Thanks to LinkedIn, Podcasting, and Sports, I Had The Opportunity
To chat with an amazing soccer content creator.
To chat with an Olympic Gold Medalist.
To chat with a youth basketball leader in Charlotte, NC.
To chat with a 1982 College Basketball National Champion.
To chat with a sports industry difference-maker.
To chat with a Goalkeeper training brand in the UK.
A breakdown of those conversations...
Creating Amazing Soccer Content with Mo Ali Heydarpour
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I had the opportunity to chat about soccer, content creation, and expanding your mind with footballer and creator, Mo Ali Heydarpour.
This man has over 600K engaged followers on Instagram thanks to soccer training videos that inspire and entertain.
The combination of podcasting, WhatsApp, and conversations with creative people has me excited.
Excited because of the potential to learn, share, and create.
Excited because there is a way to break through--it doesn’t include spamming though!
When I first came across Mo Ali, it was on LinkedIn. And I’m thinking, how brilliant are his soccer videos! Then I came across him everywhere--Instagram, Twitter, and even TikTok. The growth of his brand has been exponential.
After we connected, we stayed in touch for a while. We then communicated on WhatsApp. Eventually, we recorded a podcast episode while I was in Charlotte and Mo Ali was in Bali. This was right at the beginning of the COVID-19 crisis.
If you are into soccer (football!) or are trying to understand why someone would drive 6 hours each way to create content without focusing on ROI or just want to expand your mind, give this episode a listen.
Thank you to Mo for his time, ideas & inspiration.
Listen: https://sportsepreneur.com/mo-ali-heydarpour-creating-soccer-content/
Making a Splash with USA Olympic Gold Medalist, Cullen Jones
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I had the opportunity to chat about the Olympics, the athlete's mindset, and stories from the pool with Olympian and gold medalist, Cullen Jones.
The combination of podcasting, networking, and access to good people has me excited about the opportunities in communication.
Excited because of the people we get to chat with and learn from.
Excited because if done right, there is potential to cut through the spam--you know the messages where people try to sell you on first-contact through social media?!
I remember Cullen well from the Olympics and had become so impressed not only by his 100M Freestyle times but also what he was doing with his platform. Simply put, Cullen is and always has been a man on a mission! From helping with the Novant Health Foundation to working with kids for the Make A Splash initiative with USA Swimming to his motivational speaking.
Thanks to LinkedIn, podcasting, and Cullen for being generous with his time, I got to spend 3 hours over 2 days talking to a real difference-maker about swimming, the Olympics, Coronavirus, mental health, and stories of Michael Phelps and Ryan Lochte.
Thank you to Cullen for his time, kindness, and inspiration!
Listen, Part 1 - https://sportsepreneur.com/cullen-jones-usa-swimming-olympics-make-a-splash/
Listen, Part 2 - https://sportsepreneur.com/olympian-mindset-cullen-jones/
The Three Feelings in Sports and Entrepreneurship with Dan McGovern
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There’s winning, there’s losing, and then there’s not participating.
In this SportsEpreneur podcast episode, I chat Coach Dan McGovern (Coach Mac), Founder, Owner & Director of Yes I Can Basketball.
Coach Mac and I discuss the 3 feelings in sports, youth sports, and finishing what you started.
I've watched Coach Mac lead young children as two of my kids have participated in his leagues and camps.
Having the opportunity to ask questions and think through many topics around development with an inspiring entrepreneur is something we take very seriously—and we hope you are able to take away something from this conversation for yourself.
In February, Coach Mac reached out to us as he found an article of ours on Google--it was about Yes I Can Basketball. He gave us words of encouragement–it says a lot about Dan that he did this.
It led to a great conversation, some messaging, and this podcast.
The article he found is a few years old, but it goes to show you that evergreen content is for the long haul. And it can lead to new doors being open, new connections, great conversations, inspiration, and more.
Listen: https://sportsepreneur.com/yes-i-can-basketball-dan-mcgovern/
“The Man in the Arena” with Matt Doherty
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I had the opportunity to chat with the leader, coach, and North Carolina Tar Heel, Matt Doherty.
We talked for about 90 minutes and recorded much of the conversation for the SportsEpreneur podcast.
Thanks to podcasting and LinkedIn, I'm able to have these conversations with inspiring people.
In this episode, Coach Matt and I discuss how the park is a truth-teller, the 1982 National Championship game and "The Man in the Arena".
"The Man in the Arena" by Theodore Roosevelt (via Goodreads.com).
“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” Theodore Roosevelt
Listen: https://sportsepreneur.com/matt-doherty-the-man-in-the-arena/
Empowering Others to Be Happy with David Meltzer
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I had the opportunity to chat with David Meltzer on the SportsEpreneur podcast.
David's life mission is to empower others to be happy. We are grateful David stopped by to chat with us on our podcast while on this journey of his.
We explore what happy means to David, how he dealt with losses & how to handle obstacles life throws at you, including the pandemic.
How we met David:
It was December '17. John Priore was interning for us & was connecting me with interesting people when he came across a college student. That person was Jake Fleshner. Jake was in school at UofM.
After Jake and I finished a podcast recording, we stayed in touch. Soon after, John graduated from WCU and now works full-time with us. Jake also graduated and now works full-time for David.
Jake's inspiring story on how he met David: he was told by Gary Vaynerchuk to keep an eye out for Meltzer. Jake found David at SXSW and told him he wanted to work for him. He then met him in NYC. He then interned for him. He then got a full-time job working for David.
Fast forward. Jake reached out to me to catch up and ask if we would like David to appear on our podcast.
There's much to take away from that story:
-Connect
-College students matter!
-Keep creating! We don't meet Jake or David without the podcast
Listen: https://sportsepreneur.com/david-meltzer-happy/
The Modern Day GK with Mark Robinson
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I had the opportunity to chat soccer/football with Mark Robinson of The Modern Day GK on the SportsEpreneur Podcast.
The combination of podcasting, LinkedIn, and access to good people has me consistently amazed. Amazed because of the people we get to chat with (and learn from) and the fact that some still think it's okay to pitch and sell on first-contact through social media.
I met Mark on LinkedIn as I was impressed and intrigued by his goalkeeping content. So much so I told my son to follow their account on Instagram. To which my son said, "Dad, I already follow The Modern Day GK! All the keepers I train with follow them. They have the best keeper videos!"
So maybe I was a bit late to the game! Nonetheless, he isn't wrong. Their content is brilliant. Their following and engagement... through the roof.
And thanks to LinkedIn, podcasting, and Mark being generous with his time, I got to spend 90 minutes talking to a leader in this sport about mindset, positivity, David de Gea, Jordan Pickford, monetization, building a brand, family, and a story that absolutely blew me away.
Thank you to Mark and The Modern Day GK for the time, insights, and uniqueness.
Listen: https://sportsepreneur.com/modern-day-gk-mark-robinson/
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