We had the honor of interviewing soccer elite Yael Averbuch. She’s a midfielder for FC Kansas and has even played for the US Women’s National Team. Fun fact: She holds an NCAA record for the fastest goal scored in a game when she scored four seconds into the match at Yale in 2006 on a shot taken directly after the kickoff touch.

We are so inspired by her discipline, resilience and love for the game. Watch our interview below and read on for more!

How did you know that you wanted to play professionally? Were you afraid to take this leap as a career? What other careers did you consider?

When I was 9 I wrote in my journal that I wanted to be a professional soccer player. I’m the kind of person who is extremely single-minded so my vision and goal has never wavered. It has certainly been a journey, and in a lot of ways probably not what I had thought or expected. But I’ve never wanted to do anything else.

You’ve been playing professional for many years now. How do you keep your A-game? Can you tell us about your training schedule?

Even as a professional player, there are so many ways I realize I can still improve my game. Part of what it means to be a pro is to be consistent and to be able to perform at your best day in and day out. But a large part of the process for me is to continue to chip away at refining my strengths and improving my weaknesses. My training schedule varies depending on if it is during the season or the offseason. The offseason is when I train the hardest because I don’t have to be rested for games. I usually train for 2-4 hours a day, including on the field and in the weight room.

**Tell us about your national team experience. What are your future plans? ** The national team is run as an ongoing tryout process. I have been in and out of the team for a number of years, and most recently not part Of the group that won the world cup and is preparing for the Olympics. It’s been a challenge for me to have always been kind of on the periphery of the team. I am the caliber of player who is in consideration, but has never solidified a spot. Some of it has come down to timing and decisions that are out of my control. I have been cut from the team several times and then worked to be invited back in again. It’s been a rollercoaster to say the least but has really made me focus on only giving thought and energy to those things I can control and trying to release those that I cannot. 

**What advice would you give to other women who might be afraid to follow their passion? ** I think the only way to live is with no regrets. I hate the feeling of looking back and saying “if only…” so I live every day to the best of my ability to do the things I love and do them as well as possible. I don’t think anyone has ever regretted fully chasing a dream, even if it meant multiple failures and pivots along the way. But I know a lot of people who have regretted not going for it.

We had the honor of interviewing soccer elite Yael Averbuch. She’s a midfielder for FC Kansas and has even played for the US Women’s National Team. Fun fact: She holds an NCAA record for the fastest goal scored in a game when she scored four seconds into the match at Yale in 2006 on a shot taken directly after the kickoff touch.

We are so inspired by her discipline, resilience and love for the game. Watch our interview below and read on for more!

How did you know that you wanted to play professionally? Were you afraid to take this leap as a career? What other careers did you consider?

When I was 9 I wrote in my journal that I wanted to be a professional soccer player. I’m the kind of person who is extremely single-minded so my vision and goal has never wavered. It has certainly been a journey, and in a lot of ways probably not what I had thought or expected. But I’ve never wanted to do anything else.

You’ve been playing professional for many years now. How do you keep your A-game? Can you tell us about your training schedule?

Even as a professional player, there are so many ways I realize I can still improve my game. Part of what it means to be a pro is to be consistent and to be able to perform at your best day in and day out. But a large part of the process for me is to continue to chip away at refining my strengths and improving my weaknesses. My training schedule varies depending on if it is during the season or the offseason. The offseason is when I train the hardest because I don’t have to be rested for games. I usually train for 2-4 hours a day, including on the field and in the weight room.

**Tell us about your national team experience. What are your future plans? ** The national team is run as an ongoing tryout process. I have been in and out of the team for a number of years, and most recently not part Of the group that won the world cup and is preparing for the Olympics. It’s been a challenge for me to have always been kind of on the periphery of the team. I am the caliber of player who is in consideration, but has never solidified a spot. Some of it has come down to timing and decisions that are out of my control. I have been cut from the team several times and then worked to be invited back in again. It’s been a rollercoaster to say the least but has really made me focus on only giving thought and energy to those things I can control and trying to release those that I cannot. 

**What advice would you give to other women who might be afraid to follow their passion? ** I think the only way to live is with no regrets. I hate the feeling of looking back and saying “if only…” so I live every day to the best of my ability to do the things I love and do them as well as possible. I don’t think anyone has ever regretted fully chasing a dream, even if it meant multiple failures and pivots along the way. But I know a lot of people who have regretted not going for it.