Christian Pulisic has always been younger, smaller, and leaner than his peers.

When Doug Harris, the president and co-founder of the PA Classics club, saw Pulisic play for the first time, he was surprised at how tiny he seemed in comparison to his teammates. Then he realized — Pulisic was playing two years above his age group.

“The kids were always a foot taller, a bit more physical than he was, but he really learned to refine his ability that way and it was remarkable to watch,” Harris said. “His special awareness – where to go, where the ball was going to fall – was just something else, and you could tell right away that he was absolutely fearless.”

Those classic Pulisic attributes of awareness, determination, and fearlessness weren’t always obvious. He cultivated them as a result of being the underdog time and time again. In each situation — whether he was smaller or the new kid who didn’t speak the language — Pulisic always stepped up.

Pulisic’s love affair with soccer began early. Growing up in Hershey, Penn., he was eight years old in third grade when he filled out an “All About Me” survey in school. What did he want to be when he grew up? “A pro soccer player?” And what did he like to do most? “Play soccer.” And what was the best thing about him? “I love soccer.”

Pulisic’s parents noticed his passion for the sport and helped him fan the flames. By age 10, Pulisic began playing club soccer, and his dad took him to Europe for club games and summer training academies.

On December 13, 2013, he lined up against Brazil at the ‘Under-17 national team’ tournament in Florida, and he scored in a 4-1 win. “That was the match when I really felt like I could play at the highest level, that I could do this,” he writes in his memoir.

The date 12/13/2013 is now tattooed on his arm because it was “a massive day that changed my life.” It affirmed that his appetite for excellence paid off. He now believed he could not only make the national team, but that he could be the best player on the team.

When he was 15, his family made the difficult decision to move to Germany before Pulisic’s 16th birthday in order to give him the chance to play for the professional German club, Dortmund. “There were dark days,” he says about juggling school, learning the language, and attempting to fit into a new culture.

From there, Pulisic has been on an upward trajectory. He continued performing and obsessing over being better and better. In 2019, he transferred from Dortmund to Chelsea FC for $73 million, making him the most expensive player. He was only 20 years old. At 21, he became the youngest Chelsea player to score a hat-trick.

Despite his successes, he still obsessed about making his ultimate dream come true: To represent the United States at the World Cup. After the U.S. men’s national team failed to qualify for the 2018 World Cup, he said, “It hurt more than I can really put into words.”

And then in 2022, Pulisic, as the team’s youngest-ever captain, led the team to score against Panama in World Cup qualifications by scoring a hat trick. He also scored the goal against Iran that would propel them to Round 16 in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. (The goal also landed him in the hospital with an abdominal injury.)

“A lifelong dream made reality representing my country in a World Cup,” he wrote on Instagram. “We’ll be back.”

Here’s what we can learn from Pulisic around fulfilling your goals, pursuing excellence, and using insecurity as fuel.

— With assistance from writer Simran Bhatia