Linda Crum (@Lg_Crum) played volleyball at University of Iowa and coached at both Iowa State and Ohio State. After a stint as Colorado State University’s Student-Athlete Learning Center Coordinator, she became Positive Coaching Alliance's Chapter Executive Director in Colorado.

When Crum was recruiting high school athletes, she sought qualities far beyond volleyball talent. In this video, she talks about the extra steps athletes can take to separate themselves from other recruits.

If two athletes were near equals in talent, she weighed their involvement and success in other activities that might reveal leadership, commitment, and work ethic in life, not just for a sport itself. Essentially, Crum noted that she recruited more well-rounded people, and not just athletes, because talent is important, but without passion, work ethic, commitment and leadership, talent can only take a team so far.

For more tips, check out these 5 Keys To Getting Recruited To Play College Sports.