This is a guest post from Moriah E., a Reynolds associate. She describes how being a college athlete supported the transition into her career.

The transition from athlete to associate is a difficult one to make. It can be hard to adjust to a desk job, and for active people, even more difficult. Although the shift in lifestyles can be challenging, I’ve learned to use my athletic background to help make the transition a little easier.

Being a collegiate athlete can have its perks, and I took as much away from that experience as possible. I learned to become a great teammate. A teammate is someone who is accountable, respectful, dependable, and possesses a positive attitude. I was a teammate for so long and it helped me become a loyal associate at Reynolds and Reynolds quickly. I am able to converse easily with others on my team and they can depend on me to complete tasks and projects.

By the end of the day I’m ready to go from working hard to playing hard; whether that’s going to the gym, participating in Reynolds’ recreation leagues, or playing sand volleyball after work. Reynolds has given me a chance to be active and I’ve met a lot of great people while doing so. On the volleyball court you have to be vocal, committed, and confident. I was able to use these traits to meet new people, and because of this, I joined a Reynolds volleyball team on my second day of work. It was intimidating to me at first, but once you join a team, it is amazing how many people you can meet in such a short time.

From my athletic experiences, I understand the amount of effort it takes to be successful, and I understand hard work equals results. My junior year of college my volleyball team made it to the Women’s Division III National Championship. We worked hard and prepared even harder for the challenge ahead of us. Unfortunately, the outcome didn’t go our way, but the experience taught me sometimes you can do everything right, and still not win. Losing is inevitable, but it’s how you respond to those losses that make you the person you are.

Winning and losing is a learning experience and there is something you can take away from every situation. I’ve used this attitude when I started working at Reynolds. Learning new things can seem frustrating in the beginning, but it is important to remain patient and keep an open mind. Having a team will help you build stronger connections with your coworkers as well as trust and respect. Even though I’m new and still have a lot to learn, if I use what I learned while being an athlete, I know I can be successful at Reynolds and Reynolds.