The Traits You Need For Sports Industry Success – Work In Sports Podcast - a podcast by Brian Clapp - Work in Sports

Hey everybody I’m Brian Clapp, VP of Content and Engaged Learning for WorkInSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast…







Alright, this is the first time I’m speaking about this publicly, I have some big news about the podcast. Something exciting and important. 







Over the last decade, we’ve all watched at sports figures have opened up to the world. Whether via Players Tribune, their own social accounts, their voice in press conferences, what they wear, and how they display their world views - we have gotten to know athletes better. 







As I have said many times prior -- In my era, we never really knew how guys like Joe Montana, Michael Jordan, Wayne Gretzky, and Rickey Henderson felt about the world. We knew how they played, and how they acted as teammates...and that was about it. 















Back in June when George Floyd was murdered and peaceful protests took over the streets of our nation... they also took over the arenas. Athletes used their voice, sports became a greater vehicle and platform for social justice and expression. 







I for one love this. I hate the “shut up and dribble” as if athletes were placed her to sing and dance and run for us… just to entertain. These are human beings with important views and global impact. 







At the same time as George Floyd, a group of diverse young professionals also stood out from the rest of the crowd. The 2020 cohort of the  Minor League Baseball FIELD program, which stands for  'Fostering Inclusion through Education and Leadership Development' spoke up, loud and clear, when Minor League baseball was silent. 







At the time I was impressed with their unity, fearlessness, and voice. I only wish I had this strength at their age. I began connecting with each and every member of the cohort, offering to help them with their careers and network. 







And one young woman, Adrienne Brown, took it one step further. She asked is we could do a series of podcasts with the FIELD cohort to discuss being young and diverse while trying to work and make a name for yourself in the sports industry. 







Enthusiastically I said yes. 







In the month of October, we will debut our 4-part series titled Moving Forward and featuring young diverse professionals speaking their truth and sharing their experiences. We just conducted our first interview sessions last week, and I couldn’t have been more impressed with our first two guests -- Jalen Mitchell an incredibly impressive student at Howard University and Gerald Taylor, a recent graduate of Virginia State who is trying to stand out in the world of diversity and inclusion. 







The conversations are eye-opening, and important. Please listen with an open heart and mind. 







Ok, on to today’s question… Keisha from Chicago…







“Hi Brian, I’ve heard you recently in two different zoom sessions and I was captivated by your talks -- you have a very engaging demeanor and speak with so much passion! I have a follow-up question if you don’t mind answering it. You talked about the most important traits you need for the sports industry - being competitive, coachable, and curious. I wrote them down to keep me inspired. But I have a question… is being competitive just another way of saying work hard?”







Keisha -- I am so excited by this question. You submitted it via LinkedIn and many times I...

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