Former NFL destined for juvenile court ends up becoming neurosurgeon instead

How can one come from a juvenile court to an NFL player, then a neurosurgeon?

Dr. Myron Rolle, that’s how people address him now. But before he got to where he is now, Dr. Rolle played for the Tennessee Titans and the Pittsburgh Steelers.

It’s an impressive image of success from a professional athlete to a medical doctor. And for Dr. Rolle, it’s all about that one instance in his life that turned his life around and “2%”.

Small, tangible, practical goals.

This is how Dr. Rolle described the mindset that became his way of life. The “2% Way” was introduced to him by their football coach at Florida State, Mickey Andrews.

Their coach said that they should be able to work on small, tangible, and practical goals of improvement every day. From simple things like back-peddling, tacking, or catching the ball, their coach tracked on the board whether they got 2% better. It helped keep them accountable, he shared, and it then became his ideology in life.

But this wasn’t the biggest turning point in his life.

Dr. Rolle’s family came from Nassau, Bahamas. He was the youngest of three boys and was living in southern New Jersey. As a youngster, he often got into trouble because of his temper.

“I had a huge temper, and I beat up a kid because he called me the N-word,” Rolle, 35, tells PEOPLE. “The pivot point for me was standing in that courtroom in front of that judge and having him admonish me for beating up this kid so badly that he had to get medical treatment for his injury.”

He then said that his life could’ve gone two different paths.

One, he can end up in juvenile detention and live a starkly different life, or he picks himself up and do what’s right from then on.

He then earned football scholarships to two prep schools and became one of the most sought-after recruits of his time. Then, he spent his senior year at Oxford University as a Rhodes Scholar.

Then, he was eventually drafted into the NFL to play for the Titans and the Steelers.

His journey didn’t stop at pro football. In fact, it was also another turning point in his life. Just after three years, the Steelers dropped him.

It was one of the toughest moments of his life and at that moment, he relied on the credo that held him together all his life – the 2% way.

The loss of his NFL career helped him transition to a bigger calling.

He took the MCAs, talked to neurosurgeons, and placed his faith in God. And as these 2% improvements piled up, he found himself in Harvard.

“You have small wins every single day, and then a month from now, two months from now, a year from now, you say, look how much better I’ve gotten, and look how much more I’ve improved.” He said to PEOPLE.

Dr. Rolle complied with his journey thus far in his self-help book and autobiography “The 2% Way”.

He is also running a charity foundation in the Bahamas that is aimed to serve the underrepresented communities.

Watch how little improvements helped a troubled teen become an NFL athlete and neurosurgeon.

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Source: YouTube – Great Big Story, USA Today, PEOPLE, Instagram – @myronlrolle

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