Ganon Baker is regarded as one of the premier basketball skill coaches in the World. He has been around the game of basketball, the skill training business and the coaching world for over 30 years. Since June 2001, Ganon has been traveling all over the globe impacting the game of basketball via player training, coaching clinics and coach mentorship. He has delivered knowledge filled with energy, passion, and love for basketball and people in 48 US states, 47 countries, 5 continents – while reach...
Apr 27, 2020•34 min•Ep. 144
Nate Bain is the social media manager for the NFL's Tennessee Titans. He joined the club in 2017 after three seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, where he was the team's digital media manager. As social media manager, he is responsible for all the club's social media accounts, strategy and content ideation. Bain has also worked in the athletic departments at the University of Tennessee and the University of Oregon. In today’s episode, we discuss: Tips for getting into the sports industry Engaging ...
Apr 22, 2020•36 min•Ep. 143
Dr. Karissa L. Niehoff is the executive director of the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) in Indianapolis, Indiana. She is the first female to head the national leadership organization for high school athletics and performing arts activities and the sixth full-time executive director of the NFHS, which celebrated its 100th year of service during the 2018-19 school year. She previously was executive director of the Connecticut Association of Schools-Connecticut Intersch...
Apr 16, 2020•30 min•Ep. 142
Adrian Griffin won a World Championship as the lead assistant coach for the Toronto Raptors in 2020. He played in the NBA from 1999-2008 after a stellar career at Seton Hall University. In 2010 he was inducted into the Seton Hall athletic Hall of Fame. Prior to serving as the Raptors lead assistant coach, he also spent time on the sidelines for Oklahoma City, Orlando Magic, Chicago Bulls, and the Milwaukee Bucks. Next year he'll have each of his three children playing Division I basketball (Duke...
Apr 06, 2020•39 min•Ep. 141
Ben Curtis won the 2003 Open Championship at Royal St. George's as a rookie in only his 16th start on the PGA Tour. He became the first golfer in 90 years to win a major championship in his first try. He would go on to win a total of four PGA events. Curtis also was the runnerup at the 2012 PLAYERS Championship and a member of the 2008 Ryder Cup Championship Team. Prior to his professional career, he was formerly the world's number one ranked amateur after winning three Ohio Amateur titles, earn...
Mar 30, 2020•42 min•Ep. 140
Hope you are all staying safe, positive, and encouraged during these unprecedented times. We are replaying episode 13 with Betsy Butterick. She is one of my favorite people to listen to. Every time we are speaking at the same conferences, I make a point to go to her sessions. She has great insights and definitely deserves the description of a "communication specialist". She has recently been doing a lot of work helping people navigate these murky waters of social distancing and how to stay engag...
Mar 27, 2020•33 min
Adam Gordon spent 17 years in the coaching industry, making stops from the JUCO level to High-major Power 5 basketball. In 2010, along with Andy Farrell, he co-founded a company called Rising Coaches with the mission of servicing the coaching industry. In June of 2019, he stepped away from his coaching career and decided to run Rising Coaches full-time. He is now growing his passion project which has an incredible following, support and brand awareness into a profitable business that helps baske...
Mar 24, 2020•26 min•Ep. 139
Michael Lombardi spent three decades in the NFL as an executive with the 49ers, Browns, Eagles and Raiders. From 2014-16 he was also an assistant to the coaching staff of the Patriots. In addition to his current work with The Athletic, he’s also worked for other media outlets, including Sports Illustrated, the NFL Network, NFL.com and The Ringer. He is a frequent guest on talk shows, podcasts, and NFL shows. Lombardi worked alongside such NFL legends as Bill Belichick, Bill Walsh, and Al Davis. ...
Mar 17, 2020•32 min•Ep. 138
Mark Immelman is currently the host of the "On the Mark" podcast on pgatour.com. He also covers live golf for the PGA TOUR on their live-streaming mobile app, PGA TOUR Live, on SiriusXM PGA TOUR Radio and for Golf Channel and CBS Sports. In addition to his broadcasting career, he's also the Director of Golf at Columbus State University and the author of Scandalously Simple: The Easy Way to Accurate Golf Shots . Mark is the older brother of 2008 Masters champion, Trevor Immelman and son of former...
Feb 25, 2020•35 min•Ep. 137
This is a replay of one of our more popular episodes (#47 with Alicia Jessop). Alicia recently gained a great deal of attention when her $22 Maine lobster roll was stolen out of her hand by a seagull. It was all caught on camera and the photobombing seagull became one of CNN's best pictures of 2019. Below are the original show notes from Alicia's episode... Alicia Jessop is a much sought after expert in the sports business industry. She is the founder of RulingSports.com and a sports law profess...
Feb 13, 2020•38 min
Lori Thomas is the commissioner of the Heart of America Athletic Conference . Prior to leading the HAAC, she was the Senior Vice President for Membership and Character Initiatives at the NAIA. Thomas has also been a collegiate volleyball coach and professional volleyball player. In addition to her current leadership position, she is also a speaker with Proactive Coaching . Click here to see Lori's full bio In today’s episode, we discuss: Transitioning from the national office to becoming the NAI...
Feb 10, 2020•26 min•Ep. 136
Webb Simpson won this past week's Waste Management Phoenix Open in a playoff against Tony Finau. As usual, Simpson's trusted right-hand man (Paul Tesori) was by his side the entire time. In fact, it was probably all Paul when Webb hit his first hole-in-one of his professional career on Saturday. In honor of Simpson winning, we thought this would be a good time to replay our 2018 episode when Paul Tesori joined us. Paul is very well-respected and has a great personality. You are sure to enjoy thi...
Feb 06, 2020•37 min
Jennifer A. Garrett is an internationally recognized author, life coach, and motivational speaker. She is the host of the "Move The Ball" podcast and the author of "Move The Ball". Jennifer currently works as an executive coach, corporate consultant, and Judge Advocate in the Army National Guard. She has seven college degrees: Bachelor of Science (B.S.) in Electrical Engineering, B.S. in Biomedical Engineering, Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.), Master of Arts (M.A.) in Communication an...
Feb 03, 2020•26 min•Ep. 135
With the Super Bowl being played in a couple of days, we thought it would be good to replay a popular interview that we had with 2x Super Bowl champion, Gary Reasons. You can see the complete show notes below ... Gary Reasons spent nine years as a linebacker in the National Football League. He was a fourth round draft pick in 1984 by the New York Giants and was instrumental in helping the team win two Championships, Super Bowl XXI & XXV. As a team leader, he was elected by his teammates to t...
Jan 30, 2020•35 min
Bill Curry has been the head football coach at Alabama, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, and Georgia State. He was a 2x SEC Coach of the Year, ACC Coach of the Year, as well as the National Coach of the Year in 1989 for the Alabama Crimson Tide. Before embarking upon a coaching career, he played 10 years in the NFL as a Center. He played in Super Bowls I, III, and V, winning two Super Bowl rings with the Packers and the Colts. Click here to read Coach Curry's complete resume and biography. You can find o...
Jan 27, 2020•29 min•Ep. 134
The Kansas City Chiefs are in next week’s Super Bowl so we wanted to replay our interview with former Chiefs Wide Receiver J.J. Birden. This was a fun conversation as we talked about a lot of great topics, including JJ catching passes from Joe Montana. Ironically, Montana played for both the 49ers and Chiefs during his career. I guess regardless of the Super Bowl outcome, his team will be a winner. J.J. also shared a great story about adopting five kids at once. He is now a highly regarded motiv...
Jan 23, 2020•40 min
Jim Johnson won more than 400 games as a high high school basketball coach. He only had one losing record in his 30 years of being a head coach. However, he is probably best known for what he did in 2006. His kindhearted gesture of giving an autistic student (now known affectionately as “J-Mac”) on his team the chance to make his dream come true has captivated the hearts of millions of Americans. How could it not? With the help of his teammates, J-Mac scored twenty points (including six three-po...
Jan 20, 2020•30 min•Ep. 133
In today's "Motivational Minute", leadership expert Jamy Bechler reminds us of how dominating Michael Phelps was in the Olympic swimming pool and how we can replicate some of his mindset in our daily lives. The "Motivational Minute" is part of the Success is a Choice podcast network . It's a quick thought designed to help you inspire yourself and those around you. - - - - Each week, the Success is a Choice podcasting network brings you leadership expert Jamy Bechler and guest experts who provide...
Dec 30, 2019•1 min
Episode 075 with Emily Chapman Richards was one of our most popular episodes. Since appearing on our podcast, Emily was named the Executive Director of Show Hope. If you originally heard the episode, it still might be worth listening to again as Emily has a bunch of great stories to share. If this is the first time, then you are in for a treat! Emily Chapman Richards is the vice president of Show Hope , an organization whose mission is to care for orphans and reduce barriers to adoption. Show Ho...
Dec 16, 2019•33 min
Jake Thompson is the Founder & Chief Encouragement Officer at the global lifestyle brand Compete Every Day. He is a speaker, writer, & active participant in life. Prior to launching CED, Jake spent years in both the sports representation industry & later, as a creative & strategic marketing consultant. Now, he is focused on utilizing his passion for changing lives to remind all that their life is worth competing for. For Jake everyday is a competition against pride, comfort zone,...
Dec 12, 2019•29 min•Ep. 132
"The Bus Trip", Jamy Bechler's third book, was released on 11/25/19. The modern-day sports leadership fable can help student-athletes understand how to be better teammates and more positive leaders. Lexis Garcia, a current college athlete, came on the show to share her thoughts after reading the book. For more information, please visit www.TheBusTripBook.com
Nov 27, 2019•11 min•Ep. 131
The U.S. Marshals is the oldest American Federal law enforcement agency. The service was created way back during the presidency of George Washington. Joining a long and storied list of American lawmen, in 2003, Peter Elliott was appointed by President George W. Bush as a U.S. Marshal. Since then, he has been retained by presidents Barack Obama and Donald Trump. Elliot is one of only 94 U.S. marshals appointed by the president to oversee a judicial district within their state. He is the longest-s...
Nov 22, 2019•31 min•Ep. 130
Jon Beck is a must-follow on twitter for coaches and athletes. After his stellar playing career at Division I Arkansas State University, he went on to have a successful career as both a boys and girls basketball coach in Tennessee. He has been trained at Nike Skills and Pure Sweat clinics and coaches academies and has worked Nike Elite camps and completed a summer internship in Los Angeles, CA for Drew Hanlen of Pure Sweat Basketball, where he has worked with several NBA players. He now offers s...
Oct 17, 2019•32 min•Ep. 129
Swen Nater won two NCAA Championships as a basketball player for the legendary John Wooden at UCLA. He would become the first player to ever be a NBA first round draft choice despite never starting a college game. During the 1973-74 season, Swen would earn ABA Rookie of the Year status. He would go on to play professional basketball for 12 years for the Lakers, Clippers, Bucks, Spurs, and Nets. He is the only player in basketball history to lead the ABA and the NBA in rebounding. At the 2004 NBA...
Oct 09, 2019•33 min•Ep. 128
Patti Phillips is the CEO of women leaders in college sports. This is the nation’s premier organization that develops, connects and advances women working in collegiate athletics. Patti Phillips is the former president of the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. In 2015, she was a recipient of the NCAA’s Champion of Diversity Award. Phillips has served as the CEO of the Women Leaders in College Sports (formerly known as NACWAA) since 2010. In her time as CEO, the association has seen triple-digit gr...
Sep 26, 2019•29 min•Ep. 127
Mark Fauser is the author of "Because of Burt" and "Cool's Angel". He has been a television and movie actor, director, screenwriter, and producer. He had parts in such shows as Jag, Evening Shade, Coach, SeaQuest, and Quantum Leap. He moved from Hollywood to Marion, Indiana in the early 2000’s and proceeded to help build up the Community School of the Arts as the Executive Director. He has continued to add value to the Marion community as the Director of Marketing for the City and currently serv...
Sep 26, 2019•25 min•Ep. 126
Laura Gassner Otting has appeared on Good Morning America and the Today Show talking about how to live a limitless life. Her book “Limitless: How to Ignore Everybody, Carve Your Own Path, and Live Your Best Life” has been a Washington Post and Amazon best-seller. Highly recognized for her impact within the nonprofit sector, Laura Gassner Otting is Founder & CEO of Nonprofit Professionals Advisory Group, a member of multiple nonprofit boards and a thought leader on mission-driven work. With h...
Sep 12, 2019•36 min•Ep. 125
Dr. Jon Steinbrecher is the commissioner of the Mid-American Conference. He has held the position since 2009. He was previously the commissioner of the Ohio Valley Conference. In July of 2019, Steinbrecher became the first Division 1 commissioner to be elected to a NCAA council leadership position when he was elected as vice chair of the NCAA Division 1 Council. Steinbrecher has previously worked on the NCAA Football Oversight Committee and the NCAA Football Competition Committee, and currently ...
Aug 29, 2019•29 min•Ep. 124
Heather Macy is a college basketball coach and author of "Two Feet Forward" . She is also the founder of the non-profit Influence and Impacters. Macy is a highly requested speaker at civic organizations, hospitals, schools, non-profit organizations, plus in private industry. During these presentations, topics like teamwork, accountability, and discipline to achieve success are explored. One of only 300 coaches in the country Macy received a Certification in Emotional Intelligence (EQ) in 2016. S...
Aug 05, 2019•30 min•Ep. 123
In light of UCLA's 2019 softball national championship, we are replaying this great interview with Hall of Famer, Sue Enquist. Coach Enquist was UCLA Softball’s first All-American, National Champion, and Hall of Famer. In 2006, Enquist concluded her storied 27-year career as head coach of the UCLA Bruins with a 887-175-1 (.835) record, making her the winningest softball coach among all active coaches. She is the only person in NCAA Softball history to win a championship as a head coach and a play...
Jun 25, 2019•27 min
