League community is infamous for being, well, a collection of assholes, chances are you will get yelled at. You will be called a noob, a moron, a retard. You will be told to uninstall the game, to quit gaming altogether, and in some cases, you may even be told to go die.
Oh yes, I will not deny that it will hurt. There may well be many days when you give serious thought to quitting the game. You may be reduced to tears, you may internalize every insult, every curse, to the point that you start agreeing with them. "Yes, I suck at this game". "Yes, I am terrible." "It's all my fault we lost, I should quit the game and never play again." "I'm useless. I should go die."
Stop. Just stop. You've been knocked down by the toxic jackasses that inhabit the Internet. It's terrible that it's happened, and I'd like to say I wish people weren't like that. But the truth is that in League of Legends there are simply too many assholes that think they own the world. That think that they are entitled to winning just because they know how to play the game. That think that just because they can harass someone, that they should. They think they are entitled to everything, even to harassing you, threatening you, knocking you down. I've seen it with my own eyes. I've experienced it first hand. I'm the one who's lost games by messing up once. I'm the one who didn't ward the bush and let the Marksman die. I'm the one who ran away from the team fight because I didn't want to be the one to die. I'm the guy who let himself die countless times by being a moron, by checking the bushes without being careful, by walking into a three versus one fight, etc.
Want to know who I'm not? I'm not the guy who gave up. I'm not the guy who quit a game just because he got yelled at. I'm not the guy who let the insults get in the way of his game. I'm not the guy who cried like a pussy just because his team told him to go die. I'm not the guy who uninstalled the game when everything looked bleak.
I'm going to quote one of the most inspirational videos I've ever watched, which will be linked at the bottom of this entry. Life is tough, that's a given. When you stand up, you'll get knocked back down. When you're down, you're gonna be stepped on. You fail more often than you win, and no one is handing you anything. You'll fall down, you'll stumble, you'll get pushed, you'll land square on your face. But every time that happens you get back on your feet."
Getting back on your feet. It's hard, isn't it? We're often reeling in so much pain that it seems impossible to get back up. Sometimes we look around us and we compare ourselves to everyone else. "I'm not as good as that guy." "I'm a loser compared to her." "I just can't compete."
Stop. Know what? Everyone starts at level 1. We all start with no knowledge of what we're doing, what we're supposed to do. We all make mistakes. Those people around you? What you don't see is the scars they gained getting to where they are now. You go to Youtube and watch one of the pro players play the game like it was second nature to them, but what you don't see is the hours upon hours that they invest into getting that good. You don't see the painstaking notes that they take when they study every guide available on MobaFire, or Solomid. It takes more than natural skill to be that good. It takes experience, it takes time, practice, patience, and dedication.
Some of us are born lucky, while others are lucky to be born. Yes, some of us are just not born with certain skills. Some of us just aren't meant to be lawyers, for example. Some of us just try and try, never succeeding at what we set our sights on. Sometimes, we need to learn when to fold them, to apply a Poker metaphor.
And that's okay. If you know that you don't need to be good at League, or that you don't need League in your life anymore, it's OK to quit. It's your life, your decision.
What's not OK is to quit because it's just easier than having to deal with the mean and unfair. To uninstall because you'd rather not have to deal with the toxic players. They wanted to break you, and they won. You never let them do that.
When someone tells you never to play a champ again (I've had that happen to me), you keep playing that champ until you master him/her/it. If someone tells you to uninstall the game, play again. If someone tells you to disconnect, stay in the game. If someone wants to break you, show them you are unbreakable.
Keep playing! Keep trying! Every mistake you make is another lesson in becoming a master at the game! Every loss is a blueprint for ten future wins!
But don't let them get to you. Don't let the toxic players ruin who you are, who you can be. And don't become like them. Every time you see someone make a mistake, remember how you would sometimes make the same mistake. Every time you see someone get called a name, make a call for teamwork, synergy, and peace. Stand up for the bullied, stand up to bullies.
I'm here to tell you, there is no greater sensation than to hear the echoes of those who doubted you, tried to knock you down, said you couldn't, while you're there proving them wrong. One of my happiest moments was when I was playing Janna. In my head, I kept remembering all the times I've been told never to play Janna again. Every mistake I made, I kept in mind. The end result? The pure satisfaction of being called "awesome Janna". I wished to Heaven that everyone who had ever told me never to play Janna again could see me then. And that is how you will feel too.
A winner is not someone who wins all the time. A winner is someone who goes out there and fucking tries. A winner goes out there and dedicates his/her passion and dedication to what he/she aims to do. A winner is someone who gets back up when he/she gets pushed down. A winner is someone who knows what he/she wants, and will not stop until he/she gets there! Passion! Dedication! Relentlessness! That's what winners are made of!
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