EPISODE 14 SHOW NOTES

0:00 - 3:45 - Introducing Kofi Hughes

Meet my good friend Kofi. An Indianapolis born & raised retired professional athlete turned performance coach & gym owner in Naperville, IL. Learn about his background and upbringing, and how we got to this point in his career today!

3:45 - 12:00 - The Current State of College Recruiting

Kofi talks about his high school and college recruiting process and the decision to switch from QB to WR, which brings up Justin & Kofi’s personal thoughts on the current state of college recruiting in 2020.

12:00 - 19:30 - The Transformation of Kofi Hughes

Kofi takes us through the huge ups and the steep downs of his college and pro career, the demons he battled and how he was about to level up mentally & spiritually. This story was covered by The Indianapolis Star recently.

19:30 - 27:30 - The Identity Crisis of an Athlete

You can’t identify yourself as the sport you play or the job you do. Let your character speak for you. Let your influence on others speak for you. Don’t let things you do, that could possibly end, be what defines you.

27:30 - 38:48 - The Mindset Shift

“Be transformed by the renewal of your mind.” How Romans 12:2 helped Kofi change, by changing his mindset and creating a spiritual relationship with God.

38:38 - 47:00 - Helping Kids Reach Their Potential

Kofi dives into his coaching mentality and his favorite parts of the “job,” including watching his athletes grow up and move into the real world as men and women.

47:00 - 54:30 - COVID 19 Reflections from a Gym Owner

Kofi and Justin share thoughts and reflections as gym owners during the COVID-19 pandemic.

54:30 - 1:10:00 - How Kofi Became a Lululemon Ambassador

How Kofi went from being a Lululemon customer to being featured in their ads and helping create their first-ever football content.

1:10:00 - THE FIRE ROUND!!!

Episode 13 Show Notes

0:00 - 8:11: Who is Sampson and what does he do?

Sampson talks about his deep ties to Indiana. From growing up in Indy as a 3-time state champion, going to play football at Indiana State and launching his history-driven company Through 2 Eyes. Sampson also dives into what T2E does and how to get involved.

8:11 - 15:15: How Sampson became the PACE wide receivers coach

Sampson talks about expectations vs. reality of the life of a former college/pro athlete and how he ended up back at his old high school coaching. This led him to meeting Eric, my business partner, and becoming a part of the PACE team.

15:15 - 20:10: Sports… and history?

Talking about the impact sports can have on a city, and the deep history of sports in Indianapolis.

20:10 - 30:30: What is a WALK & TALK TOUR?

The flagship product from Through 2 Eyes is the Walk & Talk Guided Tour, a 90-minute walk around Indianapolis, exploring the rich black history that lives right in the city! Sampson gives us the three major takeaways from the tour.

30:30 - 38:00: The POWER in knowing your history

How to get to know yourself on a deeper level and how that can benefit you and those around you. All knowledge is self-knowledge.

38:00 - 46:40: The power of asking WHY!

Poor leaders tell you what they do. Decent leaders tell you how they do it. Great leaders tell you WHY they do it.

46:40 - 58:20: Common sense makes you question things

Sampson talks about how his common sense has made it extremely simple to uncover history and learn more for his tours and projects. We also discuss the ‘path of least resistance’ and how to avoid that.

58:20 - 1:07:40: Why do people care about the opinions of people they don’t even like?

In society, people buy things and do things to impress people who they don’t even like, or who don’t like them. Sampson talks about the model of catering to your fans, rather than attracting new ones.

1:07:40 - 1:14:00: Cater to your people

Sampson tells us about Madame CJ Walker, the first self-made black woman to become a millionaire, her impact, her WHY and how we can all do the same.

1:14:00 - THE FIRE ROUND!!

Episode 12 Show Notes

0:00 - 2:30 - Intro

Getting to know Kyle Neddenriep. Learn about Kyle’s journey to becoming the High School Sports Reporter of the Indianapolis Star, going on 13 years!

2:30 - 5:30 - Building up a network as a journalist

Kyle talks about how important trust is in his profession, which is a lesson that can be used in any aspect of life or careers.

5:30 - 13:30 - Challenges of print media in the new generation

Kyle and Justin discuss the “new age” of news, which is much more digitally driven. Kyle notes some keys to publishing great work in a print-based medium, while leveraging social media & technology.

13:30 - 19:30 - Covering sports in a world with no sports

Reflecting on the outbreak of COVID-19 in Indianapolis, the effects of the pandemic and covering sports in a world with no sports going on.

19:30 - 36:00 - When sports come back, what will that look like?

When sports finally come back… what will that even look like? Kyle discusses some of the really odd adjustments that news sources will need to make when we go back to “normal.” Also, we touch on the recruitment, club season and overall changes that will occur due to COVID-19.

36:00 - THE FIRE ROUND!!!

Episode 11 Show Notes

In this episode, my friend & fellow strength coach allowed me to take the audio from his podcast and share it on my own platform. Kelvin King Jr. is a coach and mentor in the DMV area, hosting his #CrucialConversations podcast centered around racism, activism and social justice. I was lucky enough to be a guest on his show, loved the conversation and wanted to share our convo on this platform to reach a potentially new audience. Make sure you check out Kelvin on social media, as he's doing great work in and outside of the gym!

0:00 - 06:10 - Meeting Derick Grant

Get to know Derick, a former Harlem Globetrotter of 8 years, turned basketball skills trainer and author!

06:10 - 08:15 - Mindset after a pro career in sports

Derick speaks on his post-basketball mindset. The principles and mentality of being an athlete never leaves you. You can carry them into your next chapter of life.

08:15 - 13:15 - RESULTS: An Athlete’s Devotional

Derick opens up about some dark times in his life that led to him authoring a life-changing book, RESULTS: An Athlete’s Devotional.

13:15 - 17:00 - Public Speaking & Being “MORE THAN…”

You are more than your job title. If you limit yourself to just being that job title, the world will never know your true value and impact. Always strive to do more, reach more people and help others.

17:00 - 24:30 - How to find your WHY

Any coach can tell you what they do. A good coach can tell you how they do it. A great coach can tell you WHY they do it. Justin and Derick jump into a great conversation of how they found their WHY.

24:30 - 33:00 - How to translate training to the real game

Transitioning from finding your WHY, Derick talks about how athletes can use their WHY and their MINDS to translate training into their game. You can actually improve if you improve your mental game and do absolutely no extra training. Confidence comes from competence.

33:00 - 37:00 - Kyle Guy’s Incredible Mentality

Derick, who has trained Kyle Guy since high school, talks about Guy’s incredible work ethic and mentality. The Virginia team led by Guy was the first ever #1 seed to lose to a #16 seed, then turned around the next year and won the title behind Guy’s heroic play.

37:00 - 46:30 - Cut from a different cloth

Faith. Work Ethic. Sacrifice. The three things that make you “cut from a different cloth.” And… genetics!

46:30 - 57:00 - The FIRE ROUND!

Episode 9 Show Notes

0:00 - 2:45 - Introducing Nathan Huffstutter

Nathan is the Project Manager & Editor at SimpliFaster, an elite level soccer coach, consultant and freelance writer with a great background in sports and marketing. Get ready to dive-in to this great episode!

2:45 - 10:25 - What is SimpliFaster

How SimpliFaster was founded, how the blog became one of the go-to online resources in S&C and how Nathan found his way to SimpliFaster.

10:25 - 15:30 - Nathan discusses his professional journey

From college, to script-reading, to editorials, to freelancing, learn how Nathan gained crucial experience in the world of physical preparation that allowed him to add value to his writing & editing career.

15:30 - 26:40 - Great coaches vs. Great writers vs. People who do both

Nathan goes in-depth on his editing process, as well as his own writing process. If you’re interested in getting published, this is a must-hear segment. “You have to be someone who finishes things…”

26:40 - 31:30 - Attention is more valuable than time

Nathan drops some gems on how writers can grab & hold the readers’ attention and why it’s so important to do it in a certain way.

31:30 - 37:30 - How has COVID-19 impact the online education industry

With blog numbers way up and blog submissions coming by the masses, Nathan sheds light on some of the challenges, benefits and innovations SimpliFaster has experienced during the pandemic.

37:30 - 41:00 - How to get published on SimpliFaster!

WRITE ABOUT WHAT YOU’RE PASSIONATE ABOUT.

41:00 - 47:00 - The #1 thing holding you back

You probably haven’t submitted an article due to the fear of it being repetitive or “old” info. Nathan touches on why that is holding you back and why you should just submit it instead.

47:00 - 53:15 - The FIRE ROUND!!!

As always, I put Nathan through the fire round and he gets through it like a champ! Make sure you follow Nathan on Twitter here and head to SimpliFaster.com!

[READ ON LINKEDIN HERE!]

If you google the ingredients to make a cake, you’ll find:

If you look deeper, you’ll find the specific amounts of each ingredient needed. If you keep looking even deeper, you’ll find mixing and baking instructions. Do it all, and you’ll have yourself a nice cake.

If you give that same recipe to 3 different chefs and tell them to make you the best cake possible, you will get 3 different cakes. Some more sweet than others. Some more fluffy than others. Some may be different shapes than others. Every great chef will put their own spin on even the simplest of recipes.

This is how I feel about communication, coaching and leading a team. Every coach, manager, executive in every setting knows the proper ingredients to bake their cake.

Ineffective leaders are those who bake their cakes the same way for every single person on their team. For lack of a better term, a cookie-cutter approach.

The most effective leaders know that rather than baking one cake for the entire team, they need to bake individual cakes, with subtle differences for everyone on that team.

This is communication. Assuming everyone is going to respond the same way to different forms of coaching, feedback, instruction, etc. is going to lead to some real friction.

In Brett Bartholomew’s book, Conscious Coaching, he makes a great point that the “golden rule” is flawed. The golden rule states, “Treat others as you’d want to be treated.”

No. Treat others the way THEY want to be treated.

Episode 8 Show Notes

0:00 - 9:00 - Introducing Mike Anderson

Mike discusses his route into personal training, strength and conditioning and what he’s currently doing in San Diego, CA.

9:00 - 34:00 - Lessons Learned from a Fitness Journeyman

Mike has worked in pretty much every setting a fitness professional can work in. From commercial gyms to sports performance facilities to schools and everything in-between, Mike gives us some great takeaways from each scenario.

37:00 - 49:00 - Mike's “beef” with David Weck

Mike tells the story of how he and David Weck got into an ongoing internet duel. Hilarious!

49:00 - 1:03:00 - Mike’s Triad System

Mike dives into his custom coaching system, The Triad System, and who can benefit from it.

1:03:00 - 1:11:14 - The FIRE ROUND!

Mike says a hot dog is a sandwich among other questionable things in the always entertaining FIRE ROUND! 

An excerpt from the Gen Z Playbook: Chapter 3, Lesson 1

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Read on LinkedIn here!

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According to Britt Andreatta, an expert in leadership & neuroscience, the key to better relationships boils down to emotional intelligence.

I’m sure we’re all familiar with the term IQ (intelligence quotient), which is a quantitative measurement of an individual's reasoning, visual-spatial processing, working memory and overall knowledge.

Emotional intelligence, or EQ, is the quantitative measurement of an individual’s self-awareness, self-control, awareness of others, relationship-building skills and overall management of relationships.

To create our best relationships, we must improve our EQ. Before we can improve our relationships with others, we must improve our relationships with ourselves. Part that equation is a phrase coined by Andreatta; Survive, Belong, Become. Research shows that the human brain is hard-wired for those three things. We want to survive. We want to belong. We want to become. This is primal and permanent.

Knowing this sets the foundation for improving your EQ, but it also serves as the foundation for a model specific to Gen Z athletes. We follow the 3E model - Environment, Encouragement, Enrichment. This gives us 3 buckets to fill when developing a relationship with each athlete that we work with.

The key takeaway here is that each step builds on top of the previous. You must provide the environment and encouragement to get to the enrichment. Trying to achieve these three things out of order will not lead to longevity in the relationship. In fact, it often leads to toxicity and disappointment.

In the next 3 lessons we will unpack each of the three E’s and get a better understanding out how we can improve our ability to provide each of them to our athletes.

For more info, head to www.GenZPlaybook.com!

Episode 7 Show Notes

0:00 - 4:00 - Introducing Mitch Gill

Mitch covers his wide variety of experience as an undergrad student, graduate student, and athletic trainer at the D1 and high school level.

4:00 - 5:30 - How a group started from an internet connection and made us real friends.

Justin & Mitch discuss how they met online through S&C networking and have become close friends to this day!

5:30 - 12:20 - What’s the difference between an athletic trainer & a strength coach?

Mitch discusses the difference between his two roles - athletic trainer & strength coach - and talks about his responsibilities, challenges and innovation. Mitch also dives into his current high school and the amazing athletes he gets to work with daily!

12:20 - 16:00 - High School vs. College Athlete

Justin and Mitch talk about the major jump when going from high school to college, and how the “eye test” can help coaches spot future stars.

16:00 - 30:52 - High School, College & Pros: Where’s the Impact?

Mitch & Justin go over some of the challenges and obstacles when working with advanced athletes, versus the potentially greater impact you can have on youth athletes.

30:52 - 35:40 - A day in the life of Mitch!

What does a husband, father, strength coach, athletic trainer do daily?

35:40 - 56:00 - IMPORTANT!!! How to return to sport after quarantine?

Unpacking the very complicated scenario of returning to sport after the COVID-19 quarantine. Mitch dives deep on this topic and gives some incredible takeaways.

56:00 - 1:09:52 - The FIRE ROUND!!!

As always, we end this episode with the legendary fire round.

Make sure you follow Mitch on Instagram here!