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The Athletics Of Business

153 Episodes

30 minutes | Jun 22, 2022
Episode 154: The Power Of Caring
In the last 26 years, Ed Molitor has developed his leadership skills in athletics and business. From working as an NCAA Basketball coach at Texas A&M to becoming the Vice President of a national recruiting firm, Ed has taught countless athletes, coaches, and business leaders how to THINK, ACT, and EXECUTE at an elite level. As a result, Ed has a unique set of skills to deliver leaders across the country a purposeful, positive, energetic, and refreshing experience to unlock their true potential. In 2016, Ed launched his company, The Molitor Group, to reach and add value to a larger sphere of ambitious individuals and help them achieve their goals every day. Through The Molitor Group, Ed has guided all leaders to achieve success. From entrepreneurs and executives to teams and companies, The Molitor Group empowers individuals and groups to achieve at the next level. Through Leadership Performance training, coaching, and speaking, Ed’s goal is to supply people and organizations with the necessary tools to move forward from where they are now to where they want to be. What you’ll learn in this episode: Why caring is the most powerful lesson I’ve learned from my dad How the power of caring can be transformational for your life and your team member’s lives, and therefore key to your success How all the lessons learned from my dad have impacted and forged my leadership Why it is important to let your people know that you genuinely care and how to show it Why asking the right questions and listening to more than words is crucial to connecting with your team How to make impactful connections through virtual meetings How genuinely caring drives psychological safety and boosts risk taking and creativity Additional resources: Website: www.themolitorgroup.com LinkedIn: The Molitor Group Facebook: The Molitor Group Twitter: @TheMolitorGroup Instagram: @EdMolitor 
54 minutes | Jun 8, 2022
From Baseball to Bull Riding: Winning with the Right People with JJ Gottsch
After spending 25 years helping run various sports holdings under the Ryan Sanders Sports and Entertainment umbrella, JJ Gottsch made a jump to professional bull riding in February of this year. He's heading up the Austin Gamblers, one of the eight founding franchises of the new PBR (Professional Bull Riders) Team Series. JJ Gottsch played a key role in the development of both the Round Rock Express (Houston Astros Triple-A) and Corpus Christi Hooks (Astros Double-A). He ran all business operations for the Express, RS3 Turf, RS3 Strategic Hospitality, and the company’s growing entertainment division. Gottsch was president of the Hooks for the club’s first five years, where his leadership and experience helped them draw more than two million fans in their first four seasons. Previous to his position in Corpus Christi, Gottsch served as Assistant General Manager for the Express during the first six years of the organization’s existence. Gottsch helped lead the franchise to record-setting attendance numbers, establishing a new Double-A home attendance record with 660,110 fans in the club’s first year, eclipsing the old attendance mark that had stood for 20 years. The franchise would proceed to break its own attendance standard in each successive season with Gottsch on board as a steadying influence. As a former player, Gottsch’s professional career included time with the Butte Copper Kings in the Pioneer League and the Perth Baseball Club in the Western Australia Baseball League. At the collegiate level, Gottsch played for Creighton University as well as TCU, where he was a member of the Horned Frogs1994 Southwest Conference Championship and NCAA Regional team.  He transferred to TCU after spending three years at Creighton, where he was a shortstop on the 1991 Bluejay team that advanced to the College World Series. What you’ll learn in this episode: What the PBR is and their vision Why genuine trust is one of the greatest leadership hacks Why finding the best talent for the right role is crucial to win How coaching through example and experience impacts your team members What are some of the most important team bonding lessons from PBR What was the thought process for JJ’s career transition after 25 years How to navigate new opportunities that involve some risk Additional Resources: About JJ Gottsch JJ Gottsch's Twitter: @jjgottsch   JJ Gottsch's LinkedIn  JJ Gottsch's Facebook  JJ Gottsch's Instagram  About the Austin Gambler's Austin Gambler's Website: www.austingamblers.com Everything You Need to Know About the PBR Team Series Austin Gambler's Twitter: @Austin_Gamblers Austin Gambler's Facebook   Austin Gambler's Instagram
45 minutes | May 25, 2022
Episode 152: Cultivate Relationships and Harvest Revenue with Nigel Green
Nigel Green is a sought-after sales advisor. He has worked with dozens of B2B sales teams across the globe to more than double sales results.  With over 10+ years of executive experience ranging from Fortune 500 companies to early stage growth companies and certified in talent optimization, he is sought after by executives to improve sales team performance. His insights have been featured in top business publications like Forbes, Inc. Magazine, Fast Company, Entrepreneur, and Business Insider.  Nigel was recognized as a top consultant by Selling Power Magazine in 2021 and 2022. As a consultant and advisor, he can help any sales team with big sales goals experience consistent sales growth by utilizing his seven sales leadership principles.  Nigel is the author of Revenue Harvest, A Sales Leader’s Almanac for Planning The Perfect Year, and the widely-regarded authority on improving sales team performance. This phenomenal book draws on the seven principles of timeless farming  to teach sales leaders how to improve sales team performance while they make their customers and sales team feel more fulfilled before every selling season   What you’ll learn in this episode: How athletics translate into sales for Nigel What the seven harvest principles are for a successful sales team What are the 3 C’s that can help you pull more out of your team How your uniqueness and authenticity can be a game-changer How clear vision statements can keep the team aligned into achieving goals  Why transformational purpose is more meaningful than transactional purpose Why listening  to your team and genuinely caring for them is one of the most powerful drivers of success   Additional resources: Website: https://www.nigelgreen.co/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/revenueharvest/  Get Nigel’s Book at just $5.00 USD https://www.therevenueharvest.com/  Get Nigel’s Book on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Revenue-Harvest-Leaders-Almanac-Planning/dp/1734343001  Book Recommendation: Win Forever
31 minutes | May 11, 2022
Episode 151: Disposition to Dominate with Ed Molitor
In the last 26 years, Ed Molitor has developed his leadership skills in athletics and business. From working as an NCAA Basketball coach at Texas A&M to becoming the Vice President of a national recruiting firm, Ed has taught countless athletes, coaches, and business leaders how to THINK, ACT, and EXECUTE at an elite level.  As a result, Ed has a unique set of skills to deliver leaders across the country a purposeful, positive, energetic, and refreshing experience to unlock their true potential. In 2016, Ed launched his company, The Molitor Group, to reach and add value to a larger sphere of ambitious individuals and help them achieve their goals every day.  Through The Molitor Group, Ed has guided all leaders to achieve success. From entrepreneurs and executives to teams and companies, The Molitor Group empowers individuals and groups to achieve at the next level.  Through Leadership Performance training, coaching, and speaking, Ed’s goal is to supply people and organizations with the necessary tools to move forward from where they are now to where they want to be.   What you’ll learn in this episode: What the disposition to dominate is and how to tap into it  How to define what VICTORY means to YOU How to use Ed’s Spotlight Exercise to identify your performance suppressors and overcome them. What is the difference between standards and expectations Why it is so important to embrace your failures as a learning opportunity  How powerful attention management is and how to practice it every single day Additional resources: Get the Spotlight Exercise Template Website: www.themolitorgroup.com LinkedIn: The Molitor Group Facebook: The Molitor Group Twitter: @TheMolitorGroup Instagram: @EdMolitor  Get the Book Uncompromising by Steve White
47 minutes | Apr 27, 2022
Episode 150: The Power of Thinking Big with Aaron Bare
Aaron Bare’s mission in life is to create One-Million Exponential Leaders. He’s a Wall Street Journal and USA Today’s Best Selling Author of Exponential Theory: The Power of Thinking Big and the creator of the XMBA (eXponential Mindsets, Beliefs, and Attitudes Group Coaching Program), and the “XX Podcast; Two Exponentials in a Flat World.” Beyond traveling to over 90 countries and all 50 States, Aaron has facilitated innovation and strategy at over 500 companies and appeared on 20 of the top 250 podcasts. He is highlighted as 10 Leaders to Watch in 2022, listed on 50 under 50 Leaders, 40 under 40 Leaders, 35 under 35 Entrepreneurs, and one of his companies has been awarded “Most Innovative Company in the U.S.” Aaron has worked with Google, Council for Foreign Relations, Coca-Cola, Harley-Davidson, Dannon, Emerson, Comedy Central, Telemundo, Dell, and more where he built over 100 software projects focused on growth hacking leveraging the viral loop. He currently focuses on helping individuals explore ancient wisdom, repeating histories, and modern science through his XMBA program that focuses on Unlearning, Reprogramming, and creating the Growth Mindset to ultimately create an eXponential Mindsets, Beliefs, and Attitudes. Aaron has contributed to some of the most repeatable, predictable, scalable, and sustainable business models in history. His latest book, Exponential Theory: The Power of Thinking Big, provides readers with the ten keys of exponential leadership. Aaron’s book is a cornerstone of his effort to develop a new generation of leaders that is purposeful, conscious digital, and above all, exponential. What you’ll learn in this episode: How to think your way into the future What Aaron’s concept is of “Think Big” How your internal self-talk impacts your actions How the habits you build compound for or against you Why self-awareness is your best ally in reprogramming yourself Why disrupting yourself, your people and your organization out of complacency is key for growth Additional Resources: Website: https://www.aaronbare.com/  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aaronbare/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/aaronbare  Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/aaronbare/  One Million Exponential Leaders: https://exponentialtheory.com/  Book: Exponential Theory: The Power of Thinking Big Exponential Mindsets, Beliefs and Attitudes (XMBA)
46 minutes | Apr 20, 2022
Episode 149: Unwavering Commitment to Your Why with Steve White
How does a poor kid from the housing projects make it to the corporate boardroom? For Steve White, it’s the result of an uncompromising attitude and work ethic. President of Comcast’s West Division for eleven years, Steve launched his career in 1996 as Regional Vice President. A commitment to his why and the influence of mentors enabled him to demonstrate consistent growth for his teams and divisions, which led to increasing leadership responsibilities. Driven by continuous learning, radical responsibility, and unwavering commitment to excellence, Comcast’s West Division became a pacesetter by delivering industry-leading results. Steve White was responsible for all Comcast Cable operations in the Western U.S., leading nearly thirty thousand employees, serving almost eleven million customers, and driving annual revenue of nearly $18 billion. If the West Division was a stand-alone company, it would be one of the top 150 companies in America. Today, Steve serves the role of Special Counsel to the CEO of Comcast Cable, the largest division of Comcast Corporation and one of the top 20 companies in the U.S. Giving back and paying it forward are two of Steve White’s life values. He has lived in Denver for more than ten years and champions causes related to family and education, such as the Denver Scholarship Fund. He serves on the board of directors for New Leaders, which focuses on the development of public school principals. Steve recently published his masterpiece of a book, Uncompromising: How an Unwavering Commitment to Your Why Leads to an Impactful Life and a Lasting Legacy. Inspired by the lessons from every stage of life, and the people who influenced him along the way, form the basis of his overarching message: An uncompromising life is one where you stay true to what is important to you, what you believe in, and what you love. An uncompromising approach to life means you are fiercely independent, radically responsible, scrappy, and possess an undistracted mindset. It also means you have an unwavering commitment to your fight, which is defined by your core values, passion, and purpose. You uphold the courage of your convictions, stay locked in on your goals, get up when you fall and continue to forge ahead. What you’ll learn in this episode: Why finding your purpose is so important How Steve’s hardships influenced his life and business core How positive influence and reinforcement are essential to unleash potential  How setting the bar of expectations right can be a powerful driver for growth How to best support your team during leadership development Why defining success is key before developing a plan What the “7 Pathways” to success are Additional Resources: Website: https://www.stevewhitespeaks.com/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevewhiteinc/  Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SteveWhiteInc/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/SteveWhiteInc    Steve’s Podcast Appearances: https://www.stevewhitespeaks.com/appearances/  New Leaders Organization: https://www.newleaders.org/members/steve-white  Uncompromising Book:  Buy on Website  Buy on Amazon
51 minutes | Apr 13, 2022
Episode 148: People Above Everything with Scott MacGregor
Guest Bio Scott MacGregor leads one of the fastest growing and most successful recruiting agencies in the US. He’s revolutionizing how companies hire and onboard new talent.  Scott founded SomethingNew, LLC in 2015. SomethingNew isn’t pwjust another recruiting agency. They find perfect matches for their clients faster and cheaper because of their unique network and proprietary screening tools. Satisfied clients and candidates have made SomethingNew one of the fastest growing recruiting firms in the US. Scott has the trophy case to prove it: He and his team are seven-time recipients of the American Business Awards for Innovation and winner of Best of Staffing. Plus, Scott has over 20 years of experience as a top sales performer and CRO in tech.  What’s so revolutionary about Scott’s approach is that his company also teaches business leaders how to develop their own recruiting systems. SomethingNew Labs™ has saved their clients millions of dollars by helping them refine their own recruitment and retention strategies.  Scott is also the founder of Talent Champions Council. This group supports professional development, shares best practices, and serves as a trusted private community for industry insiders. Members can openly discuss talent strategy and make life-changing connections. Scott's philosophy of “people above everything” has served him, his team, and his clients well. He is a wealth of knowledge and experience for every business leader. What you’ll learn in this episode: How the value of Talent Strategy vs Recruiting can impact your business foundation Why developing life-changing relationships is key for growth and success How lessons learned in the athletics world translate in the business world How Scott has used resiliency to grow through adversity Why challenging the status quo is a driver for creativity What is the kind of talent that SomethingNew is looking for What is Scott’s definition of VICTORY Additional Resources: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/macgregorscott/ SomethingNew LLC: https://trysomethingnewnow.com/ Talent Champions Council: https://talentchampionscouncil.com/ Book Series by Scott MacGregor: Standing O! Standing O! Encore Standing O! Salute Standing O! Tribute Book Recommendations: Giftology by John Ruhlin Deliberate Discomfort by Jason Van Camp Living with a Seal by Jesse Itzler
47 minutes | Mar 30, 2022
Episode 147: Preparation + Passion + Opportunity = Growth with Andrew Cohen
Andrew is the CEO and Co-Founder of Work Better Now, a virtual assistant company that is revolutionizing the talent recruiting industry. Before launching Work Better Now, he was a business advisor for the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Program. Andrew and his partner, Rob Levin, saw a gap in the virtual assistant market in 2018. They knew that every business could have an assistant that delivers REAL value to their operation, but there was no way to connect affordable, top quality candidates with the businesses that needed them the most.  The business model was a natural fit for Andrew, and Work Better Now has hit 30% team growth in the last 6 months.  Andrew has a unique and inspiring journey. An entrepreneur at heart, he discovered early on that growing and scaling businesses was closely connected to helping others make things happen. Now, he’s at the leading edge of a new frontier in recruiting and business development. Andrew is passionate about helping clients grow their businesses while also providing never-before-available opportunities for his team at WBN. Work Better Now connects top talent to thriving businesses in ways that weren’t possible ten years ago. What you’ll learn in this episode: How having a full-time virtual assistant can add value to your business. Why getting the right talent for the right role is crucial for thriving. How to develop your small business idea into reality. How surrounding yourself with visionaries can impact your success. How to inspire and empower your team. How saying no to “ordinary” can separate you from the competition. How to meet the high demands of a growing business without compromising quality. How the mentality “a happy team is a happy client” can transform your business. Where Andrew’s passion for helping small businesses thrive comes from. How Andrew and his partner Rob became a great team that makes great things happen.  Why being vulnerable is so significant and a driver to success and growth. How to use failure, ownership, and empowerment as tools for improvement.  How to apply poker skills to make the best decisions in business. What comes next for WBN and their clients. The power of word-of-mouth marketing. Additional resources: Website: www.workbetternow.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/watch/workbetternow/ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-cohen-a4b77113/ Book Recommendation: Traction by Gino Wickman
56 minutes | Mar 16, 2022
Episode 146: Building a Solid Career Path with Joe Allen
Joe Allen comes from a background of athletics, he played a very unique position that demanded a lot of character and selflessness as an offensive alignment. At a young age, he developed a solid work ethic and a passion to build people as a leader.  Joe graduated from the University of Notre Dame and one year after, in a not-so-great job market for graduates, he started his first job at CCC Intelligent Solutions as a part of the first estimating product team, and ever since has held numerous leadership positions across CCC markets in management, product, and national account roles.  Today, he is General Manager and Senior Vice President of the Automotive Services Group (ASG) where the company is powering automotive repair facilities, suppliers, and independent appraisers through connected solutions that deliver real ROI. He is responsible for leading strategic growth of the ASG segment while aligning business goals to meet customer needs through CCC’s advanced cloud-based SaaS platform of digital and data service solutions leveraging the latest in AI, IoT, telematics, customer experience, and digital workflows. What you’ll learn in this episode: How the mentality of trying to make everybody else successful aligns the business. The power of embracing your position to move forward. What the fundamentals are of value articulation. Why a career path is more like a zig-zag than a straight line and how to look forward while being present. How to get team members to take voluntary ownership. How to pull the untapped potential from your team members. Why Joe is so committed to transforming managers into coaching leaders. What the transcendental benefits are of creating learning environments. How to increase your talent retention in times of crisis. Additional resources: CCC Intelligent Solutions: www.cccis.com St. Rita Of Cascia High School: www.stritahs.com LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/joseph-allen-5a77147/  Christmas Without Cancer: www.christmaswithoutcancer.org
54 minutes | Mar 2, 2022
Episode 145: Building Positive Student-Athlete Experiences with Will Kloefkorn
Will Kloefkorn joins Ed Molitor to discuss building a more positive student and athlete experience through connection, psychological safety, structure, skill development, communication, and challenges.  Will has been in the sales industry his entire career. He served as a sales manager with the EcSell Institute team since the company's inception. As VP of Sales, Will is responsible for leading EcSell Institute's worldwide sales growth strategies and business development initiatives. Will brings an unparalleled passion to the EcSell Institute. His belief in the effect of coaching, leadership, and management on the performance of sales teams and athletic teams has been recognized on many levels.  Will's background includes business development jobs across the board with recognized organizations such as ESPN and Enterprise and time spent with a smaller start-up organization. In addition to his business development activities, Will is a popular speaker at EcSell Institute events as he can articulate the needs and solutions our clients encounter daily. He brings a refreshing approach when presenting to sales leaders where he challenges his audiences to think about their impact on sales producers.  Since he is a student of leadership and coaching, he knows firsthand how those talents and skills can help take a producer from simply good to extraordinary. Will has created a highly informative presentation based on EcSell's "Through the Eyes of the Sales Rep" research titled What You Are Not Hearing from your Sales Producers is Losing You Sales. Crucibles That Led To EcSell Institute (3:15) EcSell Institute teams up with athletic directors and coaches to build a more positive student and athlete experience. They build around six themes: connection, psychological safety, structure, skill development, communication, and challenges.  Psychological safety is specifically important, and it isn't the same as being soft. Fun and hard work don't have to be mutually exclusive, and there are ways to make practice fun. Hard work can be achievable, and recognizing achievement is fulfilling. We make time for people we respect and care about, even when we're busy. So having that relationship with your team means they will show up for you because they know you'll show up for them. So you've established that connection. Coaches see things in us that we don't see in ourselves, and they create opportunities to earn confidence. And that's why we often see youth coaches having the most impact.  Overcoming Pushbacks (17:52) If you don't have the data and the right metrics, you risk cutting funding for things like leadership development, which will make the numbers on the ledger worse. That's when it becomes short-sighted.    When people fail to improve, they either don't have the skill or desire to be a coach. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but people like that can't be responsible for the livelihood of an entire team. They're better off as individuals. The idea of extreme ownership through self-awareness is essential.  EcSell Sports (30:45) EcSell Sports aims to ensure school athletes have the best experience possible at their respective schools or teams. They focus on the coaches and the ADs to ensure every athlete gets the support they need to thrive. When coaches improve, the environment, success, and trust all improve. Becoming self-aware is integral to the process.  We're all human beings before we're athletes, and the complex concept to grasp is that not everybody loves their sports. It's what they're good at, they like it okay, and it makes them money, but some of these athletes are playing at a very high level without passion. So knowing those environments exist, it's up to the coaches to control the climate and culture to support those players.  The Coach's Role (47:50) We care about ourselves most. If we can tap in and understand what an individual cares about, on the field and off, it will create an environment that allows them to achieve their goals on their own.  A team is a direct reflection of their coach, and if we can find a way to be a direct reflection and voice of what the team needs before you know it, you're going to have coaches in the places you need them to be. They'll be able to commit. When things get complicated, those are the moments where you earn your credibility and reputation.  Additional resources: EcSell Institute Twitter LinkedIn
18 minutes | Feb 16, 2022
Episode 144: Psychological Safety In Leadership with Ed Molitor
Ed Molitor discusses the importance of psychological safety and how cultivating a positive team climate will help you succeed as a better coach and business leader. In the last 26 years, Ed Molitor has developed his leadership skills in athletics and business. From working as an NCAA Basketball coach at Texas A&M to becoming the Vice President of a national recruiting firm, Ed has taught countless athletes, coaches, and business leaders how to THINK, ACT, and EXECUTE at an elite level. As a result, Ed has a unique set of skills to deliver leaders across the country a purposeful, positive, energetic, and refreshing experience to unlock their true potential. In 2016, Ed launched his company, The Molitor Group, to reach and add value to a larger sphere of ambitious individuals and help them achieve their goals every day. Through The Molitor Group, Ed has guided all leaders to achieve success. From entrepreneurs and executives to teams and companies, The Molitor Group empowers individuals and groups to achieve at the next level. Through Leadership Performance training, coaching, and speaking, Ed's goal is to supply people and organizations with the necessary tools to move forward from where they are now to where they want to be.   Psychological Safety (1:22) Success in business and athletics is determined by consistently performing at a high level. When they wake up, leaders and coaches operate under extremely high pressure to perform, produce, and keep everyone depending on them happy. Every day, they have to figure out a way to be the voice and face that everyone on their team needs to see and hear.  For some folks, it is a hard reality. This could be because they lack the skill set, confidence, or experience to meet the standard. When we feel that pressure, we can't project that onto our team members. As leaders, we have to find a way every day to translate the expectations and strategies into process and execution.  One of the core ways to do this is to focus on value and psychological safety. Psychological safety is being able to show and employ oneself without fear of negative consequences for one's image, status, or career. It knows the team is safe from interpersonal risk-taking, and members feel accepted and respected. They can challenge the status quo without fear, producing a team-driven toward innovation.    Building Psychological Safety (6:02) Psychological safety starts with building the right mindset and behaviors. The key is to establish a positive climate where teammates value one another's contributions, care about each others' wellbeing, and input how the team carries out the work. As a team leader, you can catalyze by empowering other leaders in your organization and fellow teammates by reinforcing the behaviors expected by the rest of the team.  As coaches, we have to remember that there are eyes on us at all times, and people who look up to us will see how we respond in certain situations, especially in conflict. They need to know they can trust us in times of adversary, and we're not going to turn our backs on our values the moment a situation turns heated. When you can create psychological safety, they know that they can trust you, even in moments of adversary, and you'll have their back.    Take Action (13:40) The best recruiters are the people you have right now. Psychological safety drives trust and trust drives everything else, including energizing your recruiting and extending your retainer. If people are happy, feel valued, and are doing work with value, they'll stay with you longer than anyone else.  Psychological safety isn't the same as being soft. We model the leadership and values of our leaders, so your team is going to work smarter, harder, and as a more cohesive unit because they feel safe. Not to mention, they're going to have a lot more fun. When you stay committed to psychological safety, even in times of adversary or growth, it becomes a way of life.   Additional resources: Email: ed@themolitorgroup.com  
27 minutes | Feb 9, 2022
Episode 143: Persistence Brings About Performance with Mike Michalowicz
Mike Michalowicz joins Ed to discuss his career as an author and entrepreneurship advocate. He shares his journey through business ownership, the hard lessons he learned, how he got into writing, and what his work offers present and younger generations. Mike is the creator of Profit First, which is used by hundreds of thousands of companies across the globe to drive profit, and Clockwork, a powerful method to make any business run on automatic. In his 2020 book, Fix This Next, Mike details the strategy businesses can use to determine what to do, in what order to ensure healthy, fast, permanent growth. His latest book, Get Different, gives readers the tools they need to stand out in any market. Today, Mike leads two new multi-million-dollar ventures he uses to test his latest business research for his books. He is a former small business columnist for The Wall Street Journal and business makeover specialist on MSNBC. Mike is a popular main stage keynote speaker and is the author of Get Different, Fix This Next, Clockwork, Profit First, Surge, The Pumpkin Plan and The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur. The Entrepreneurial Path (1:20) In today's episode of the Athletics of Business Podcast, Mike Michalowicz discusses his career as an author and entrepreneurship advocate. He started his adult life as an entrepreneur right out of college. He knew about computers and started a computer service business for something to do.  In the beginning, he was making revenue but not earning money. He didn't know what he was doing, and despite building and selling several businesses, he ended up losing everything to pay his debts and taxes. Figuring out his next move didn't come overnight. He eventually started journaling to cope, which led to his career as an author.  Mike now writes down everything he learns about entrepreneurship and publishes them to help other entrepreneurs. He attributes his success to his ability first to test his theories on his own companies. Without experimental implementation, your idea ends up circulating as a good idea but doesn't take off from there.  Persistence Brings Performance (10:02) Routine isn't a set of shackles, but when coupled with discipline, it can equal freedom. We thrive in environments with procedures that allow us to predict outcomes. When we have the freedom to do whenever we want, when we want to, we're less likely to get anything done. And even when we keep to a routine, we're able to keep enough variety in what we do to keep from feeling stuck.  The important thing is to give yourself the freedom to let whatever you're doing be bad. 50% of the time, your work will be sub-par; that's just the law of averages. It's not even going to meet your average standard. But that doesn't invalidate the other half above average or the top 1% that's top tier. The only way to get to that top percent is to keep going. Leading with Vision (19:45) A leader's vision is not the vision of the organization or team. Something might mean a lot to your ego but very little to everyone underneath you. We all have a dream; therefore, the job of a leader is to speak less and ask more. Once you understand everyone's dream, you can structure the organization to check off those boxes, which, in turn, check off your boxes.  The inspiration behind My Money Bunnies was to empower the next generation to earn their way through life and be more disciplined with money. The way to manage money is straightforward, and as we get older, how we interact with money makes it more complex. It can get so complicated at times that we end up avoiding it. He tried to tackle the subject head-on and pass on the decades of entrepreneurial knowledge to the next generation earlier in writing his book.    Additional Resources: https://gogetdifferent.com/ https://mymoneybunnies.com/ www.mikemichalowicz.com
65 minutes | Jan 26, 2022
Episode 142: Falling in Love with the Process with Paul Shirley
Guest Bio: A National Merit Scholar and engineering major at Iowa State University, Paul Shirley played for 17 professional basketball teams in a nine-year career, including stops in Spain, Greece, Russia, and three teams in the NBA.  He's the author of three nonfiction works: Can I Keep My Jersey?, Stories I Tell On Dates, and The Process is the Product. His first novel, Ball Boy, came out in February of 2021. In addition, Paul is the founder of The Process, which helps workers find structure, accountability, and community online and in person. Show Notes: Getting Started in Sports (2:20) Paul got his start in Engineering because it seemed like a practical way to show he was taking something seriously. He was raised in Kansas in a small town, and his family set up a basketball hoop outside the house, and Paul found this meditative state when out there playing. Basketball allowed him to be or act however he wanted as a free expression.  When he got to Iowa State, he realized he was behind many of his teammates. It was a great team, and his best chance of getting on the court was to be the hustler. He didn't do much shooting in his college days, which contrasts significantly with the end of his professional career. Adaptation is critical, and he attributes his success in sports to his ability to be what the team needed at the time.   Finding a Passion for Writing (13:40) Before he got into sports as a kid, he was a big reader, and it never occurred to him he could write his own stories. He started writing emails and blog posts for the Suns and found a way to communicate with people that allowed him introspection. He struggled in his post-basketball career with being himself, and it took him years to get in touch with what he values. As he ages, there's a lack of caring that comes with it that makes being himself easier.  When working on the TV adaptations of his writing, he found that there were a lot of changes made to the story, and it became increasingly hard to stick to the one he'd hoped to tell. In many ways, his instincts were correct, but he started to cave in areas because of a lack of confidence.    Embracing Change (30:00) We all fall victim to a tendency to lose steam around our self-belief. To grow and self-modify, we need to be open to new information and criticism. But if we're too receptive, it can turn into self-doubt. That war is just part of it, and it won't ever go away. But, as you continue on your path, you'll get better at it and develop more effective coping mechanisms. So, when you fail, give yourself time to wallow and then rebuild your strategy.  There are so many opportunities for failure in sports, which was a great training ground for Paul's post-career. Getting cut from teams, going to countries that didn't work out, and last-minute fall-throughs were a constant battle, but it gave Paul the chance to wallow, regroup, and prepare for the next step. The baseline systems we have in our daily lives carry us back to stasis after a big failure, so it's vital we have those systems in place. There's no one way to do it: it's finding the routine that works best for you as an individual.    Falling in Love with the Process (44:54) What we have to have is an everyday sense of satisfaction. We're all searching for a deeper meaning, but the truth is that day-to-day is all there is, and we'll never get away from it. There's no number of wins or milestones that will make us happy; if we can't figure out what we love about our day-to-day, we're in trouble. But hard work and joy don't have to be mutually exclusive.  The truth about life is that where you're going is constantly changing, what you initially set out to accomplish might not always be realistic for who you are or what you're good at, and that's okay. In his books, Paul hopes his readers achieve demystification and build the systems and routines necessary to set themselves up for success. It's not as hard as it can seem. Listen to Paul Shirley now and start falling in love with your process today!   Additional resources: Website: https://www.createyourprocess.com Books: https://www.amazon.com/Paul-Shirley LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/paul-shirley-360b1649/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/paulthenshirley
40 minutes | Jan 5, 2022
Episode 141: Selling from the Heart with Larry Levine
Guest Bio: Larry Levine is the best-selling author of "Selling from the Heart" and the Selling from the Heart Podcast co-host. With 30 years of in-the-field sales experience within the B2B technology space, he knows what it takes to be a successful sales professional. In a post-trust sales world, Larry Levine helps sales teams leverage the power of authenticity to grow revenue, grow themselves and enhance the lives of their clients.  Larry has coached sales professionals worldwide, from tenured reps to new millennials entering the salesforce. They all appreciate the practical, real, raw, relevant, relatable, and "street-savvy" nature. He is not shy when it comes to delivering his message. Larry is leading a revolution and a movement of authenticity, integrity, and substance in the sales profession and believes people would rather do business with a sales professional who sells from the heart instead of a sales rep who is an empty suit.   Show Notes: Adapting to Hardships and Finding Yourself (2:20) Larry spent almost 29 years in LA and held every imaginable position with the copier channel of sales before inevitably moving on to the corporate side of life within the copier channel. He walked into a net-new corporate account team and had to build from the ground up. For the first 90 days, he didn't sell a thing, but he slowly began tapping into his network and positioning himself as a regular human being.  He moved from #18 on an eighteen-person team to #2, billed out 1.6 million in net-new business, and then found himself career-adjusted out of a job (fired)- one of the most humbling, heartbreaking experiences Larry has experienced. So after losing his job in sales, he decided to pivot into coaching the next generation of sales leaders on how to survive and thrive in a highly competitive and often toxic environment. That's where his podcast, Selling From The Heart, grew from. Sell From The Heart (10:05) There's such a negative perception of salespeople right now, and the thing is, every sales leader or professional is in charge of the perception they're projecting. It's how congruent you are; there's no psychology to it. Larry had plenty of dysfunctional sales leaders in the years he worked in the copier channels, and he decided long ago he was going to carry himself differently.  He always sold from the heart because he would never sacrifice who he was or his integrity. That was his reputation out there in the marketplace. He attributes his values to what his mother taught him but what drove him by the dysfunction he had with his father and a need to prove himself. He also wanted to prove building relationships was worth it.    Retaining Integrity (19:50) Sales is a full-contact sport; you're going to get knocked down. You constantly need to be looking for your why, your passion, and your vision. Larry believes that like attracts like, so understanding your values is essential to attracting clients and team members that align with those values when building your business. Honesty, integrity, vulnerability, and authenticity are vital to achieving that alignment. It might be tough but walk away from deals that will require you to sacrifice your integrity to close. Not every sale will be worth it. Also, keep in mind that how you treat your people will mirror how they treat their prospects, so make sure you are presenting as the leader you want to be. Your team is a direct reflection of the head coach.    Overcoming Barriers (34:20) Barriers are the stories we tell ourselves and everything that goes on in our minds, and those things are what become our lives. To overcome it, bring heart to the mindset. In writing his book, Larry focused on discovering yourself to become a better leader. He recommends keeping a thought journal and challenging yourself. He's a huge believer that it's a success if you get one thing from a resource.  If you can't hold yourself accountable, you can't manage yourself. The more you invest in yourself, the more you'll collect from yourself.    Additional resources: Selling from the Heart book YouTube Channel Facebook Twitter Linkedin
21 minutes | Dec 22, 2021
Episode 140: The Man in the Glass with Ed Molitor
In the last 26 years, Ed Molitor has developed his leadership skills in both athletics and business. From working as an NCAA Basketball coach at Texas A&M to becoming the Vice President of a national recruiting firm, Ed has taught countless athletes, coaches, and business leaders how to THINK, ACT, and EXECUTE at an elite level. Ed has a unique set of skills to deliver leaders across the country a purposeful, positive, energetic, and refreshing experience to unlock their true potential. In 2016, Ed launched his company, The Molitor Group, in order to reach and add value to a larger sphere of ambitious individuals and help them achieve their goals every day. Through The Molitor Group, Ed has guided all types of leaders to achieve success. From entrepreneurs and executives to teams and companies, The Molitor Group specializes in empowering individuals and groups to achieve at the next level. Through Leadership Performance training, coaching, and speaking, Ed’s goal is to supply people and organizations with the necessary tools to move forward from where they are now to where they want to be.   Thinking Like A Leader (1:22) Ed recalls the quote, "Every sinner has a future, and every saint has a past." We are all flawed and have made mistakes and bad choices, but we're capable of making amazing choices, too. It's been a consistent pattern of behavior with Jacksonville ex-coach Urban Meyer that his last few stops have been about him and not about the people he leads.  Ed is no stranger to heated coaches' meetings. Still, it's unacceptable to start making personal attacks on the people who put their lives and careers on the line for you, especially when you're making bad decisions on and off the field and in and out of the office. Urban Meyer is a perfect example of how not to be a leader, and there have been visible signs and behavior.  The Man in the Glass (4:40) There's a lot we can learn from situations like Urban Meyer, and that's what we can do to be better leaders on and off the field. "The Man in the Glass," by Dale Wimbrow Jr., is a poem that often comes to mind when Ed thinks about leadership and making poor decisions.   The Man in the Glass   When you get what you want in your struggle for self, And the world makes you King for a day, Then go to the mirror and look at yourself, And see what that guy has to say.   For it isn't your Father, or Mother, or Wife, Who judgment upon you must pass. The feller whose verdict counts most in your life Is the guy staring back from the glass.   He's the feller to please, never mind all the rest, For he's with you clear up to the end, And you've passed your most dangerous, difficult test If the guy in the glass is your friend.   You may be like Jack Horner and "chisel" a plum, And think you're a wonderful guy, But the man in the glass says you're only a bum If you can't look him straight in the eye.   You can fool the whole world down the pathway of years, And get pats on the back as you pass, But your final reward will be heartaches and tears If you've cheated the guy in the glass.   We often talk about the word "victory" and what that means to us here at the Molitor Group and the answer is its value. However, the message behind Dale Wimbrow's poem cannot serve you unless you have an incredibly strong set of protective values. As you climb the ladder of success, are you looking down at the people you're leading, or are you pulling them up with you? Ed believes coaches like Urban are looking down on the people he leads. Victory is way more than the wins and losses. Our values are the criteria by which we judge ourselves and others, and our character determines it. They are standards that dictate our attitude, communicate, and build a team that's a part of something bigger than ourselves. With Urban Meyer, it was never about the team. He didn't understand the honor it was or the responsibility of the head football coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars.  Determining Personal Values (11:35) One of Ed's top recommended leadership books that reflect on athletic leadership is Legacy about the New Zealand All Blacks. There'sThere's a responsibility of putting on that black jersey and a commitment to the players who earned it. The book also focuses on having and improving self-awareness and staying grounded in honor of putting on that black jersey. The most significant present you can give the people in your life is the ability to be present, but Ed takes that a step forward and asks- how do you show up when you are present? Ensuring attitude, mindset, and character align with your values will help you make the most of every moment.  Take time to think about one of the best moments in your career, family, etc., where you displayed your leadership skills. These are the moments when you were listening to understand, setting aside judgment, or supporting someone by telling them what they needed to hear effectively. Write that down and spend some time thinking about what values of yours appeared in that moment. Next, do the reverse, write down a time when you weren't at your best, and think about what values of yours didn't show up with you.  Think about your code of conduct and what values you need to be your best version. Growth is evolution, and if we're not authentic, we can get lost along the way. Align your actions with your values and start being true to yourself and your mission.    Additional resources: Email: ed@themolitorgroup.com Legacy  
44 minutes | Dec 8, 2021
Episode 139: Developing Leaders Through Improv and Experiential Learning with Erin Diehl
Erin Diehl is a Business Improv Edutainer, Failfluencer, and Professional Zoombie. Through a series of unrelated ventures, Erin created improve it!, a unique professional development company that pushes others to laugh, learn, play, and grow. She is a graduate from Clemson University, and a former experiential marketing and recruiting professional and veteran improviser from the top improvisational training programs in Chicago, including The Second City, i.O. Theater and The Annoyance Theatre. Erin has spoken on stages nationwide for all types of events and associations including Disrupt HR, SHRM, HRMAC, and ATD. She is a member of The Chicago Innovation Awards Women's Cohort and graduate of the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Business Program.She is also the proud host of The improve it! Podcast, which you can find anywhere you listen to pods! When she's not playing pretend or facilitating, she enjoys walking on the beach with her husband, son, and eight pound toy poodle, BIGG DIEHL.   Starting Out with a Vision (1:22) Erin grew up singing, acting, dancing, and performing. She moved to Chicago where she got a few hosting gigs and decided on a whim to look into improv groups. Every time she attended a class, she could feel her walls coming down and fell in love with the improv stage. It started bleeding into everyday life; she was faster on her feet, more present in the moment, and otherwise more engaged.  She had an idea to incorporate many of the concepts behind improv into coaching life and business skills. She pitched it to a client, American Airlines, and ended up doing an employee workshop for them which they liked so much they invited her back. That's when Erin decided she wanted to make this endeavor bigger than just herself.  Now she has 22 employees under her in Chicago, New York, LA, Charlotte. She also added a 5 year growth plan to help small businesses achieve their goals. They began as in-person workshops, but due to the pandemic, her company has gone virtual with plans to return to in-person meetings. However, the virtual media allowed her to host workshops all over the world. Power Skills not Soft Skills (10:04) improve it! is a company that uses improvisation training to improve power skills, aka "soft skills." Erin doesn't like the idea of "soft skills" because those are the skills that get us through everyday life, land us jobs, and are why we succeed. Her workshops focus on learning through laughter, learning, and play to improve skills on the stage that people can take with them into the world. She coaches taking risks, thinking on your feet, business 101, and more in her workshops.  She started on this path on a whim and had no idea of the opportunities it would lead to. Erin has always been a performer; she was voted class clown and danced in college. Although Improv scared her at first, she fell in love with its transformative nature.  The Benefits of Improvisation Training (17:35) Improv is about truth. It's listening, responding in the moment, and postponing judgment, and not about going for cheap laughs or making a fool of yourself. You come out feeling more connected with the group you're with because it's impossible to stand up on stage for thirty minutes without the group having your back.  When you're on stage, you have to lean on your team and facilitate a conversation that benefits everyone, which transfers beautifully to leadership. We are in an employee's market right now, and people are looking for the place where they belong. They want to feel like they're making an impact on the world, and the work they do is essential. People want to be coached.  Virtual vs. In-Person (28:40)  It's so much easier to get people to connect in person now because they're craving those connections after the isolation of a global pandemic. Also, utilizing the chatbox on zoom reduces social anxiety for more introverted people. There's nothing quite like in-person interactions, but connecting, communicating, and working virtually is all about effective communication. So working on those skills in a virtual space helps build them faster.  What you say and what you don't say affect how other people respond, so it's essential to show up with a verbal and nonverbal tone. Listening is a crucial power skill, especially as a leader. You also don't want to negate information the person before you gave, so practicing postponing judgment helps mold you into a better listener. With improv, you can't think ahead. You have to be present. Many people stop listening in the middle of the sentence and successfully engage in improv. You have to listen all the way through without anticipating the end or interrupting to speak.  Listen now and start honing your power skills to become a better leader.    Additional resources: Hybrid Hype Free Guide - https://www.learntoimproveit.com/hybrid-hype improve it! Podcast- https://www.learntoimproveit.com/podcast Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/keepinitrealdiehl/  LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/erindiehl Website: www.learntoimproveit.com
47 minutes | Dec 1, 2021
Episode 138: Process Over Outcome with Todd Becker
Todd Becker has done everything from successful basketball coach, sales representative, and nonprofit warrior. Currently the Managing Director of Clubfoot Solutions- a nonprofit to free the world of untreated clubfoot deformity. Before that, he was in charge of Zimmers- one of the world’s leading orthopedic device services where he successfully managed sales, marketing, distribution, and warehousing. He served as a regional manager for Johnson & Johnson and coached college athletics at the College of St. Ambrose and St. Francis.    Forming a Coaching Style (5:41) Todd has had the opportunity to learn from some of the best in the business world as well as the athletics world. One of his most important lessons: organizing everything from on-the-field coaching to off-the-field details like uniforms and scheduling. Leaving St. Ambrose for St. Francis opened up a whole different world. He also learned how to set and exceed exceptional standards from his Dad. It’s not lost on Todd that his first bosses in both fields took chances on him. The medical device field was tough to break into, and Todd entered with no sales or medical background. But, looking back, one of the reasons Todd landed the position was because of the work ethic he established during his coaching career. There’s a lot involved in the medical sales industry, such as terminology and hospital protocol. That dedication to putting in the work to learn gave Todd an edge over others with more experience.    The Need for Good Coaching (16:20) Throughout his career, mentorship and consistent coaching have proved to be invaluable for Todd. Dennis Worth, whose son Jason Worth won a World Series with the Phillies. His hands-on coaching techniques were pivotal to teaching a young Todd how to engage with highly educated individuals like orthopedic surgeons. If you ask the right questions, those doctors will teach you more than you’ll ever understand. So let them engage with you and teach you their business.  From his days at J & J, he didn’t feel like he had that mentorship he wanted, which led him to Zimmer. His mentor, Paul Daniel, taught him the importance of wearing different hats in management positions and how valuable transformational relationships are. If someone is willing to help you, it’s essential to follow up and send a thank you. We can all do a better job at it, and it’s critical to forming and maintaining both personal and professional relationships.    The Ability to Have Fierce Dialogue (25:35) Frustration is part of the process, both in athletics and business. But the problem is when you express that frustration and scold them for messing up, it’s easy to forget to bring them back up—but lifting them back up after is so important. Again, becoming a parent drove this concept home for both Todd and Ed because it’s not just what you say but getting them to understand why you’re saying it.   However, if something isn’t clicking with a player or an employee, it’s tough, but you have to know when to let them go. As coaches, we naturally want to help, but Todd learned the importance of getting the right people on the bus and the wrong people off.    VICTORY and Clubfoot Solutions (35:12)  Right now, 7.5 million people are walking around with uncorrected clubfoot, and it impacts their ability to do things like function all day on their feet or even hold steady jobs. One contributing factor is that there aren’t enough corrective braces available to support them through the 4-5 years of healing after surgery.  Through his work, Todd’s mission provides support braces to children in need to help them heal and perform the day-to-day tasks they need to succeed. Clubfoot Solution has distributed over 11K Iowa Braces around the world. The best part about working with nonprofits is that Todd can serve others over himself.  Additional resources: www.clubfootsolutions.org/ www.clubfootsolutions.org/make-a-donation/ LinkedIn Facebook
17 minutes | Nov 17, 2021
Episode 137: The Power of the Coaching Leader with Ed Molitor
In the last 26 years, Ed Molitor has developed his leadership skills in both athletics and business. From working as an NCAA Basketball coach at Texas A&M to becoming the Vice President of a national recruiting firm, Ed has taught countless athletes, coaches, and business leaders how to THINK, ACT, and EXECUTE at an elite level. Ed has a unique set of skills to deliver leaders across the country a purposeful, positive, energetic, and refreshing experience to unlock their true potential. In 2016, Ed launched his company, The Molitor Group, in order to reach and add value to a larger sphere of ambitious individuals and help them achieve their goals every day. Through The Molitor Group, Ed has guided all types of leaders to achieve success. From entrepreneurs and executives to teams and companies, The Molitor Group specializes in empowering individuals and groups to achieve at the next level. Through Leadership Performance training, coaching, and speaking, Ed’s goal is to supply people and organizations with the necessary tools to move forward from where they are now to where they want to be.   The Impact of Quality Jobs (1:00) The definition of a coach is someone in a position of authority over others. They can be everything from CEOs, directors, and athletic coaches and are the primary factor of their workplace environment.  Employees want three things: they want to know that they are valued, they want to know that the work they do has meaning, and they want great coaching. 89% of bosses believe employees quit because they want more money, while only 12% report leaving for that reason. 57% leave jobs to get away from their managers.    58% of people say they trust strangers more than they trust their own boss. Only a reported 15% of the global workforce is engaged with their jobs. Engagement means they like what they do because they're developing rich missions and purposes. Not to mention, people with great jobs have different life outcomes: Grow their business and inspire teams. Solve problems instead of creating them  Volunteer for their communities. Better health, wellbeing, and quality of their personal life. Fostering Great Workplace Culture (4:45) When most CEOs and high-level leaders see that data, it leads them to ask what changes can they make to align their workplace culture with what their workforce wants to keep them engaged. The interesting part is Gallup's finding that the manager determines 70% of team engagement. Clever benefit packages, remote working possibilities, trip incentives, flexible hours, and cool gifts are great, but they don't change growth outcomes. What does is your ratio of great to lousy managers.   If you have 30 managers, and of those managers, 30% are great, 20% are lousy, and 50% are mediocre, you'd reach about the national average of employee engagement in the US. Nothing could sustainably and authentically change the value of your organization more than improving that ratio. Great managers can maximize the potential of every team member they manage and deliver the best job and life imaginable for today's workforce. People want a coach, and they want a coach able to impact their life.  The Perfect Coach (8:30) Several days ago, Ed was asked a question he had a lot of fun answering: if you could build the perfect coach in terms of a front-line leader in a business setting, what would that look like?  First, there is no such thing as a perfect coach. The best kind of coach can recognize their flaws and continue to work on them while leveraging their strengths. Second, they are passionate about their opportunity to impact their peoples' days because they understand their workforce's experience at work will affect every area of their life- family, health, livelihood, etc.  A great coach is value-based and purpose-driven. They align themselves completely with their singleness of purpose and communicate it to their workforce in their team's shared language. In doing so, they contribute to their team's overall psychological safety.  Psychological safety does not necessarily mean being a soft leader. Ed's ideal coach would have a tireless work ethic, consistent focus on building resiliency, and would play to win in every aspect of their lives. They would set high standards they hold not just their teams accountable to, but themselves as well, and have the ability to take the journey alongside their team members. They understand people, what motivates them, their performance and leadership style, and building relationships. They are fun to work for, yet know when to push their people outside their comfort zone or pull back into encouragement and support.  Everyone will know what the best coach stands for and what to expect daily: positive energy, positive attitudes, empathy, enthusiasm, directions, creativity, and resilience. Their team would understand they are in with them, not alongside them, and values commitment over interest, conviction over complacency, and winning over losing.  An ideal coach is focused on the development of others and not only interested in talent. They do everything in their power to set their team up for success, will know what success means to them, and how to define victory.    Becoming A High-Impact Coach (13:00) Ed believes a team is a direct reflection of their coach and whatever qualities their coach embodies. High-impact coaches inspire their team to achieve things they never thought possible and build a culture worth fighting for. Not only do high-impact coaches attract the top talent, develop and retain the top talent, and get them to fight for each other to win.  The first step is identifying strengths and where you have gaps in your coaching. Additionally, take the Athletics of Business Assessment to see where you fall in victory-driven leadership.  Some of the best athletic recruiters Ed had were current and former players because they could share their experiences and the differences they made in their lives. Looking back on the stories we tell from years ago, they are almost always shared moments and not about the games. Good coaching is a responsibility and an honor. But, to do it, you have to commit yourself to consistently working on your own game. If you want your people to have grit, you have to have grit. If you want them to have a positive attitude, you have to have a positive attitude. And you have to work every day to exceed your own standards.  What you'll learn in this episode: What employees want in a job and why they often leave. What the perfect coach looks like. How to foster better workplace culture. How to become a better coach. Additional resources: 7 Hidden Reasons Employees Leave DDI’s Frontline Leadership Project Harvard Business Review
37 minutes | Nov 3, 2021
Episode 136: Pour Passion Into the Process, Part 2 with Phil Wall
Phil Wall is an award-winning filmmaker who has written, produced, directed, filmed, and edited three feature documentaries, and is currently in post-production on his fourth. A coach’s son, Wall played for his dad at Roanoke Catholic High School and traces his filmmaking journey back to creating highlight videos for his team’s championship seasons. He lives in Brooklyn, NY, where he works on independent and commercial narrative content.   Inspiration for The Standard (2:45) The Standard is a feature-length documentary about a 48-hour endurance challenge hosted by special forces combat veterans. Anyone can sign up to participate, but very few finish. GoRuck, a company that makes military-grade bags, apparel, and more, created the event to mimic combat situations and test their products.  Phil had worked on some early marketing videos for the company and participated in one of their 12-hour overnight challenges. Most participants finish this overnight challenge because it's centered on team building, but it was one of the most physically rigorous activities Phil, a longtime athlete, had ever done.  GoRuck ramped up their events a few years later and created their 48-hour challenge, a condensed version of the special forces assessment and selection criteria.   Takeaways From Filming (9:55) Both the participants and the cadre hosting the event enter an agreement: participants train and show up ready to do whatever the cadre tells them to; meanwhile, the cadre's job is to urge them to quit. They target the ones falling behind and give them special attention to convince them to quit, but a switch flips as soon as they do. The attitude turns to one of encouragement for how far they made.  It becomes clear their cadre are playing a role: one that's in indirect conflict with what they actually want. It's that conflict that inspired Phil to film The Standard. Whoever is out in front is winning, and the cadre capitalizes on that to make you feel like you don't belong. But the real standard is not quitting.  You can be the weakest link or lowest common denominator, but you might be the strongest in the next iteration. So it becomes getting to that next thing by redefining your role as needed and supporting those working around you. Recognizing when you're the weakest is invaluable and talking it out with who you're working with is the key to taking that next step forward. Filming The Book Keepers (18:20) Phil's recent documentary, The Book Keepers, is filmed from Phil's perspective. It follows his dad as he travels the country to promote Phil's mom, Carol Wall's, first book after her death. She received a book contract in 2010 for her memoir, Mr. Owita's Guide to Gardening, about her experience with breast cancer and how that coincided with a friendship she developed with a Kenyan gardener.  The book was released in 2014, but her cancer had returned during the final months of editing. She died in December of 2014, just one week before her book was named in the Top 10 of the Year.  Due to her illness, Random House canceled many promotional events and interviews, and she could never properly advocate for her story. So, Phil's dad began attending events on her behalf after her death.  For Phil and his family, it was a journey of loss many others could relate to, and The Book Keepers grew out of the need to capture that power of emotion. Storytelling was a way for not just Phil to heal but his family and his audience as well. The film premiered at the Austin Film Festival in August 2020 and won both the Jury Prize and Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature. What you’ll learn in this episode: The inspiration behind Phil Wall’s feature documentary, The Standard.  What Phil took away from filming.  Background on Phil’s mom, Carol, and her memoir, Mr. Owita’s Guide to Gardening. How his dad’s journey to promote the memoir after his mother’s death inspired his film The Book Keepers.. Additional resources: Phil Wall’s website Phil Wall’s LinkedIn Phil Wall’s Twitter The Standard on Hulu The Book Keepers GoRuck
36 minutes | Oct 27, 2021
Pour Passion Into the Process, Part 1 with Phil Wall
Phil Wall is an award-winning filmmaker. He has written, produced, directed, filmed, and edited three feature documentaries, and is currently in post-production on his fourth. His documentary feature, THE STANDARD, debuted at #4 on the iTunes documentary chart in September of 2020. It's currently available on Hulu in the US, and will have its international rollout in late-2021--most notably on Discovery+ in Latin America and Brazil.  THE BOOK KEEPERS is his third documentary. It premiered with the Austin Film Festival in October 2020, where it won both the Jury Prize and the Audience Award for Best Documentary Feature. It's an official selection for 10 other US film festivals, including SCAD Savannah, Napa Valley, and Twin Cities. The film will be available for special events in early 2022, with distribution to follow.  His professional career began in 2008, when he began work on THE PASSING GAME, which is a documentary feature currently in post-production about the career and philosophies of legendary prep-school basketball coach, Fletcher Arritt. Wall played for Arritt's Fork Union post-graduate squad in 2002-2003 before heading to Williams College (MA).  At Williams, he played 4 years of varsity basketball, and was honored with the Matthew Godrick Award for Leadership in 2007. A coach's son, Wall played for his dad at Roanoke Catholic High School. The team won 3 straight Virginia Independent School state titles, as well as back-to-back Virginia State Catholic championships. Wall traces his filmmaking journey back to creating highlight videos for those championship seasons.  He lives in Brooklyn, NY, where he works on independent and commercial narrative content. What you’ll learn in this episode: How Phil discovered his passion for filmmaking when he was playing high school basketball What his Mom’s experiences as a writer did to shape his expectations as a filmmaker and what it would take to be successful Why playing basketball for his Dad in high school was so rewarding in addition to the three state championships What did his Dad tell Phil were the three most important words a coach could say What were Phil’s biggest takeaways from his work on the VCU Men’s Basketball Documentary How his legendary prep school coach, Fletcher Arritt, taught Phil that to have the biggest impact you do not need to be on the biggest stage Additional Resources: Phil Wall’s website Phil Wall’s LinkedIn Phil Wall’s Twitter Check out The Standard on Hulu The Book Keepers GoRuck
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