11/24/2025
From Coach Jerica Williams:
I was 12 when Michael Jordan picked me to shoot a free throw at his camp.
Make it, get a free pair of unreleased Jordans. Miss it, sit down.
He picked me once and I missed.
The second time (he never picked the same kid twice), I was sitting next to his son. “Raise your hand,” he said. “He’ll pick you again.”
I didn’t believe it. But I raised my hand anyway.
MJ pointed at me and called me up.
When it was my turn to walk to the free throw line, I called him over. He put the microphone down so no one could hear and I asked: “If I make it, instead of one pair of shoes, can me and five of my friends get shoes?”
He pulled back and looked at me, shocked but maybe impressed? Then he looked around and told the crowd what I’d asked.
He said “Yes, make the shot, you and 5 friends get the shoes.”
I made the shot. The place went crazy.
The lesson:
Ask for what you want. Period.
Even if you think you’re not allowed to have it.
Even if the rules have already been set.
Even if you might hear no.
The 12-year-old me didn’t need permission to rewrite the terms.
She just needed the courage to ask.
Somewhere between that gym and adulthood, I forgot that. But I remember now.
Recently, an organization said they wanted to use my skills and relationships to elevate their program. So I sent them my consultant fee—the real number, not the discounted one.
They didn’t blink. They said yes.
And I remember thinking: That was easy. Why don’t I do this more often?
Other people see your value.
It takes you to see it for yourself.
Don’t wait as long as I did to remember.
Ask for what you want, and deserve.
What did the younger version of you know that the adult version forgot?
(Via LinkedIn)
