Mia Hamm, one of the USA's greatest female soccer players, had a great quote about playing for the little kid inside where which feel in love with the game:
“Somewhere behind the athlete you've become and the hours of practice and the coaches who have pushed you is a little girl who fell in love with the game and never looked back... play for her.”
Having that mentality of playing for the fun of it, and staying in touch with that child-like playfulness, which gets you into any sport initially, can be a powerful tool. A lot of times the pressures which come along with success, the grueling practices along the way, and stressors which are involved with being an athlete can be overwhelming. If you can still feel the presence of the reason you got into the sport, for fun, that is a wonderful gift which can bring you a strong sense of joy and extend your time in whatever game you are playing, or field you operating are in.
There are some great quotes below pertaining to mixed martial arts fighters connecting with the fun aspect of the sport, which got them into MMA in the first place. There are three great ones from Rashad Evans below. Rashad is a fighter who always wanted to maintain that sense of fun and joy in his career; while's a job, he didn't want it to be a stereotypical "job" where a lot of people are not happy doing it but just drudging through it. He wants to enjoy and have fun or not do it at all.
