THE OLE' GRAY MARE

The lyrics of a legendary song is silently sung in the minds of many former NFL players. "The Ole' Gray Mare Just Ain't What She Used to Be," perhaps not written with former professional athletes in mind, but exemplifies the physical and emotional digression which occurs during and especially after a career in professional sports.

With the assistance of some longevity statistics, the NFL has recognized this concern and is coming to the aide of many ole' gray mares. According to the National Center for Health Statistics and cardiologist, Jeffrey Boone, an NFL veteran's life span is 16 to 22 years less than the average American male. The average NFL career spans 3.52 seasons and it is estimated that a player loses two to three years off their life expectancy for every season played. A sobering stat, which is dependent on their NFL position. NFL linemen are especially considered prone to heart and cardiovascular conditions that put them at high risk for heart attacks or strokes.

Come to the rescue....the Gridiron Greats and Health Force Partners who are working in conjunction with the NFL and NFLPA in order to offer hip and joint replacement, as well as heart and other cardiovascular screening. Health Force Partners is hoping to screen 10,000 former players over the course of the next few years according to Boone.

The battery of tests run on each player costs between $2,000 and $3,000 and is being paid by an alliance of the NFL, NFLPA, NFL Alumni, and the NFL Hall of Fame. After experiencing the screening one former NFL offensive lineman stated, "It changed everything I did last year. When they tell you that you have a body of a 68 year-old-man it gets your attention."

While healing the physical scars left from a modern gladiator sport is commendable, unfortunately, it is often we overlook the emotional ones, too. As we continue to mend our broken heroes let's not forget to assist in the not so obvious, emotional side of this process, as well.

Watch for further discussion to occur on this topic in future blog posts.

You can find out more at: www.fromglorydays.com

PEAK PERFORMANCE

The winning est coach in men's college basketball once stated, "Mental is to physical, as four is to one." Yogi Berra is quoted as saying, "It's 80 percent mental, the other half is physical," when discussing the mental aspect of professional sports. Though, Berra's math might be slightly off both he and Bobby Knight's emphasis on the mental side of sports says it all.

Understanding this, the LA Dodgers recently hired a sports psychologist from a Toronto consulting firm to assist the beleaguered franchise. The focus of the consultant is to work extensively in the area of performance enhancement, motivation, and injury recovery. During Spring Training in Arizona, players were asked to complete online profiles if they wanted to be assessed.

As franchises understand only one or two games may separate a pennant race, General Managers and Coaches are looking to many things to gain an edge. "When a team has $100 to $150 million invested into its players, hiring a psychologist makes sense," University of Missouri associate professor, Mike Stadler, commented. "It's like the Dodgers hired another coach."

It's great that teams are understanding more and more the importance of addressing the mental side of sports. Squeezing the most potential out of every player with the use of sports psychology. But after optimizing and fine tuning these thoroughbreds to perform at their peak performance, what happens when those playing days are done. How does an athlete convert this enhanced way of thinking back into normal, everyday life? The REAL WORLD, so to speak.

I believe I have the key. Converting this peak athletic performance into peak post-athletic performance is essential to success in a professional athlete's next phase of their life. My SUCCESSFUL TRANSITION PLAN FOR PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES does exactly that....setting up athletes for as much success out of the stadium of sports as they had while in it.

You can find out more at: www.fromglorydays.com

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

Hip-Hip Hooray for the NFLPA

The decision to play professional football probably was not a hard one, but what to do after those glory days are over probably is. After many years of justified and unjustified criticism for not taking care of its own the NFL Players Association is looking to help with that decision via their Business Management and Entrepreneurial Program.

One Hundred and fourteen NFL players completed the three page application and took this program this winter. The courses are intense, last four days, and could cost thousands of dollars, but players get reimbursed upon completion.

Since its advent in 2005, the Business Management and Entrepreneurial Program has become a handful of programs the NFL and players union has put into place to help players adapt to life after the final horn has sounded. Newly elected NFLPA President, Kevin Mawae, wants to not only focus on past players but the young, current ones, as well. "Educating the young guys...," he said, "...and the older guys (in order) to get them to understand how important it is that we continue to educate the young guys."

100% of Professional Athletes Ultimately Experience Job Termination. Out of those players and according to NFL stats:

- 25% are bankrupt within their first year out
-50% are divorced within their first year out
-75% are either bankrupt or divorced within their first five years out

Hats off to President Mawae and the NFLPA for finally recognizing that there is an issue and acting proactively. Let's hope programs like the Business Management and Entrepreneurial Program and attitudes like Kevin Mawae's continue for the betterment of professional athletes as they transition back into normal, everyday lives.

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

From Parquet to Politics

IT'S OFFICIAL!!!! Twelve year NBA veteran running for Mayor!

Now there's a headline you don't see everyday, but for former Phoenix Suns, Kevin Johnson, that headline has come true. Kevin has traded in his notoriety on the parquet (hardwood) for a shot at politics, declaring his entrance into the Sacramento mayoral race approximately ten days ago.

Johnson, a Sacramento native and current landowner/developer in the area, put his decision for running in pretty simple terms. "I came to the unequivocal decision that we need a change in this city, and we need a change now," he told a local reporter. "Right now, people see our government as nonresponsive, tired, uninspired, and bureaucratic," he added.

Kevin Johnson has been anything but uninspired and non-responsive since his retirement from the NBA in 2000, Johnson has been back in the Sacramento area focusing on improving neighborhoods and even developing an organization called, St. HOPE, which is a non-profit started by Johnson that runs Sacramento Charter High School.

Since running the team's offenses as a point-guard for the Suns, I'm uncertain if Kevin Johnson ever had intent of running for a mayoral race after his departure from the NBA. But I am certain of this....Johnson has demonstrated one of the key R.U.L.E.S. of my Successful Transition Plan for Professional Athletes....REFOCUSING!

Refocusing is an imperative aspect of a professional athletes' successful transition, and the best way to refocus is to re-evaluate and set new goals. These news goals help establish a new sense of purpose, something intrumental during the process of losing the "athlete-identity" and re-establishing this renewed purpose for the professional athlete.

Whether Kevin Johnson is actually able to fully make that transition from parquet to politics will yet to be determined by the voters of Sacramento, California. But he has already won my vote for being a model former professional athlete, and demonstrating how to Refocus the peak performance principles he once applied into his athletic craft back into normal, everyday life. I hope he does win, simply because of that.

To find out more about me, my book, and my transition services for professional athletes please go to: www.fromglorydays.com