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I started young so let me give you some advice.
First as some have said don't wait till out of college. You have a HUGE advantage over other people starting because you are starting at an extremely young age.
You are too young to get HS games now but as soon as you graduate from HS you should be eligible to officiate these games the following season.
Right now may not be working with great officials, if you do get the oppurtunity talk to them as much as possible and suck up information like a sponge.
You are not going to see great plays at the 7/8th grade level, your judgement will improve but when you get to HS it will be different. You have very competitive teams (not always) that can play and some real athletes. You will see much harder plays to officiate. But why wait until then to seee these type of plays, you can go to Varsity games and try and watch the officials. Watch the calls they make, how they carry themselves, their mechanics, communication, their style... all of that.
Here's what you should do now in your Junior and Senior year on the court. Always work your best game possible, you never know who could be watching. Work very hard on your mechanics. If you have perfected your mechanics before you get to the HS level you wil have a HUGE advantage. You want your mechanics to look smooth, crisp and not rushed. You can easily work on this in your games and in the mirror. Show authority when you report to the table, don't be afraid to speak up. You want them to see you as someone who is incharge but someone they don't notice. These are some of the things I see newer rec officials need to work on. If you think your mechanics are good now I can go into some pretty good detail on things which make them even better that you probably haven't even though about.
And just for some things after you graduate and once you do start working HS ball. Keep your mouth shut and your ears open. Don't talk bad about people, don't get involved in that type of stuff because it will always come back to you. When someone is giving you some advice just nod your head and say thankyou. You don't have to agree with it but the second you reject them they will never try to help you again. Accept and work as many games as possible.
Again, you have a big advantage going for you starting at this age. Many people will tell you they wished they started that early. You have great potential to work higher levels, you just have to work hard. The sky's the limit.
Just don't let officiating get in the way of your family, school (grades), girlfriend, job. That kind of stuff.
Good luck out there.
[Edited by Snake~eyes on Jan 11th, 2006 at 09:46 PM]
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