Carson Pickett & Pepper Persley | The 2022 MAKERS Conference

Carson Pickett & Pepper Persley at the 2022 MAKERS Conference.

Video Transcript

- Please welcome Pepper Persley.

[MUSIC PLAYING]

PEPPER PERSLEY: Hi, everyone. I'm so excited to be here at this amazing conference with so many amazing women. And even more exciting than that is I get to interview someone who is so incredible and inspiring. All right, everyone. Give it up for Carson Pickett. All right. Let's dive right in. So I want to start with--

[LAUGHTER]

CARSON PICKETT: I love it.

PEPPER PERSLEY: All right.

CARSON PICKETT: Efficiency.

PEPPER PERSLEY: So let's start with you. Tell us about your start in sports and your first soccer memory.

CARSON PICKETT: Yeah, so I was born into a very athletic family. My mom played basketball in college. And my dad played soccer in college. And so I think it was a little bit of a battle early on of which sport I was going to play. But let's be honest. There's not many basketball players with one hand. So I think that that might have swayed my decision a little bit. But I also think it was just a bonding moment when I realized that I was going to be able to experience soccer in life with my dad.

He's one of my best friends. I think my mom and him are my best friends. And so I knew that if I chose soccer, it was going to be a lot of years of really good times with him and allowing him to coach me, and on and off the field.

PEPPER PERSLEY: That's really cool, being able to build a connection with your dad, one of the reasons why you started to play sports. I love that. All right. So on June 28, I'm sure you remember that date, you made the US national team. How and when did you find out? And what was your immediate reaction?

CARSON PICKETT: So just to be brutally honest, I was actually at the grocery store, naturally getting food. Because that's what athletes like to do. We like to eat. And so I got a text from Vlatko, our national team head coach. And I'm 28-- I was 28 at the time. And I had never been called into a full sized national team. So I kind of thought that dream had passed. And I didn't think there was much of a chance anymore.

And so I was in the grocery store and I got a text from him and say, do you have a minute to talk? I'd love to chat with you. And I didn't know why he was texting me. I figured he wasn't going to call me to tell me I wasn't going to get called in because that's what happened many years. And so I was like, yes. Absolutely, got my groceries, made sure I checked out first because I had to get my food. And yeah, I called him right away. And he's like, we're so excited to tell you that you have been invited to the national team camp. And you will play in Colorado and Utah against a couple of teams.

And there are going to be big crowds. And you've waited a long time for this. So we're really excited to bring you in.

PEPPER PERSLEY: Yeah. I can't imagine with that kind of dream come true, that kind of moment, would be like.

CARSON PICKETT: It was incredible. And I think waiting so long, being 28, it just-- yeah, I didn't think it was going to happen. And then all of a sudden, it appeared in my lap. So I continued to work hard, and no matter what. And I realized that I started to play soccer because I loved it, not for any certain opportunities that were going to fulfill me for a certain amount of time. I just wanted to enjoy soccer, and enjoy my teammates, and enjoy the game.

PEPPER PERSLEY: Yeah, started with that love of the sport.

CARSON PICKETT: Yes. Absolutely.

PEPPER PERSLEY: All right, so I'm wearing a shirt that says put women's sports on TV.

- Whoo.

PEPPER PERSLEY: Yes. Which is a message that I'm sure all of us here can agree with. And I want to ask you, Carson, how important is visibility to grow equity in women's sports?

CARSON PICKETT: Yeah, I think visibility is the most important thing. I like to compare it to if something in the news happens and you just don't put it on the news, no one is going to find out. And no one is going to be able to learn from that. So for me, is it's just having the opportunity to grow the game. We could be the best players. We could be the best athletes. And if we don't have the ability or opportunity for other people to see how great we are, it's just never going to go the game.

And I think having conversations about it and continuing to be, in my opinion, the best team in the world, as far as the national team goes. So I think it's the most important thing. And I think that we need to continue to build women's soccer in America especially. And I think we're getting there. So I do appreciate all the behind the scenes work that everyone has done. But I think that we have so much more to accomplish.

PEPPER PERSLEY: All right. And bouncing off of that, everyone in the audience, I want to see a show of hands if you've gone to a women's sports game.

CARSON PICKETT: OK. Nice.

PEPPER PERSLEY: All right. That's a lot of hands, but not everyone's. And it's super-- yeah. And it's super important to show out and show up for girls and women who are living their dreams playing sports. It's so important. All right. So in that sizzle reel, we saw a video when you had an incredible impact on a little boy with a limb difference just like you. So I wanted you to talk about role models. Who are your role models?

CARSON PICKETT: Yeah, so I think a lot of times, when people talk about role models, they think about the people that are in their area, so-- of life. In their businesses, maybe family. And for me, like we just talked about, there hasn't been women's sports much in the news and on TV. So growing up, I didn't have many people to look up to. And I definitely didn't have anyone to look up to that had a limb difference.

And so social media wasn't really around. And so I think that I found out very quickly that my role models were my parents, my mom and my dad. I think that they are-- I know that they're the reason why I've had so much success today. They've pushed me, they've cried with me, they've probably cried behind closed doors. I can imagine it was quite difficult having them-- having a child that had one arm. And sometimes, they're not able to help me because they don't have one arm.

And so I realized as I got older being an only child as well that they were my best friends and they were my role models for sure. And seeing them in positions today, my dad is an incredible soccer coach, and my mom is a badass. She was at a six day school, as-- in charge, and now she's leading the county office, and things like that. So I think that seeing them in roles that are challenging them every single day allows me to challenge myself and see that it doesn't matter what role you're in, that if you got to get stuff done, you got to get stuff done. And that's what they do.

PEPPER PERSLEY: Yeah, and everyone can make an impact, right?

CARSON PICKETT: Yeah, absolutely.

PEPPER PERSLEY: Yeah. All right. So I know that for you, language is very important when it comes to awareness. So help us understand the difference between having a disability and a limb difference.

CARSON PICKETT: Yeah, so this one is close to my heart obviously. I think that as a society, we might change some words into thinking things that maybe they're not actually what they mean. And so I think disability, I think that we have sometimes made it a negative word, and add a negative connotation to it. And I don't think that it's actually true. So I know disability means maybe something that hinders you, and you don't have the strength and things like that to do what you want to do.

But so in that sense, I think that that's why I don't love that word. But when I was thinking about it more, I realized that there's always a way to do something. Whether someone can get out of bed on their own, or they need equipment, they can still do it. And they're no different than anyone else that's fighting a battle every single day. Maybe we don't always see that battle, and maybe we don't always see that someone is missing a leg or an arm. Maybe it's internal, mental, anything like that.

So before, I would say I don't want to be known as someone with a disability. But to be honest, maybe I do. Because the people who have quote unquote, "disabilities", if we continue to show that we can do anything we want to do, then maybe that will change the word. So I think that that;s important.

PEPPER PERSLEY: All right, that was a very powerful message. So I'm glad that got a round of applause. All right, so I know for a long time, you held back, but recently you decided to show your arm on Instagram. So what led you to make that decision? And how does it feel now looking back on it?

CARSON PICKETT: Yeah, so social media, as we all know, especially as women, it can be powerful or it could be terrible. And I think that when my picture went viral, when I was giving an arm tap to the little boy Joseph, I made the mistake of looking at comments on there. And they were pretty mean. There's-- I mean, there's some amazing comments. It makes me emotional. But there were some really mean comments.

And I realized-- it was last year. No, it was this year. I was in my apartment in North Carolina. I live with a teammate. And all of a sudden, something just came to me. I'm like, how am I going to be someone who tells people, well, don't worry about that you look different than everyone else? Show it. But I'm not going to show it on social media. I can show it on the soccer field, but I'm less vulnerable on the soccer field because I have a team around me. I can't really hear the fans.

But you're really vulnerable when you put a picture up on Instagram and people comment things that aren't nice. And I think people hide behind screens and things like that. So for the longest time, I just didn't-- I didn't even want to show my arm on Instagram. And this was this year. So being 28 years old, not once besides if it was a soccer picture did I want to show my arm, and nice clothes, and nice events, and things like that. Because I only accepted my arm it felt like while I was on the soccer field, and not in "real life" quote unquote.

And so that-- something just came to me. And I'm like I would be a hypocrite to tell people to put your arm out there and show that you're different than everyone. But I'm not going to do it myself. That's absurd. So I walked into my roommate's room and I was like, can you come take a picture of me with my arm out? And I want to put it on my Instagram.

And I want to show the world that it really doesn't matter what you look like. That's one thing. That's a battle sometimes you have to fight on your own. But the second battle is not worrying about what other people think about you or say about you. And so that was really important for me.

- Whoo.

CARSON PICKETT: Thank you.

PEPPER PERSLEY: All right. So bouncing off of that a little bit, what advice do you have for overcoming any challenge?

CARSON PICKETT: I think this is a little bit difficult for me sometimes because a little background story, I was asked to go to-- in Orlando when I played there, we went to the Children's Hospital a lot. And we visited the kids with cancer. And this was something I loved doing. I loved making their day. They smiled so big when we walked in. And I remember someone in charge coming up to me and saying, maybe you can give them advice, or how they can be positive in this time.

And I'm like, I'm not going to tell someone who has it way harder than me right now how to be positive. Really, they should be telling me how to be positive because what I'm going through is nothing compared to what they're going through. And it kind of hit home for me because I'm like, I actually don't have it that bad. Yes, I'm missing half my arm. But I'm able to play soccer. I'm able to do something I love. I'm able to live life.

And so that was really important for me just to kind of realize that everyone's journey is different. And I think sometimes in society, we think of adversity as, again, a negative challenge. And I think that you grow the most when you are in that adversity. Sometimes, you're going to fail. Sometimes, you're going to succeed. But not to be cliche, but you just got to keep going. Because honestly, no one is going to do it for you. And by the end of it, when you succeed, you're going to feel pretty dang good about yourself.

So just keep going. And just allow yourself to fail. And as I get older, I feel like I am a perfectionist. But as I get older, I have a little more grace for myself. And I think that we all can learn from that and have grace for ourselves.

PEPPER PERSLEY: Yeah, self-love. It's really important.

CARSON PICKETT: That's right.

PEPPER PERSLEY: All right. So the last question I want to ask you is about Title IX, which I'm sure is important to everyone in this room.

[APPLAUSE]

Yes. And this year is the 50th anniversary of Title IX. So I want to know what it means to you.

CARSON PICKETT: Title IX has changed the game, no pun intended. I mean, it has absolutely changed so much for me personally, but so much for girls and women in sports. 50 years ago, people like me weren't able to do what they love. They weren't able to express themselves through sports. And I think that it's so exciting. I know that there's so much we have to look forward to. But 50 years of this has just given me the opportunity to do something I love that people before me didn't get to.

So just thanking all those people along the way, I think it's really important to acknowledge everyone who comes before you no matter what profession you're in because someone has paved the way for you. And you should be doing the same for the younger girls. So it's extremely important. It's amazing. And I'm just I'm so blessed that Title IX passed and that we are here today. Because I'm getting paid to do something I love. And that's exciting.

So since we're talking about making the future, and I'm a little bit older than you, not by much, but what message do you want to share about making the future, and women? And what do you want to leave this audience with?

PEPPER PERSLEY: As I'm sit-- thank you for the question. And as I'm sitting here in a room full of so many powerful women who have changed the world already, I'm just inspired. And the message I want to leave you all with is just not to forget about the next generation. We are making change and paving the way in our own right at this point.

And it just reminds me of one of my favorite quotes that empowered women empower girls. So that's what I want to leave you all with.

CARSON PICKETT: Love that. That was incredible. I love it.

PEPPER PERSLEY: All right. Well, thank you all so much for listening. And thank you, Carson, for sharing your amazing story. Truly inspiring.

CARSON PICKETT: Thank you so much. And thanks for coming, you guys.

- Whoo-hoo.