Building Excellence

#100: Sam Acho is a former nine-year NFL veteran, current in studio analyst for ESPN, author, public speaker, humanitarian, and committed Christian.

Sam played college football at the University of Texas at Austin, where he was recently inducted into the University of Texas Athletics Hall of Honor.  While at Texas he received the William V. Campbell Trophy for being college football’s top scholar-athlete. He also won the NCAA Top VIII Award, which recognizes the top eight student-athletes in all of sports, and was named the 2010 Big 12 Sportsperson of the Year.

In 2011, Sam was drafted by the Arizona Cardinals and played four seasons as a linebacker with the team. He then signed with the Chicago Bears for the 2015–2016 season and played four years there before spending the 2019 season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

In 2016 and 2017, Sam was the Bears’ nominee for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award. He is also the vice president of the NFL Players Association and Sam was named by Sporting News as one of the twenty smartest athletes in all of sports.

Sam is the founder and president of Athletes for Justice and is also currently an ambassador for the International Justice Mission.

Every year he joins his family on medical mission trips to Nigeria and serves as the vice president of Living Hope Christian Ministries.

This week on Tuesday March 7th Sam is releasing his second book, Change Starts With You: Following Your Fire to Heal a Broken World.  You can preorder right now and get the bonuses. To find out more check out SamAchoBook.com. I highly encourage you to get his book! 

If you are sitting there wondering how does he do all of this? Listen to the show and find out, you won’t be disappointed. Enjoy the show!

Connect with Sam:
Twitter - @TheSamAcho
Intsagram - @TheSamAcho
Linkedin -  Sam Acho
Facebook - Sam Acho
Website - www.samacho.com
Book Website - www.samachobook.com
Books 
Change Starts With You:
https://www.amazon.com/Change-Starts-You-Following-Broken/dp/1400237998
Let the World See You:
https://www.amazon.com/Let-World-See-You-Fakes/dp/1400220270/ref=pd_bxgy_vft_none_img_sccl_1/142-1957624-4583243?pd_rd_w=baA3M&content-id=amzn1.sym.7f0cf323-50c6-49e3-b3f9-63546bb79c92&pf_rd_p=7f0cf323-50c6-49e3-b3f9-63546bb79c92&pf_rd_r=HDNF7MNMJSY7EZPC501A&pd_rd_wg=85X8O&pd_rd_r=905874cb-22cd-483e-ac02-26c2078406e9&pd_rd_i=1400220270&psc=1

#99: Forrest Carpenter is the author of the book They’re Your Choices Now. Forrest has been in the business world as a business executive and entrepreneur. Throughout his life he has always served and given back through ministry ventures and the church.

In his book he articulates the power of our choices and how they ultimately determine the course of our life. He also shares how the key is to seek obedience to God in all areas of your life. His life management plan gives you clear, actionable steps to do just that. A Life Management Plan is built on 7 pillars of life that create harmony, balance, and success. 

On the show he shares his story, his book, failure, grief & joy, preparation, his business experiences, always moving forward, being a great husband & father, and much more.

To find out more about Forrest and his book check out: itsyourlifenow.org

Enjoy the show! 

#98: Travis Wyckoff is the founder of Kingdom Coaching, a consulting business where he partners with leaders to help them discover the strengths that propel them, the constraints that trip them up, and their unique style and voice. 

He also hosts the Coaching DNA Podcast which is a podcast focused on investigating what makes coaches and leaders great. 

Travis coached college baseball for over 11 years. During his time coaching he coached at the University of Iowa, Creighton University, Des Moines Area Community College, & Dallas Baptist University. He has also served & lead on staff at Stonegate Church. Travis was drafted by the Miami Marlins and played collegiately at Wichita State University. 

Throughout his time running Kingdom Coaching he has helped and worked alongside some of the best coaches and leaders out there from Tim Corbin at Vanderbilt, Anson Dorrance at North Carolina, Kevin Hambly at Stanford, Aaron Boone of the New York Yankees, & many many more. 

On the show Travis shares his own story, experiences leading cohorts with some of the best of the best, building self awareness, developing curiosity, following the promptings of God, authentic leadership, gaining elite clarity, and much more. 

There are a lot of great takeaways to apply, so be sure to grab a pen and paper and take notes. Enjoy the show!

Connect with Travis:
Twitter - https://twitter.com/KingdomCoachTW
Podcast - https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/coaching-dna-podcast/id1463232323
Website - https://kingdomcoachingtw.com
Email - [email protected]

#97: Bill Blankenship is one of the most successful and respected high school and college football coaches in the country. As a head coach at the University of Tulsa his teams won the Liberty Bowl and a Conference USA Championship. 

As a high school coach he has had tremendous success. He is currently the head football coach at Owasso High School where his teams have won 2 6A state championships and recently played for the state championship this past season. Prior to Owasso he was the head coach at Fayetteville High School, where in his only season they won the 7A state championship. 

At Union High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma he went 154-26 in 14 years. During those 14 years Union qualified for the playoffs every year, reached the quarterfinals ten times, won eight consecutive district championships, played in the state championship seven times, and won three 6A state titles. 

The amount of success with state championship appearances and titles are endless, but what I love is what Coach Blankenship shares on the show about setbacks, his own cancer battle, failure and success, how to build a great team, relationships, his family, faith, and much more. 

This is a masterclass from a true Hall of Fame Coach, so be sure to take notes and enjoy the show! 

#96: Terry Cook is a leader, teacher, coach, and change agent. Through his passionate and skilled leadership and coaching, he has helped a wide range of individuals and organizations around the globe, from university students to leaders on Capitol Hill to agencies and leaders in the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. He regularly leads symposia that teach the LDC Leadership Model in addition to helping leaders worldwide move from cognitive knowledge to experiential understanding of the model through both onsite and virtual coaching. 

On the show Terry dives into the model and his own story, but I also want everyone to know that there will be a Lead Develop Care Seminar in Tulsa, Oklahoma on Friday Feb 17 through Saturday Feb 18. 

In my opinion this is one of the best leadership tools any leader can use to better his or her team, organization, or company. I’ve gotten to be around and seen a lot of different leadership models and frameworks and I really do think this is one of the best because of its simplicity and effectiveness. If you are someone who wants to grow in their leadership and if you are able I would highly recommend signing up while there are still spots available. I will leave all of the info in the show notes and bio below. Thanks now let’s get to the show. 

Tickets:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/lead-develop-care-tickets-519238505347?aff=efbneb

#95: Chris Young is the Director of Tennis & the Head Women’s Tennis Coach at Oklahoma State University. In the last 13 years of leading the OSU women’s tennis program he has complied a 224-103 record and built OSU into a national tennis power. 

In 2016 Oklahoma State made it to the National Championship finishing as runner up. With numerous appearances to the Sweet 16, 10 straight NCAA tournament trips, and two Big 12 regular season titles, he has led OSU to unprecedented success. Coach Young was instrumental in the fundraising and design for the Michael & Anne Greenwood Tennis Center. With an overall record of 413-197 he has seen successful and built tremendous programs everywhere he has been. 

On the show Coach Young shares his perspective on how to establish a compelling vision, the importance of belief, building a program, curiosity, surrounding yourself with great people, how complacency is the enemy of success, faith, authenticity, what it means to be a great husband and father, & much more. 

I have been really excited to share this episode because wether you are a coach, business leader, or young person there is so much to take away from Coach Young’s story. I hope it inspires and encourages you. Enjoy the show! 

#94: Lee Domingue is an entrepreneur, international speaker, pastor and author of 4 books: Stay in Your Lane, Pearls Of The King, KB GAMEPLAN Devotional and The Family Meeting Guide. His passion for the local church to be the hope of the world drives him to help pastors and marketplace leaders understand just how vital they are to each other. Through his ministry, Kingdom Builders U.S. and serving as Legacy Pastor at Church of the Highlands in Birmingham, Alabama, Lee brings inspiration and practical strategies for thousands of pastors and marketplace leaders to understand the significant eternal return on investment or “e-ROI®” that their relationship creates to build the Kingdom of God.

Lee has over 30 years of success in the automotive, finance, energy, healthcare, and technology sectors founding companies like AppOne®, Cyrus Partners, m360, and SLC Capital. Lee’s pioneering spirit led him to create the first virtual automobile buying service in 1993 that revolutionized the automotive retail industry making way for companies like Autobytel, Autotrader, Cars.com, Carvana, and TrueCar.

In 2007, Lee and his wife, Laura started Trafficking Hope, an anti-human trafficking campaign that has helped hundreds of victims. Lee was co-Executive Producer of anti-trafficking motion picture, CAGED NO MORE, which released in 2015.

Lee served his home state as Commissioner on the Louisiana Motor Vehicle Commission from 1999 - 2003. Lee was the youngest person to be named 2008 Business Report / Junior Achievement "Businessperson of the Year." In 2014, Lee and his wife Laura received the "Community Leaders of the Year" award from the Cenikor Foundation. Lee has served on various boards like A21 Campaign, Omni Bank and Promise Keepers.

Lee and Laura have been married over 32 years and have 5 children and 7 grandchildren.

www.kingdombuilders.us

#93: Chris O’Hare is an Olympic runner & NCAA champion. He competed in the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro running the 1500m race, as well as six world championships, and won three European Championship medals. In 2012, while he was running for the University of Tulsa, he was the NCAA champion and set a NCAA indoor mile record time of 3.52. 

As you can see Chris is a very accomplished runner, but don’t let the stats deceive you from all of the hard work Chris put in to accomplish those goals. In the show we dive into Chris’s story of growing up in a small town in Scotland, learning to lose, getting a scholarship to run at the University of Tulsa, assessing and adapting, winning the NCAA championship, life as a pro, discipline, the Olympics and much more.

Chris has a great story and a lot of applicable lessons, so be sure to take notes and apply! 

#92: Lee Sherman is the former owner of Hahn Appliance and a tremendous entrepreneur. In 2017 Hahn was the 34th largest appliance company in the United States in Oklahoma with 3 stores.

He bought Hahn in 1983 with just 6 employees and $600,000 in sales. When he retired and sold in 2017 Hahn had grow to 252 employees with over $67 million in sales.

Lee grew up in Oklahoma and Kansas and eventually found himself in the appliance business. He learned early on how to sell through listening, research, and doing the basis, which have been the foundation to how he has grown his business and served others. 

On the show he dives into his story, hard work, surrounding yourself with great people, setting targets, fulfilling your promises, sales, listening, building, growing, and scaling a business, and mastering the basics. 

Lee’s story is a great example of treating people the right way, focusing to achieve a predetermined target, and a masterclass on building a business. Be sure to take notes and enjoy the show!

#91: Brian Thornton is the Commissioner of the Western Athletic Conference, also known as the WAC.

Brian joined the WAC following one year as associate commissioner for basketball at the American Athletic Conference. He joined the American after two year as assistant director for basketball development at the NCAA National Office. 

Before working at the NCAA he was an assistant basketball coach at places like Xavier, Furman, Winthrop, & Ball State. 

Thornton was a standout men's basketball player at Xavier University, where he was the 2005 and 2006 Atlantic 10 Student-Athlete of the Year, a Academic All-America selection and was a first-team all-conference pick for the Musketeers' 2006 Atlantic 10 championship team. He began his playing career at Vanderbilt University, where he was an SEC all-freshman selection in 2002 and played professionally for the Artland Dragons for the Basketball Bundesliga in Germany from 2006-07.

On the show Brian dives into his story, his experiences playing at Vanderbilt, Xavier, and professionally, how hard work is a skill, timing, taking risk, caring for others, developing buy in, trying new things, and much more. 

As I mention in the show, I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to be around him while I was a freshman in college and everything he says he lives. Great leaders don’t just talk the talk they walk it and Brian Thornton certainly does that. 

I could not thing of a better way to start off the Building Excellence in 2023. Enjoy the show!