Something that no one ever talks about in depth in our profession is the absolute pain of moving. Sure, we all say, “If you get into coaching be prepared for the moving,” but we never give any tools to help people prepare themselves. I know that my experience personally—and I’m sure many others can attest to this—is that the more you move, the easier it becomes. It's easier in the sense of getting set up in your new location, but the catch-22 of this is that when you move to a better situation, you acquire more and more stuff. Also as the years go by, you hopefully will acquire a wife and children.
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So though planting new roots becomes easier, uprooting the old ones becomes more difficult. Here are some tips that I’ve learned and have become part of my moving process.
Step 1: Groundwork
The more groundwork you do on the front end the easier the process will be for you on the back end. This is why I try to do as much as I can prior to even my first interview. This includes things such as looking for housing close to the school, making sure to ask if your moving expenses will be covered, and before all else (and I can’t stress this enough) make sure your wife is okay with the move. If she’s not, figure out how to sell her if this is a must-do move. We all know our wives, and the happier they are the happier we will be. In my experience, for the most part, they’re going to do the packing, so getting them to buy in is key to making sure your Xbox One doesn't get “lost” in the move.
Step 2: Finding Housing
In my normal process, once we (and I’ll say "we" now because my fiancée is fully a part of the process) have found a few places, my fiancée sets up meetings for me to see the houses or apartments. The way she sets things up is to enable me to either move in right away or within a week of my arrival. We always tell rental companies, “We need to move in as soon as possible and sign a lease as soon as possible.” Once that’s done we start the next step.
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Step 3: Calculating Moving Expenses
This step happens once we get the job. We start figuring out moving expenses. Like I said, all the groundwork is done beforehand which means that anything that is already done at this point is very easy to cancel in case we don’t get the job. And if we do get the job then it’s already stuff checked off the list. So, once we get the job we figure out when she’s going to be able to come, what it’s going to cost to move, and what moving company we’re going to go with. The thing that has made this easier is having a “moving card.” This card sits in the safe and we only use it for moving. Once we move, if we have to pay on the front end then we use the card and pay it off when the move is reimbursed. Now, if you have to pay for your own move that’s still fine because this gives you time to pay off the card without having a month of stress about not having money for rent and other bills you may have accumulated. Of course, just having a savings would be great, but how many of us young guys have two to three grand just saved up?
Step 4: Packing
Once moving expenses are covered we start packing like crazy. We get rid of anything we don’t absolutely need and organize what we do. Usually, old gear goes to graduated players and then family. Anything else we either take to Plato’s Closet or donate. I believe it’s usually a 30/70 split. Guys, you want to help your significant other out as much as possible with packing. You can pay for boxes to be delivered to you or you can try to finagle boxes however you can, but boxes are going to be your lifeblood!
Step 5: The Move
This is easy. In most cases, you’ll arrive first and get everything set up while your significant other stays behind. Between all your human resources stuff and getting accustomed to work, make sure you’re taking care of business at home. Getting the new place is priority number one. Also, make sure you get a few things to survive for the next week or two. I buy paper plates, plastic silverware, and all that good college senior supply stuff. Make sure you fill your fridge so that when your significant other arrives there is food in there. They don’t want to travel all that way and then come home and grocery shop. If you’re moving into a bigger place, take the time to set up some things you know you’re going to need. I bought enough stuff for our second bedroom and our second bathroom. Guys, of course, make sure you check with your woman first before you start buying house décor because, as we both know, you’re no Martha Stewart.
Step 6: Enjoy
This is the best part when your significant other is finally with you (or if you're single, you finally have your place set up how you want it). Now it's time to kick your feet up and relax for a night — then back to work, bud!
It goes without saying that moving is the worst part of our jobs. We’re not just leaving behind a place; we’re leaving behind something we’ve developed and grown emotionally attached to. The strain may not be felt too heavy on us, but it definitely will be felt on whoever is making the move with us. This is a very stressful time for our significant others. They leave behind friends they made, they’re by themselves getting everything set up, and they’re missing us. Make sure you are constantly talking to and encouraging your significant other. I know sometimes it gets hard trying to balance a bunch of things at once, but remember to take time to at least send text messages in these stressful times. And guys, whether or not your woman admits it, she is stressed to the max during this time. Let her know how much you appreciate her and all that she does!
To everyone out there going through the winter moves, may they all be smooth transitions. Good luck at your new destinations!
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