I think that college students assume the lives of athletes and artists are extremely different, and they are to a certain extent. However, the foundations of their crafts are quite similar.
First off, both have to practice their craft. Obviously, athletes and artists talents are in different areas of expertise, but neither is born with a perfect set of skills. In the same way that an athlete practices their sport, every time an artist creates something they are perfecting their skill set. If they can’t draw a turtle, they practice, evaluate, erase and try again. An athlete practices, plays in a game, reviews the film and then practices again. The idea of practice and or rehearsal is very much prevalent in both the lives of student-athletes as well as student- artists.
Further, their craft consumes a lot of their day. As a student-athlete, my life in a season is on a tight schedule. I have classes every day of the week, and the practice is 2+ hours long. On game days we have to start getting ready at 5 for a 7 pm game. It’s worse for away games; sometimes we have to leave campus at 3 pm for a 7 pm game. And what about homework? Every 30 minute – 1-hour break I have in my day must be used for school work. The same goes for a student artist. The amount of time that they put into a single project limits the amount of time they have for other work. Artists work endlessly to perfect a project, and it consumes a ton of their time. Each step is carefully thought out, and with work for other classes on top of it, it’s hard to balance their time efficiently without getting consumed by their art.
While, yes, the lives of student-athletes and student artists are technically very different, the foundations of what they do are very similar. Art and athletics are both prevalent forms of work here at Muhlenberg College, and each takes the same effort of time and energy to perfect. Both athletes and artists have a strong passion for their craft, and it consumes a significant portion of their day-to-day lives as college students.