Champions Circle
1 /Be a connected leader.
“You have to get to know the people
you are leading in order to know
how to get the most out of
them. Beyond that, open and honest
communication is paramount. You
are not always going to be making
the popular decision, but you need
to make sure those affected by it
understand the reasoning.”2 /Define your own success.
“In business, the focus in competi-
tiveness is not as much on beating
the team in the other dugout but in
making your venture successful,
however you decide to measure
success for the endeavor.”3 /Prep matters most.
“Without preparation, there would
be no accomplishments. While, yes,
I am proud of various accolades,
I am most proud of the work I put in
day in and day out leading up to
those moments.”4 /Compete against yourself.
“There is a degree of personal pride
in the amount of work you put in
toward achieving your potential. I
can’t always expect to be the best
at everything, but I don’t ever want
to end a day feeling like I didn’t give
all I could toward whatever I faced
that day.”The Most Entrepreneurial
Athletes of 2017
Check out Entrepreneur.com for our full list. Here, some of the highlights.
TheYankeegreat,MiamiMarlinsCEO,andPlayers’
Tribunefoundertellsuswhatpusheshim.
A
thletes make for potent entrepreneurs: Their careers
taught them the importance of strong leadership, a sense
of mission, and, well, success’s rich rewards. Now they’re
drawing their own post-player game plans. “Enterprising
athletes are building a brand and giving back to commu-
nities—all of which are vitally important to long-term
success,” says Dave Meltzer, CEO of Sports 1 Marketing
and host ofThe Playbookpodcast. So who’s on top? We weighed
tangibles like money earned with game-changing contracts and
endorsement deals, as well as intangibles like personal brand build-
ing, appetite for risk, and the flat-out coolness of their business pur-
suits. See our list online, and be inspired by these leadership lessons.
Dr r
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ODELL BECKHAM, JR./New York Giants receiver
“My dad always said, ‘Do something strange for a piece of change.’ That basically
meant that whatever you have to do to get where you need to be, you gotta do it.”LINDSEY VONN/World champion skier
“The reality to become the best at what you do is just hard work.”J.J. WATT/Houston Texans defensive end
“Success isn’t owned. It’s leased, and rent is due every day.”SERENA AND VENUS WILLIAMS/Grand Slam tennis champions
SERENA:“After their careers, a lot of stars say, ‘What should I do now?’ Then they
realize there’s no money left. We’ve always had something to fall back on.”VENUS:“One of our biggest fears is ending up having to struggle and mop floors.”CONOR MCGREGOR/Reigning UFC lightweight champion
“I remember saying, ‘At 25 years of age, I will be a self-made millionaire.’My father laughed at me. I was a year late, but I did it.”Andthefightin’wordsthey’veusedtowin.
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28 / ENTREPRENEUR.COM / January-February 2018
PHOTOGRAPH BY GETTY IMAGES/ELSA/STAFF