The Business Of Being An Athlete

Whether you're just starting out, or you've already won accolades and you don't quite know how to take it to the next level, Gold Medal Olympian Kerri Pottharst draws from more than 25 years' experience and reveals how the right attitude, the right tools, and the right approach took her from being a part-time athlete to becoming a multi-award winning champion, a hot property for sponsorship and a successful entrepreneur.

Just like life in the real world, it pays to have connections. Knowing the right people can help launch careers that may not have gotten off the ground otherwise. Those connections don't just bring opportunities but a wealth of knowledge as well. This experience can be especially helpful when you are entering the foreign world of professional sports for the first time. Having that extra knowledge from either first-hand experience or learning from a family member or friend is invaluable and can provide a significant advantage for those who possess it. And when it comes to an industry where fractions of a second can be the difference between success and failure, you can certainly use any edge you can get. In this book, I aim to help fill in the informational gap that first-time athletes and parents of athletes face when entering the sports world for the first time. For those people that do not have the personal experience or connections needed when trying to navigate through the countless challenges that come with being an aspiring professional athlete. However, this book brings to light some of the most important and unspoken issues within the sports world and is something that even the most seasoned athlete can benefit from reading. Even if it's only a few things that you can take away from the book. Those few things may save you from years of heartache and pain. Or more importantly those few things may be that fraction of an edge that you need to help you become a successful athlete. I will provide helpful tips and tricks that either myself or other professional athletes have learned through first-hand experience to help give the aspiring athlete the best chance of success. Tips that can help athletes gain the advantage in the business side of sports or avoid those oh so common pitfalls that so many trip up on during their careers. My primary focus for writing this book is to provide insight into the sports world that lies just outside of the game itself. It is impossible to provide advice that applies to every sport when it comes to in game situations, and that is not what I am trying to accomplish here. However, the life that athletes experience outside of the game is incredibly similar no matter what sport they are involved in. And even though athletes will have to face many of the same challenges, this still remains to be the one area severely lacking in resources. Knowing how to manage the situations, and people that are entirely unique to the sports world is essential for your success as an athlete, and that is why I am giving you an inside look into the sports world. I will help shed light on situations that involve contracts, agents, coaches, girls, injuries, business, and anything else that hasn't gotten the proper attention it deserves. Because if you want to be successful in your athletic journey then its time to start preparing for the life that lies just beyond the game itself. The examples and information that I have provided are from looking at the sports world with a critical eye. My professional career was without a doubt one of the best times of my life, and I wouldn't trade it for the world. However, if I would have had some simple knowledge of the world that lies just beyond the game, then I may have been able to save myself from some big headaches along the way. My intention is to share the knowledge that I have learned during my sports career so that I can help future athletes navigate through the countless challenges that come with being a professional athlete. I want to eliminate the distractions so that the athlete can put their focus back on the sport that they love to play.

What if you could harness the many invaluable lessons you learned as a college or professional athlete and apply them to your professional and personal life? In After the Game, former D1 college football player turned successful business leader Jay Dixon shows you how. Crafted in the tradition of wisdom-rich business fables, After the Game combines a page-turning fictional narrative with a wealth of real-life lessons and insights designed to inform, advise, and inspire budding entrepreneurs and future CEOs. You’ll discover: research that proves athletes are perfectly suited to own and lead businesses ten mindset elements that are crucial to your success at work and in life seven hands-on lessons that will accelerate your journey from idea to ownership a proven playbook to become a CEO eleven years faster than typical routes how self-awareness and emotional intelligence are vital on your path to CEO how to build a successful independent enterprise and achieve substantial personal growth . . . and much more. With billions of dollars’ worth of small businesses set to be sold or passed down as baby boomers move into their retirement years, opportunities abound for savvy entrepreneurs to learn to acquire, lead, and sell those businesses—and no demographic is more poised and prepared to do so than former athletes. This is your time. Don’t stand on the sidelines another minute. Get up, get ready, and get back in the action. A glorious new future awaits.

"As Jack Groppel so aptly explains, the rigor of corporate athletics is often even more demanding than that of professional athletes. In my world, one does not have the luxury of an off-season. . . . This book is a must read for all those striving for the gold."-Arthur M. Blank, CEO and President, The Home Depot "Wow! This is an incredible book. Every person in business should read The Corporate Athlete from cover to cover and apply it every day."-Brian Tracy, author of Maximum Achievement: Strategies and Skills That Will Unlock Your Hidden Powers to Succeed Today's corporate world is much like the world of professional sports-it is fiercely competitive and mentally and physically demanding, and it requires constant, vigilant training. More than ever, to maintain health, happiness, and career success, executives and employees must become Corporate Athletes. In this book, top business consultant, trainer, and lecturer Jack Groppel shows you how to use the training mentality of elite professional athletes. Based on the latest scientific research, The Corporate Athlete shows corporate competitors how to achieve maximum performance levels-both inside and outside the corporate world. Drawing on the parallels between sports and business, Jack Groppel reveals the integral roles that nutrition, fitness, and self-improvement-mental, physical, and emotional-play in giving Corporate Athletes their winning edge. It's an edge that's crucial if you need to come to a meeting fresh off the plane, pull out all the stops on a big presentation, cut the major deals-and still have the energy to enjoy time with family and friends. This practical and beneficial 21-day program will give you, no matter how overworked you are, the stamina and commitment to develop a world-class career. Learn to: * Have as much energy for your family at 8 p.m. as you have at the office at 8 a.m. * Be on when you need to be on * Respond to change, adversity, and crisis more constructively * Display more positivity and confidence * Eat properly on the road, in the air, and before and during business meetings * Slow down the aging process Take advantage of the same secrets that Dr. Groppel has used to help high-stress professionals-from Olympic athletes and NHL stars to fast-lane executives at major companies like Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Estée Lauder, and Bristol-Myers Squibb-get themselves in fighting shape. Here is the program that will train you to perform at the highest possible levels in both your professional and your family life-because taking optimum care of yourself, mentally and physically, is the best way to take care of business. "Outstanding . . . The Corporate Athlete is a truly comprehensive program to help you achieve both your personal and your professional goals. It will help you take control of your life and effect positive physical, mental, and spiritual change."-Darlene Hamrock, Regional Vice President, Clinique Why do so many top performers call themselves Corporate Athletes? "Today's challenging business climate requires every top executive to be perfectly fit both mentally and physically. The Corporate Athlete is must reading for everyone who wants to manage his or her business, career, or profession effectively while living a balanced life. Buy it-it's a great investment."-Leonard Lauder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the Estée Lauder Companies, Inc. "This is the book to teach you how to perform your job at the highest level possible while maintaining maximal health and happiness."-Jim Courier, French Open champion and former world No. 1 tennis player

How the very best get to—and stay at—the top From the arenas of professional sports to the boardrooms of major businesses, a thin slice of peak performers dominates every field. What is their secret to success? Few people know what drives these world-leaders like sports agent Molly Fletcher. Not only has Fletcher herself risen to the top of a tough, male-dominated field—CNN dubbed her "the female Jerry Maguire"—but she has also represented hundreds of successful athletes, coaches, and broadcasters in baseball, golf, basketball, and football. Her experience reveals exactly what it takes to play like "the best." Breaks success into accessible strategies like smart negotiation, likability, and personal brand-building Features interviews with such notables as Home Depot cofounder and Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank, future Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz, and football legend Roger Staubach Connects high performance to values by showing how the best give back No matter what you do or what game you play, Fletcher's authoritative and inspirational look at the top 1 percent will help you win.

Why do so many athletes end up in financial ruin? This book uncovers the principles that make athletes and millionaires more susceptible to economic ruin and bad behavior. Discover the twelve universal attributes that athletics teaches that should help mold athletes into prime candidates for postcareer success. This book may be the first of its kind to offer true insight into the epidemic of financial ruin that has plagued athletes for almost a century and offer the solutions to end this affliction.

"Executive athletes" practice and compete, win some and lose some. Then they do it all over again - just like athletes. The Executive Athlete is all about the similarities between executives who want to achieve high levels of performance and athletes who play at the top of their game. Dr. Gerson has spent years coaching, testing and training business people to use sport psychology to better their performances. He's found you get measurable performance improvements if you treat and train business people like athletes. He takes you inside the minds of athletes and shows you how they mentally train themselves. You'll learn how to use those same mental training techniques on yourself and in your business setting so you can play at the top of your game. Learn how to make failure work for you, coach yourself and others out of a performance slump, overcome self-doubt and negative attitudes - and hundreds of other tips for becoming a superstar from within.

The Financial Physician has struck again! Best selling author, speaker and trusted advisor has collaborated on yet another blockbuster. Within this book you will learn how to never be poor, achieve full financial health and live a prosperous life.