Ep.015 Athlete Story PodcastAthlete Personal Branding: How_to Monetize Your Sports Career ft Josh HoffmanShould you spend time or even money building your brand as an athlete – or former athlete? In this episode we’ll be looking at personal branding as an athlete or former athlete and different opportunities that any athlete can take advantage of to monetize their sports career.Josh Hoffman from the Institute for Athlete Branding and Marketing is our guest today.  He lets us in on how you can build real equity as a personal brand and business leveraging your sports career and athlete story and lifestyle.We talk about* the 4 different types of communication channels to play with* the do’s and don’ts of marketing* why you don’t want to put all your eggs in the social media basket* 8 different ways that you can leverage your sports career and the internet to make moneyYou can catch more notes and information about athlete branding and marketing at www.iabm.coas well as a report on those 8 digital revenue streams.

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Josh Hoffman: The idea of building an athlete brand can be for every athlete in every sport no matter your gender, no matter how good you are, no matter how many years you did your profession or maybe in college when you’re still an amateur. It’s for everyone if they want to do the due diligence of building that authenticity, building that trust over a sustained long period of time with their audience.

Intro: Welcome to the Athlete Story Podcast, your chance to tap into wisdom from athletes and experts in world-class sports. You’re about to be taken into a chat about sports careers and related issues between an awesome guest and your listening host. The sports insider, repurposed Olympic mogul skier, and former Freeride World Tour athlete Anja Bolbjerg.Anja Bolbjerg: Hi there. Anja here. Welcome back to Athlete Story. Today, we’ll be looking at ways for you to make money leveraging your sports career and building your personal brand even if you’ve been retired for a while. My guest today is Josh Hoffman from the Institute for Athlete Branding and Marketing. He’ll let us in on how you can build equity as a personal brand. We’ll talk about the four different types of communication channels to play with and the do’s and don’ts and how to use all of that to turn your brand into a real business. Let’s welcome Josh Hoffman. Hi, Josh. Welcome to the show Athlete Story.Josh: Thank you so much for having me. It’s a pleasure to be here.Anja: I’m so excited about this episode because I invited you on the show because I really loved receiving the newsletter that you guys are making. So much insight and analytics about athlete branding and marketing and how you can monetize your sports career even in life after sports. I think this will be very useful for the audience of Athlete Story, so thank you for taking the time to do this.Josh: Absolutely. Let’s dive into it.Anja: Just first quickly, how did you get into working with the Athlete Branding and Marketing in the first place? What’s your background?Josh: Absolutely. I’ve always been a big sports fan. I grew up in Los Angeles. There is a pretty good sports culture there. I grew up with the Lakers, with the Dodgers. I actually studied once upon a time sports journalism in university. In journalism right now, it’s going through some sort of a revolution because of the internet and social media. Once I was working in the media industry, I worked in sports journalism for about five years. Didn’t love the direction that the media industry, in general, was going, so I went into marketing and went away from sports.

Ep.014 Athlete Story PodcastWhen you are forced to retire from sports before you are ready ft former dancer Chrissy PapettiWhat happens when you retire from sports ?In this Athlete Story with former competitive dancer, Chrissy Papetti. we talk about retiring from sports when you are no where near ready for it. In fact, that’s a very common scenario – that either injury or lack of results or finances make that decision for you as an athlete. That leads to a sense of unfinished business that you have to deal with.Chrissy works as an occupational therapist today. She also offers coaching solutions to former dancers and athletes to help them orient themselves in the retirement process, using tools from her work as an occupational therapist combined with her personal experience.Tune in to meet Chrissy and hear her athlete and retirement story.We talk about– The phases of the transition out of sports– Unfinished business– How Chrissy helps former dancers transition on in life after dancingYou can also watch a video version of this interview here.You can also watch a video version of this interview here.

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Anja Bolbjerg: What happens when you retire from sports and it wasn’t actually your choice? In this Athlete Story, I’ve invited former competitive dancer, Chrissy Papetti, for a chat about retiring from sports when you’re nowhere near done with it yet.This is Athlete Story and I’m your host Anja Bolbjerg. If you’re a world-class athlete or simply want to tap into world-class sports wisdom, I suggest you subscribe to my channel right now so that you get notified whenever I upload a new video for you.Maybe you’ve experienced this because, in fact, that’s a very common scenario that either injury, or lack of results, or lack of finances make that retirement decision for you as an athlete. That can lead to this sense of unfinished business that you have to deal with somehow in life after sports. We’ll dive into that together with Chrissy today.She works as an occupational therapist, and we’ll get into what that means later. She also offers coaching solutions to former dancers and athletes, using the tools from her work as an occupational therapist combined with her personal experience as a dancer. Let’s meet Chrissy and hear how she experienced retirement from sport when she could just no longer keep pushing through the pain and no longer deny the career-ending consequences of a severe hip injury.Hi, Chrissy. Welcome to the show Athlete Story.Chrissy Papetti: Hi.Anja: I’m so glad you could make it here today. I know you’re a former dancer, and I’m really curious as to what is life like as a dancer. Can you tell us about that?Chrissy: Yes, absolutely. Thank you for having me on. I’m so excited to be here and tell an athlete story through a dancer perspective. I can just start from where it began a little bit in that dancers typically start from a young age. I’ve been a self-proclaimed dancer since I was two years old. As I did it over and over through the years, I got more serious about it and joined the competitive dance world at a young age.I was doing all the things; ballet, jazz, hip-hop, tap, everything, and really found my way through tap. I specialized in that and trained under the best people in the northeast area, actually, around the country right now, Mike Minery, Anthony Morigerato. As I trained with them and specialized in it, I actually got the opportunity to compete at the World Tap Championships when I was 16 and represent the USA as the only soloist in the finals.Anja: I’m sorry, is that tap dancing?Chrissy: Yes, tap dancing, which people know of, but– It’s really cool because people typically think about the Gene Kelly Broadway, Fred Astaire tap,

Ep.013 Athlete Story PodcastOnline business success with athletic grit – and Pinterest – ft Rachel Ngom, former all American volleyball playerIf you’ve ever thought about staring an online business or leveraging the internet to get your message or services out there then you want to listen carefully to this episode with junior Olympic Champion Rachel Ngom who had to end her sports career in volleyball early due to a severe rib cage injury.Rachel has been on quite a journey since, but in this episode we talk mostly about the strategy that led her to a successful online business after years of struggling to get by.We talk about– How to use the internet to get clients and propose your services– How to get people to actually find your services– Why Pinterest and a blog (or other content) works wonders– How to best stay in touch with and nurture potential clients so you stay top of mind– What Rachel uses from her athletic background to be strong in businessYes, athletic grit is on that menu but she also makes some, perhaps, surprising points about for example patience and competitiveness.You can get the list of the skills from sports that Rachel relies on for her business by clicking the green button and complete it with your own personal ideas. This is a super helpful to activate that athletic grit of yours whenever you lose momentum or start to doubt in yourself.You can also watch a video version of this interview here.

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Anja Bolbjerg: How can you best use the internet to join the number of successful former athletes online even if you weren’t the star of your sport? Well, today we’ll chat with former all-American volleyball player, Rachel Ngom, to get a shortcut and a very specific strategy on how to best build a sustainable online brand and online business. So stay tuned. This is Athlete Story, and I’m your host and coach, Anja Bolbjerg, dedicated to helping former athletes like you own your sports career like other people may have an MBA.[music]If you’re a world-class athlete or simply into sports, I suggest you subscribe to my show right now because I’ll be posting lots more athlete’s stories and chats with world-class sports insiders and experts.Rachel’s success formula is not about using a household name or some claim to fame or number of followers. That could have been an advantage, but Rachel Ngom didn’t have that from her sports career. What she did have though was her athlete mindset and once she tapped into that, she showed up consistently trusting her ability to learn and improve through trials and errors and getting back up to put herself back out there again and again and again. Just like you, that’s what she did as an athlete to win the junior Olympics and become an all-American volleyball player.Now, in this episode, Rachel shares a short version of the story and a lot about how she’s making an impact online with a business that’s consistently attracting real buyers online rather than constantly chasing attention in vain on social media. Listen in and take advantage of Rachel’s generosity with her experience as a former athlete gone online business. Let’s welcome Rachel Ngom, from www.shesmakinganimpact.com.Hi Rachel. Welcome to Athlete Story.Rachel Ngom: Hey. Thanks for having me.Anja: I’m very, very happy you could do this. You’ve been an athlete yourself. I was wondering if you could just tell us a little bit about that and where you’re going now.Rachel: My athlete background was I played volleyball for a long time, about 10 years. I played in the Junior Olympics. We actually won the Junior Olympics. Competed in China, played in Italy. I was an all-American,

Ep.012 Athlete Story PodcastStory Selling as Athletes – A way to generate value from your sports careerStoryselling is the main theme for this Athlete Story episode with former bobsled pilot, Tom Johansen. Inspired by the Walt Disney movie, Cool Runnings based on the startup of a Jamaican bobsled team, Tom decided to build a Danish Bobsled Team. He already had a career in sales, but was so inspired by this pioneering adventure that he took action.It became a true entrepreneurial journey where he had to find and lead a team, build a professional structure from zero and finance the adventure by finding partners who could see tha value in having a bobsled team in Denmark with a slight chance of qualifying for the Olympics and an even smaller chance of a medal. So he had to be innovative about the value they had to offer.This journey still serves Tom in his work to inspire people via public speaking.We also talk about-his stress collapse after sports,-what is success-finding where your energy naturally flows – and what can happen if you ignore itYou can also watch a video version of this interview here.

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To save YOU the hassle and time, I have taken great notes for you.Want them ?

YES, Please

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“The question is : From whom can the Danish companies learn the most ? The 99 going in one direction or the 1 who dares to go in the other one. I know the answer to that.”Tom JohansenFormer Bobsled Pilot and Pioneer

About our guest

Tom Johansen uses his experiences as a former bobsled pilot to inspire people to find the courage to listen to that inner voice telling you what you are meant to do – even if that means making choices that not everybody can relate to. An athlete story of the real great ones (about the Jamaican athletes who managed to qualify the first tropical bobsled to the Winter Olympics in 1988) inspired him to start and lead a national bobsled team in Denmark and go all in to build a professional set-up to be part of the world cup and possibly qualify for the Olympics in 2002 and later in 2006. While Denmark chose not to send the bobsled, the team’s challenges, bruises and fun experiences still serve as inspiration when Tom does public speaking about themes such as courage to stand out and about anxiety caused by mis-alignment.

Ep.011 Athlete Story PodcastStorytelling for Athletes. Tips From Emmy Award Winning Michael Baltierra, ESPN E:60 ShowStorytelling for athletes – What makes your story great?I love ending the year with this episode with my friend, Emmy Award winning Michael Baltierra from ESPN’s storytelling show, E:60.I really do believe that one of the most important assets you have as a world class athlete is the journey you’ve been on, going above and beyond – and even deep down under – to become the best at your sport. You may have won a medal or a title and that’s awesome – but it’s the investment you put in and the lessons you got back that will stay with you – and that you can use and contribute with to help other people if you want to share. That’s the basic philosophy of Athlete Story and what I’m here to help you tap into.And the cool thing about this episode is that you will get to know more about how to share your story so that it’s interesting to other people and why it makes you special and valuable.You can also watch a video version of this interview here.

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Anja Bolbjerg : Let’s talk about one of the best ways you can leverage your sports career in life after sports: Using the stories from your journey as an athlete to help other people.How do you do this? How can your story help other people? Let’s look into that because once you find that out, you’ve found gold. That’s kind of your education as an athlete. Sports you can bring with you in life. It’s your degree. It’s one unique asset that you can always contribute with. Whether it’s just to make a point or inspire people to take action on something or shed new light on even an old concept or invent a new product.It’s not about bragging or about what you did or accomplished, it’s about taking other people on a little journey that will teach them a lesson or give them an emotion or an aha moment in a way.That’s storytelling and that’s why I’m super stoked for this episode because I’ve invited a storytelling champion to share his wisdom and insight with us today, He’s ESPN’s, Emmy Award-winning, executive editor to the E60 show, Michael Baltierra. Stay tuned, this is Athlete Story and I’m your host and coach Anja Bolbjerg dedicated to helping athletes like you own your sport career.If you are a world-class athlete or simply into sport, I suggest you should subscribe to my show right now. I will be posting a lot more athlete stories and chats with world-class sport insiders and experts.Before we get on course, let me introduce our guest briefly. Michael Baltierra’s career as a storyteller in broadcasting includes nine years as a producer at ABC News. Traveling the world to cover stories and put them into context so that we can relate to them in our own little pond back home.His passion for sport and apparently, a great working environment at ESPN led him to become an executive editor for The E60 Show. For those of you who don’t know the show, it’s a weekly sports show magazine style where they bring great sports documentaries that are always relatable and relevant, no matter what the sport or the results because those stories go way beyond sports.Knowing Mike, I can already tell you that empathy and the ability to see things from different angles, probably part of what makes a champion storyteller.Let’s jump in and see what Mike has to say about what makes a good story and how to pitch it and why he likes to work with athletes. That’s always good to hear, right? Okay, let’s welcome Michael Baltierra from ESPN. Hi, Mike, welcome to the show, Athlete Story.Michael Baltierra: Thank you.Anja: Mike, you’re working at ESPN at a program called E60.Michael: That’s right. I oversee the show. What I do particularly is to help select the stories that we’re going...

Ep.010 Athlete Story PodcastAthlete Transition. How To Present Yourself Without Your Sports Gear Ft Pam Baker & Katherine JohnsonAthlete Transition – How do you present yourself?When you’re quitting sports and you’re trying to find your new way there’s this bit of doubt of, “Who am I actually? I’m the athlete but I’m also a lot of other things.” Everybody is used to seeing you as the athlete. You will have all these doubts coming in on, “How do I even present myself as the non-athlete?”How do you come across as the personal you really are – authentically and confidently? Those are legitimate questions for anybody. But in particular when you are in a transition. In this episode we will talk  with Pam Baker and Katherine Johnson who offer a career planning framework and image consulting, respectively. Together they offer joint workshops about your verbal and visual presence.You have various strings to play on when you tell your story or deliver your message. Words is the most obvious one for us humans but before you even open your mouth you have usually already communicated some things by the way you show up.You know this from people wearing uniforms and what that communicates whether it’s a school uniform, a nurse or a fire fighter.Katherine helps her clients align the way they show up and present themselves physically with what they wish to communicate.Pam is the expert in verbal storytelling and how to connect you values with the way you talk about yourself.The transition is a great time to make sure you are heading in a direction you like. It’s an opportunity to get aligned with your values and a chance to present yourself as the person you are and want to be, so that you can be seen, heard and valued for who you really are as Katherine Johnson says in this episode of Athlete Story.In this session we cover points like→ How do I reflect who I am NOW – and how do I bring forward who I was and the confidence I can find it that→ How can you as an athlete envision your future career and communicate that with authenticity and no noise on the line→ How are you showing up in the world and can people really see and hear you ?→ How Katherine and Pam got into working in these fields→ and a whole lot morePresence isn’t the majority of who we are – but it is the first impression. Some of the themes they work on with their clients are* Discovering what are the qualities that they want to communicate to themselves and outwardly* Integrating the “who I was, who I am now,” to uncover what does that mean in terms of the types of work and career that I want to have. Where is the intersection between those values, interests, and skills?* What can they let go of?* Career prototypingYou can also watch a video version of this interview here.

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Anja INTRO:If you’ve been a more or less full-time athlete for many years, one of the things you will have to do when you take off your gear and transition out of sports is to re-find yourself without that gear. I know you know this. Today, we’ll take that very literally. I brought in two people for this episode that just did a joint workshop in Miami for the Women Athletes Business Network and the International Women’s Forum.That’s former elite squash player, Katherine Johnson, who is today an image consultant. In her own words she helps, “Eliminate the visual static so that you can be seen, heard and valued for who you really are,” and in that way present the most authentic and confident version of yourself to the world. The other person is Pam Baker who is the founder of Journeous, which is a career planning framework to help you align your personal values and your professional life.In a way, Pam helps you put words on who you are what you stand for,

Ep.009 Athlete Story PodcastCareer Coaching For Athletes. How is the job search game really played? Ft Career Coach Mark MoyerCareer Coaching For AthletesCareer Coach Mark Moyer will takes us behind the scenes of recruiting and show us how the job search game really works.Why is it usually a waste of time to send out job applications and how do you find out what kind of job would even fit you?.You’re going to learn the smarter of looking for jobs and get Marks tips on:→ How to use LinkedIn strategically→ How to position yourself to never have to look for and answer to job ads→ How to avoid wasting time and energy in the job search game→ How to properly prepare for and control a job interview→ and a whole lot moreAthletes will come to Mark for lots of different reasonsSome are struggling when they first retire from the sport.Some have retired from sport for many years and have really not understood what they want to do next.And some athletes are still active butt want to start figuring out, what happens if either they have to retire because of injury or because they are not performing anymore.What happens to most of them is that when they leave their sport, suddenly their confidence plummets. Doubt sets in and thoughts like: “I don’t know if I can be a professional or run a company or be an executive or be a whatever.”They all seem to really need the same message to boost their confidence. Here are some of the typical athlete transferable skills that Mark would emphasize as a former world class athlete besides what you have learnt through your athlete story:* driven to succeed* very coachable and manageable* usually comfortable in front of the media and in front of people* easy for athletes to learn a new thing, a new direction, a new topic* work ethic* growth mindsetHe also gives advice on how to prepare for an interview situation and make it more like a conversation.You can also watch a video version of this interview here.

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Anja INTRO:Today we are going to be talking about: Career coaching for athletesAnd you’re going to learn the smarter of looking for jobs and how the job search game really works.Why it is usually a waste of time to send out job applications for example ?And how to find out what kind of job would even fit you ?-This is Athlete Story and I’m your host Anja Bolbjerg, dedicated to helping athletes like you, own your sports career !Now, I have the pleasure of introducing you to a real career coach today : Mark Moyer who will be our guest in this episodeSo get comfortable and listen in – this could save you a lot of time and a lot of hardship !!I reached out to Mark when I was in New York not long ago because I wanted to hear more about how he helps athletes as a career coach. When I felt his enthusiasm for the topic I immediately asked him if he would come on the show.If you have been following Athlete Story for a while, you know how this is important to me – I really only want to bring you the real deal.And Mark is the real deal. He is based in Manhattan, New York, where he has been helping his clients find their dream jobs for 25 years. One of them, many years ago, happened to be a former pro ice hockey player who was maybe not as confident in his skills for the job search game as he was on the ice. And this experience transformed, not only the former ice hockey player’s career, but also Mark’s in a way, because it brought his attention to the need for helping athletes tap into their unique skill set and experience as athletes to find their new career path in life after sports.So since then, Mark has pretty much specialized in helping athletes « turn athletic excellence into business success.» as it says on his book,

Ep.008 Athlete Story PodcastLife After Sports. Using Athlete Mentality to Repurpose Yourself. Athlete Story ft Matthew Wetschler WorldwideUsing your athletic mindsetHow can you use your athletic mindset to face challenges beyond sports?In this episode Adventure athlete, Matthew Harlow Wetschler shares his incredible story and how he has managed to find himself and thrive in a life where most of what he cherished was taken away in an instant. How what saved him was: Knowing his core values and his athletic mindset.We start with a flashback to his life with sports before his deadly accident. He says his athletic mindset was the foundation that made him find himself “surprisingly well equipped to meet the most intense challenge of my life which is having my entire body taken from me, and my life briefly taken from me. I was able to really meet the challenge head on.”You will hear Matt’s experience and tips on….→ the benefits of the athletic mindset that go beyond sports→ the shadow side to the athletic mentality→ why it’s better to have a vision than a goal→ how art has been Matt’s way of expressing himself→ and a whole lot moreThe episode on brainspotting that I mentioned can be seen here:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z56NOgo8wPc&t=80sOnce again thank you to Scott Fitzloff for letting me use clips from his video portrait of Matt.Drone footage by Tylor Norwood. In-hospital footage by Dane Wetschler.You can watch Scott Fitzloff’s full video here: https://vimeo.com/279760575You can also watch a video version of this interview here.

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Anja INTRO:Hi, you are in for an inspirational Athlete Story about pivoting into life after sports – when you have no choice but to do so !You can say that it is about seeing opportunities in challenges – only that is a ridiculous understatement n this case.Today’s Athlete Story comes from adventure athlete Matt Wetschler who woke up to a very different reality to say the least, than what his life had been based on until then, when he woke up from a deathly accident that he had while body surfing.It actually took his life for ten minutes – his mobility from the neck down for quite a bit longer – and today it has changed his perspective and circumstances in a way that has transformed his life – but NOT who he is.And I think that is the essential message that we can all learn from Matt’s story.As you will hear, he did not let outside circumstances, his sports awards, his Powder Award, his Stanford education or his work as a medical doctor, -nor his paralysis – define who he is.This is very relevant for anyone who stands in the middle of – or in front of – a big transition in life.Because those circumstances can change and they will change – and in particular for an athlete, since your athletic career can only last for so long and you know this, right ?,Matt’s story is an inspiration on how there are so many different ways to express yourself – as long as you know who you are and what you stand for – even if you can no longer do what it is that has fulfilled you in your life up intil now. .This is athlete story and I’m your host Anja Bolbjerg. If you want to get notified whenever I upload a new show, do go ahead and subscribe. I will be posting lots more athlete stories, interviews with world class sports insiders and valuable tips for athletes.If there were such as thing as a gold medal at winning in life – Matt Wetschler would be having one. So, let’s welcome the multi-talented, life winner Matt Wetschler.Anja: Hi, Matthew welcome to the show.Matthew: Thank you. Thank you, Anja.

Ep.007 Athlete Story PodcastMedia Training For Athletes ft TJ Walker from Media Training WorldwideIf you are looking for public speaking tips and media training tips for athletes, then this episode of Athlete Story is for you.My guest is world renowned expert in media training, TJ Walker and the media training tips that TJ will give you are tailored specifically to you as an athlete.We will talk about how to improve your interview skills with some simple strategies that TJ uses to help public figures such as athletes, presidents and prime ministers and even Miss Universes communicate more effectivelyYou will get tips on* come across your best in your public appearances* improve your communication skills so that you can feel more confident and look more professional in interviews, public speaking and media appearances,He will also tell us :* The one commonly used way to practice speaking skills – that you DO NOT want to use.* A trick about SOUNDBITES that will help you avoid mistakes that can get you misunderstood or prevent you from getting your message across.He also made this exceptional offer for the fast action takers in the audience:If you act fast, you can get free access to his  comprehensive online media training course by clicking here.Live workshop alert for personal media trainingIf you wish to get notified about a live workshop that we will be proposing in Sarasota or New York, with actual personal media training, send me an email and let me know you are interested.You can also watch a video version of this interview here.

READ the transcript of full interview by clicking here.

Anja INTRO:You can learn to feel more professional in presentations and interviews and to be great on TV – did you know that?Do you want to know how to come across your best ?Well if so I made a scoop for you!Today you will be getting media training tipsTailored specifically to you as an athletefrom one of the best media training experts in the world – founder of Media Training Worldwide – TJ Walker.We will talk about some simple things you can do to improve your interview skills that TJ has used to help public figures such as athletes, presidents and prime ministers and even Miss Universes communicate more effectively.He will also tell us :– The one commonly used way to practice speaking skills – that you DO NOT want to use.As well as a trick that will help you avoid mistakes that can get you misunderstood or prevent you from getting your message across.I’m super proud of this interview because – to be honest, interviewing one of the best media training experts in the world is a little intimidating – and very audacious on my part !But I really wanted you to get access to this info.Even just studying the actual way that TJ answers my questions to get his own message across, is a great lesson in itself. So listen to his tips – and then re-listen and see how actually he practices what he preaches in this very interview for an excellent example of how it’s done.In fact TJ made a fantastic offer for the first 100 of you that you can get access to his complete online media training course – (a course that sells for 200USD)If you’d be interested in more media training specifically tailored for athletes and where you can get personal media training and feedback – reach out and I will let you know when we set up the next live media training program for athletes, coaches and entourage.But now, enjoy the interview. Welcome to TJ Walker.Anja: Hi, TJ. Thank you so much for being willing to accept my invitation to be on Athlete Story. I’m so honored to have you here.TJ: Good to be with you.Anja: Thank you.

Ep.006 Athlete Story PodcastValuable lessons and life skills from a life with sports at the highest level from Olympic Gold Medalist. Athlete story Joe JacobiAs an athlete, you come across many concepts in your sports career that can help you navigate in life. In fact you gain valuable skills that are actually are transferable life skills.Olympic gold medallist Joe Jacobi is a whitewater canoe slalom athlete turned executive business coach. He has made a whole framework for business coaching out of the images and physical concepts from his sport. He shares that with us in this episode of Athlete Story.Joe describes the world of whitewater canoe slalom and how you try to maneuver your boat in a river with strong currents while trying to avoid touching the obstacles (poles) that have been placed in your path.You have to paddle as fast as you can while avoiding these poles, since touching them adds penalty seconds to your time and the idea is to be as fast as you can. , He describes it as one of the most fun things you can do in your life.‘’It’s that feeling of gravity and working with a force of nature that is so much stronger than you or I could ever be.’’ he says.It’s almost like an art form because Joe describes successful people in canoeing as people who have learned to channel their energy into making the river work for them instead of fighting with it. More like a dance with the river, and this is a way we can choose to live life as well. When you position yourself so that you can take advantage of the currents in stead of fighting them – you don’t have to fight as hard.You can also watch a video version of this interview here.

READ the transcript of full interview by clicking here.

Hi! This is Athlete Story and I’m Anja Bolbjerg. In today’s Athlete Story you are in for a free world class coaching session. Not only does our guest American Joe Jacobi have an Olympic gold medal in whitewater canoeing, which I think is so cool, he’s also such a reflective generous source of wisdom of all the lessons he’s taken with him from the river that he now coaches CEOs and business leaders. He’s not your typical guru hyped up kind of coach, he just has some really solid points that can just wake you up when you’re getting a little too comfortable.Joe started whitewater canoeing when he was 12 years old on a river in Washington DC. And it was on this river that he fell in love with, the process of improving and see how he could be more efficient so that he could be faster and beat his friends. While the boys were competing against each other, they were also learning how to compete against themselves. This very competitive but still friendly environment was Joe’s incubator, and ten years later he stood at the top of the podium at the Olympics in Barcelona.I am so excited for this call, so let’s not wait any longer. Let’s just bring him in.AnjaHi there!JoeHello!AnjaGood to finally talk to you.JoeYeah, I know, it’s great to connect with you as well.AnjaWelcome to the show Athlete Story.JoeThank you!AnjaI was wondering if you could help me and my listeners by taking us inside a canoe in a river, before we imagine, you know, the picnic trip down a little….JoeI have a description of our sport that I hope you of all people will absolutely love. So I just want you to imagine that you’re in a canoe at the top of a snow-covered mountain. But it gets warm and the water and the snow melts and turns to water, and you’re going downhill in the canoe. And it’s just moving water now, instead of snow. And in our sport of whitewater canoe slalom instead of the slalom poles being fixed into the ground, they’re actually hung from wires over the river. And you have to maneuver, just like slalom skiing,