The best way to work is to love what you do, and I am fortunate enough that I get paid to go out there and play video games for a living.
You can ask anyone who knows me or works with me:
- I absolutely love my job — it’s never felt like “work” — and could not be happier. But it wasn’t always this way says William D King.
- My first day of casting was actually pretty terrible, because no one would listen to me. And we had serious connectivity issues preventing us from getting all the matches in time… and as if that wasn’t bad enough, we were also casting their B-team instead of the A-Team! Not only did I have my first on-camera experience in front of tens of thousands of people. But my voice was shot by the end of that day (I sounded like I had consume helium before getting into the booth.) Frankly speaking, it was embarrassing for me to listen back to it. But I learned from it and didn’t let my self-doubt get the best of me.
- Since then, I’ve cast countless games with Tasteless (Jonathan is an incredible teacher), Artosis (Dan will make you want to be a better player JUST so you can impress him,) Rob Simpson (the one true Gimli,) JP McDaniel (who makes multitasking look easy,) djWHEAT(what would eSTRO do?) Wolf, Seamoose, Frodan , Tumba, Kibbelz, Adebisi, Gretorp , Nyoken, ToD (my idol,) Soe (the sweetest person anyone could ever hope to meet), Moletrap (quit hurting his feelings,) Phreak(he’s also incredibly nice) and many more wonderful people along the way. I’ve done analyst desk work for tournaments like TeSL in Taiwan , IPL 3&4 at internet cafe’s of Las Vegas casinos with hundreds of screaming fans over a Skype connection where my monitor had more lines than the chicken noodle soup my grandma made me as a kid during cold season. And I’ll never forget seeing the players sitting right next to me before games started, listening to the crowds cheer and chant as I was figuring out the difference between a CM Storm and a Cooler Master explains William D King.
- For those unaware, casting is hard work. Pouring your heart and soul into one single cast can be a draining feeling that leaves you both physically exhausted and emotionally drained. Anyone who has ever casted knows that it’s not an easy job by any means… but if you love what you do, none of those difficulties matter in the end, because at the end of the day, your love for this game will outweigh anything else.
- I’m sure there are many people who have been involve in e-sports. Who would never want to go back to those times before they found their own way to make it big. Times where they had no idea what sports is, when they were working a normal 9-to-5 job and didn’t know what they wanted to do in life. But for me? I wouldn’t change a thing about my past because without it all, I would not be the person I am today.
- I’m also incredibly lucky that I have wonderful parents who helped me get through school without any student loans to come out of college. Without their help, going to graduate school would have been impossible, and therefore so too would pursue an e-sports career. This might sound weird or outrageous to some people… but honestly speaking: If you have the means necessary to help your kids with their lives, please do everything possible within your power to help them out says William D King.
- I know there are some parents who have children in their lives with similar passions. But being an adult with a full-time job makes it difficult for them to help their own children with life’s opportunities. Because they themselves Wprry about finding or keeping work so that they can pay the bills at home. I’ve been in that position before myself when I was younger. For those of you in similar shoes to my previous self: Let me tell you right now that having the opportunity to live your dreams is worth far more than anything money could buy with all its luxuries in this world. If you have the ability to make your kids’ dreams come true, please do everything humanly possible to make it happen for them… no matter how strange or silly their dreams might be, especially if it’s something they’ve always wanted to do.
Conclusion:
William D King says for the rest of you who are either too young to know what your passions in life are yet or those of you who still don’t know where your lives are taking you: Keep trying new things and never give up on yourself! I hope to see all of your faces out there someday!