WANTED: Good Character & Intelligence

Over the recent years, many public schools have placed more emphasis on Character Education and the standardized testing of its students. It appears the NFL is taking a page from its review of potential athletes from this very same premise.

As NFL teams prepared for this week's draft it was more than the individual and group workouts at combines, it was more than agility drills and strength testing, and it was more than watching hundreds of hours of film on a potential draftee. Prospective NFL draft choices were actually given a "general intelligence" test as well as put through background checks by NFL security, many of whom are former FBI agents, searching for issues of character flaws (ie, dishonesty, past drug use, criminal activity, etc.). A league who is realizing by the day that image is everything is placing a new chapter in its recruitment stratgies.

Arguably, a player's intelligence can indicate anything potentially problematic when learning an elaborate NFL playbook, which require a large substance of reading, comprehension skills, and understanding that can indicate the potential coachability of a prospect. In addition, sound character can potentially indicate whether a franchise may need to spend as much time dealing with the off the field antics of a prospect and much as on the field. Character and intelligence is being so serious that some players have actually lost ground in their draft positions.

While I am concerned for the potential racial and cultural biases on standardized testing, I applaud the NFL for progressively looking at ways to improve their image by incorporating intelligence testing and character background checks. It's just another item that supports my view of today's professional athletics. They need to be more than simply a thoroughbred specimen adorned with an uniform. Today's professional athlete must be more intelligent, of sound character, and more sophisticated than ever before. And most importantly, they need to understand life as a professional athlete is only temporary.

Remember my creedo...."100% OF PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES ULTIMATELY EXPERIENCE JOB TERMINATION!"

You can find out more about me, my book, and my transition services at:
www.fromglorydays.com

The Sequel

As the writer of this blog I'm going to take an executive privilege and veer away from the normal weekly focus of this article and answer a question asked more and more of me...what is your next book? I'm hearing this so much that I decided to actually use this blog as the platform to answer this infamous question.

With a bestselling book under my belt (FROM GLORY DAYS - Successful Transitions of Professional Detroit Athletes) I'm compelled to continue on a similiar theme and yet broaden the perspective. I could go on and on with the rationale of my next title, but I'd rather save the creative ink for between the covers...so here it is.

My next book will be about transitions. Specifically, how to successfully face life's diversities and changes head-on. Drawing parallels from my last book, as well as delving further into the research of change and human nature, my next book will help people not simply acknowledge any diversity in their lives, but embrace it and allow the empowering action of variety to catapult them to a new and purposed life.

I could gladly go on and on, but as previously mentioned, I 'd like to save my creative juices for between the covers. So look for my next title relatively soon, that is soon in a writer's sense. FROM GLORY DAYS took me three years to write from start to finish, but don't expect such a lengthy time frame this time.

Stay tuned.....

In the meantime, you can find out more about me and my current book at:
www.fromglorydays.com

Letting Go

I read an article this week about retired NFL quarterback, Brett Favre, and his consideration of not retiring. This struck a chord with me. While Favre has not technically retired or submitted his retirement paperwork, his grand announcement of retirement a few weeks back after 17 years of grueling NFL play drew attention throughout the whole sports community, which leads me to the following discussion.

Sometimes I'm viewed as the Grim-Reaper of professional athletics because of the focus of my expertise....the transition of professional athletes after their final playing days. Seeing me is a reminder of a certain death in a career. While I can totally understand this way of thinking I must precede by saying what I truly desire for every professional athletes is..."PLAY AS LONG AS YOU CAN!" Whatever it takes; knowing the right person, extra long/hard workouts, crafty negotiating on your agent's part, whatever...PLAY, PLAY, PLAY. But at some point you must come to grips with the reality of the fact: 100% of PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES ULTIMATELY EXPERIENCE JOB TERMINATION. This is an undeniable truth.

This leads me to the million dollar question. So when should an athlete let go or give up on the chance of continuing their professional career? Many pro athletes have walked away only to later make an unsuccessful attempt to come back. Many athletes are told to walk away in the form of an injury or release. At what point does an athlete, who has been inundated and en grained with a tenacious spirit of NEVER GIVE UP actually give up? In my opinion, this is no-doubt the most difficult part of a professional athlete's transition from sports and the very first step that must occur in order to answer this question is getting through any denial. Denial that "I can still play," denial that "I will get picked up," denial that "I miss the game and want to make a come back two years after I initially retired."

In my SUCCESSFUL TRANSITION PLAN FOR PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES the "L" in my PLAN acronym of R.U.L.E.S. is LET GO. Letting Go oftentimes takes years to truly accomplish. I use the example of Detroit Pistons' announcer and former NBA player, Greg Kelser. For many years Greg needed to spend time in a gym, or play in organized AAU tournaments during his first years out of the NBA, especially after broadcasting basketball games. Not that he didn't do his job or do it well, but after broadcasting a game Greg found those competitive juices flowing, often thinking "I should still be out there playing." Over time, Greg finally was able to totally let go of this feeling, only to move even further into the next phase of his career and life.

There is a lesson to be learned from Greg Kelser and all of the athletes that have ultimately LET GO of those Glory Days and moved on to the next phase of their lives. So whether Brett Favre decides to not retire or not. Whether all of the other pro athletes that have retired or been cut only to try and make a come back, try to make a come back...understand this...no matter when or how it happens, know that Letting Go MUST happen in order for a professional athlete to truly find success again in that next phase.

You can find out more about me, my R.U.L.E.S. and my bestselling book at: www.fromglorydays.com