Drawing Your Inspiration
“I think I had more of an advantage having a background in travel copywriting. It was what the organization was looking for. Someone that wasn’t heavily enriched in the sports landscape” - loosely quoting someone from an informational interview.
The quote that’s changed everything.
Back to the Beginnings
Before I get too far ahead of myself, let me rewind. Let’s go back to the beginning.
🔥 You Don't Know this about me! 🔥
Here's why I was inspired to start my business…
I never quite felt “at home” in any of my work environments.
The closest that I’ve come was during my time working at a non-profit - incredible mission, a wonderful manager who truly cared about her people and provided the opportunity for growth. I had a great relationship with my manager and someone from another department that we cross-collaborated with often.
Because of our dynamic, there was depth, purpose, and unity.
I always felt like I was being called to do more, and make more of an impact.
No matter how far I’ve wandered from the sports industry, I’ve always found myself coming back.
It All Started
It all started back in 2018. I was sitting at my desk, working at an ad agency.
Call it job jitters, call it just not a good fit. It didn’t take me long to realize it wasn’t a place that I was going to call home, grow in, or stay for a long period of time.
At that point, I had already made a pretty big pivot - from going to school for personal training to getting into marketing and business instead. I was worried about making another “wrong” career move.
I knew I wanted a place where I could grow, I knew that company culture and the environment were a huge appeal (or repel) for me. I wanted to feel like I could contribute and bring ideas to the table. I desired to be part of an organization with a big mission.
I went back to my passions: storytelling, connection, and sports.
I leaned into the fact that this wasn’t going to be a forever job for me. There were small things that I used to stress about, that really weren’t big deals. But in my mind, I made them out to be. The result of the training method and wanting to make a good impression.
But, when I made that conscious decision that this isn’t going to be forever, a quote from one of my managers became my motto.
“We aren’t surgeons. No one is going to die on our table. The thing in your mind right now that’s an emergency, really isn’t.”
The Mindset Shift
That mindset shift freed up brainpower. It gave me space.
And what did I decide to do with that space? Explore. Explore my options.
Up until that point, I was one of the only people in the office that never had headphones in. From that moment on, I started listening to podcasts. Stories of people. Educational-based posts.
I stumbled across The School of Greatness by Lewis Howes which opened up a whole new world. He interviewed entrepreneurs, authors, business professionals, athletes, and artists. He created a stage for their stories, their paths, and their struggles. Nothing was off the table.
Spark Ignited
And it ignited a spark within me.
I learned about the online service provider industry. Little did I know at the time, but it was an industry I would later spend years working in.
I decided that I wanted to do something I was passionate about. It was a non-negotiable. But I also knew that at the time I knew paid ads, but I wanted to become more of a marketing generalist.
Enter: Content Writing
I started blog writing and contributing to FanSided, I wrote about the Boston Red Sox. I made the decision because I was a Red Sox fan. And storytelling was one of my passions. I wanted to write more, to develop that muscle within me.
It developed an itch. A desire to write more. To grow knowledge - content writing, SEO, pitching. But more than anything it combined my knowledge of marketing with my passion for sports.
“THIS is it” - I thought. I didn’t know the how or the where or the when. What I did know was that I wanted to do more of it. For an industry that I was passionate about.
Analyzing sports content
Becoming a Sponge
So, I became a sponge. I learned everything I could. I networked. I asked questions.
I took a Sports Media and Communications course through Sports Management Worldwide. Where I was beyond lucky to have Tim Mead, Los Angeles Angels VP of Communications at the time. I got a front-row view into various communications crises, wins, and everything in between in his career (disclaimer - he didn’t air dirty laundry, but shared tidbits throughout that would be helpful for the next generation to be aware of).
That course also helped force me to network and build connections.
As I was developing my roster of people in sports to network with, I started listening to sports business podcasts. The Sports Marketing Huddle by Rob Cressy was one that I LOVED. It wasn’t long before I started binge listening to it.
What stood out to me was that there was a gap. No one was sitting down with sports business professionals and really uncovering the different roles. The responsibilities that come with it, the challenges, the opportunities.
This means you have to go through an interview process and land a job to find out if it’s really what you want to be doing. I knew I wanted to do something with this, but I didn’t know what. So I let it percolate for a few years until I could really get clear on my vision.
Networking
I started using LinkedIn and networking with people in the sports industry as much as I could. I’d write messages - sharing what stood out about them, asking to connect over a call, and informing them of my why behind it.
I was quickly amazed by the people that work in sports.
Seriously, it’s uncanny to people in other industries. The willingness to sit down and chat, to connect, to help someone, is different from other industries. At least that was my experience.
Managers, Directors, and VPs were willing to spare their time to talk to me. Me! Someone who was in a junior position. Who wasn’t working in sports? In the grand scheme of things, I really couldn’t do very much for them.
And yet, the willingness to connect. It blew me away.
What I now realize is that the sports industry is heavily driven by your connections. It’s really about who you know. And you never know who someone is going to become.
Just because someone can’t help you today, doesn’t mean that they can’t help you in the future.
And I noticed another trend here in these conversations. 9/10 times in the conversations that I had, some sort of a non-profit/philanthropy effort got brought up. After a short period, I started to openly inquire about it.
It was another area of passion and interest for me. I knew that athletes were involved in philanthropy work and most (if not all) sports organizations are also involved. So, I wanted to get more insights into it. And into the role, it played in people wanting to work in sports. And/or their involvement.
The Start of Passion to Legacy
The start of the Passion to Legacy Podcast. Learning more about roles within sports + shedding light on philanthropic work in the industry.
I started the podcast because I wanted to bring more people in on the conversations that I was having. I wanted to create a platform to shine the light on others. And I wanted to inspire people to take action in pursuing their dreams.
My desire was to educate people and save them time from having to do the leg work themselves.
We’ve pivoted a few times. We’ve taken a few steps back. We’ve gone back to the blackboard and drew up a new 10-year vision. And that’s okay.
Allow the space for growth and change.
The Conversation
There were many, many incredible conversations that I had with people in the industry. And I’ll share more takeaways from those conversations another day.
I was sitting down with a Director of Digital Marketing.
I asked for 15 minutes of his time and he gave me just over 45 minutes. This conversation happened years ago and that still sticks out in my mind. You can’t get your time back so the fact that he was willing to talk to me for that long speaks volumes.
He provided so many golden nuggets, insights that I otherwise wouldn’t have, transparently shared about his role.
But there’s one thing that he said that is ringing in importance to me right now.
Why Is it Important? Why Now?
Why was this one thing important? Why is standing out so much to me now?
I think it’s easy to get caught up in where you are vs where it is that you want to be.
I’ve noticed a lot of conversations in the sports industry right now have certain trends:
Including more storytelling in content
The challenge of targeting Gen Z
What he said to me, loosely was this,
“I think I had more of an advantage having a background in travel copywriting. It was what the organization was looking for. Someone that wasn’t heavily enriched in the sports landscape.”
It gave me permission that I didn’t realize I was craving. It gave me the “it’s okay to go out, explore other industries, and then come back.. If you want to.”
It helped me see that continuing on my path, even if it wasn’t being in sports immediately, wasn't failing.
And I went on to work in hospitality, non-profit, in the online business world. I’ve learned skills about developing an agency, social selling, marketing for product based businesses and network marketers, starting and growing memberships.
I walked away from the dream of working in sports so I could develop the skills that would make me an asset in the sports industry.
In the great specialist or generalist conversation, I’ve always gravitated toward the importance of being a generalist. You bring a wider range of knowledge to the table. It’s bringing stories and lessons from different roles or across different industries to the table.
And I’m starting to believe that sports organizations need more outside voices. In order to help support your marketing, communications, and events teams, bring people in who aren’t as close to the project at hand.
A creative collaboration of people that have knowledge of what’s going on within other industries.
When you’ve only been in one industry or with one organization for an extended period of time, the way you view things is going to be molded and shaped accordingly. This means new creative ideas are unlikely to come as easily.
If you’re interested in professional development for your digital and production teams and/or for your athletes, I offer customized training and consulting. Please inquire for more.