COVER ARTICLE
Going For Gold: A Former
Olympian’s Guide
Why athletics is good training for the
professional business landscape as well
By John Morgan
With the Olympic games
winding down, I’ve found
myself reflecting on my own
journey as an Olympian, how I
eventually transitioned into the
business world, and what the
future looks like for so many
of the athletes we watched
compete in Tokyo this summer. I
participated in the 1988 Olympics
as a Greco-Roman wrestler for
the U.S. team, placing 7th in my
weight class, and I was later
an alternate for the same sport
on the U.S. team for the 1992
Olympics. The transition to a more
traditional work-life after that was
bumpy, but I believe there are a
few key insights that athletes and
hiring managers should remember
why athletics is actually good
training for the professional
business landscape as well.
While we’re familiar with the big
names in the competition that
brings home the gold and whose
faces stare back at us from cereal
boxes, brand name shoes, and
other Olympic-associated apparel,
for most athletes who compete,
there is usually a point where
competing is no longer an option.
The post-Olympic comedown
is when they have to figure out,
what’s next?
My own journey eventually found
me working at an Outplacement
firm where I provided transition
coaching for elite athletes and
other former Olympians entering
the job market as retired athletes.
It’s a strange phase of life to say
the least, and for athletes who
are used to a regimented lifestyle
tied to clear-cut goals for physical
training, the transition to office life
can be a jarring one. The pace and
priorities are different, and since
most former athletes lack the
traditional job experience needed
for success in the business world,
they may feel like they are going
from being the best to being at the
very beginning steps.
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