Military Service to Sports

A Practical Guide for Service Members, Veterans, Spouses, and Military Children

Are you an active duty or reserve component service member, veteran, military spouse, or child interested in a career in sports but unsure where to start? Maybe you think it’s impossible and don't have what it takes. If this sounds like you or someone you know, read on!

Affirmation: You've Got This!

The journey from military life to a career in sports can be challenging but incredibly rewarding. If you're old enough to remember the Saturday Night Night Skit, Daily Affirmations with Stewart Smalley, I want you to look at yourself in the mirror and say this to yourself:

I have what it takes to make it and succeed in sports. Say it again.

Why We Need You - Now More Than Ever!

If you played sports, coached, or have been involved in athletics, you know that coaches (including athletic administrators, health and human performance support staff, and referees) play critical roles in helping student-athletes learn essential life skills through sports. Sports is like a laboratory for life because it enables young people to experiment in a safe environment to work, learn, lead, and grow on and off the field. Coaches can often become parental figures for children from tumultuous or broken homes by helping shape their lives during critical developmental years.

In most states, there is a growing need for more coaches. According to the Texas High School Coaches Association , Texas loses up to six thousand middle school and high school coaches annually (for various reasons) but only replaces them with two thousand coaches. That's a growing shortage magnified by a growing trend across the country. Your unique experiences and hard-earned skills and experience are invaluable to the sports community, especially given the current shortage of coaches across the country.

I Know What It's Like Because I've Been There

As a retired Army officer turned Mental Performance and Leadership coach currently working in the NFL, my journey from Soldier to Soldier Field has been (and continues to be) challenging. From the outside looking in, it appears that I took off my Army uniform one day and put on the Cincinnati Reds uniform the next day.

On goal pursuit, legendary college football coach Lou Holtz once said

Sir Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tensing Norgay didn't just wake up one day and say to themselves, "Let's hike up to the top of Mount Everest today."

My ascent up the 'Mount Everest of Sports' was the same and is still ongoing. When I retired from the Army four years ago and started my internship in

Major League Baseball (MLB) (in the middle of the pandemic lockdown), I found no path to transition from Soldier to the sidelines. It was uncharted territory with a small community of disparate veterans figuring it out as they went along. All this is to say that I understand your unique challenges and how to turn struggles into strengths while continuing to serve others in other uniforms.

As such, I'm passionate about helping more people from the military community get into athletics because there are so many similarities and potential for both industries and lifestyles to learn and grow together for the betterment of our community and county. I've had so many people who have helped and poured into me that I see it as my duty to help others who see, read, or hear my story and want to follow in my footsteps. I've been fortunate to work with hundreds of folks over the years, and I always start by saying.

While the path wasn't easy, like any high and hard goal, it's all achievable with hard work, perseverance, a productive mindset, and an Army of trusted guides.

Practical and Tactical Steps

Most importantly, you must have a plan and use a planning process. To that end, here are some practical and tactical tips to help you start your planning process. Treat this next leg of your professional journey like a mission, using tried-and-true principles you may be familiar with from your military experience, like Troop Leading procedures and Operations Planning. This article will focus on the latter using the four phases of an operation as a framework for goal pursuit: Plan, Prepare, Execute, and Assess.

1. Plan: Define Your Purpose and Develop a Mission

Most people start planning what they want to do and where to go. However, I suggest beginning with the question,

"Who am I?"

This involves understanding your values, or principles that matter, and purpose—you're why. Like the military, you don't get into sports to get rich (only the athletes and head coaches at high-level programs make the bag), so it's very much a purpose-over-profit industry. To develop your why, I recommend using the Japanese concept of Ikigai (ee-kee-guy), or 'reason for being.' For the self-help junkies, before you roll your eyes, please don’t waste your time reading books on the subject, which are more about philosophy and less about the ‘how to.’

I recommend using practical resources like PositivePsychology.com, which offers free worksheets to help develop your Ikigai. I also recommend reading Designing Your Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans. I've read this several times during my transition and bought the accompanying workbook, which is also helpful. Once you identify your purpose, you can develop a mission by setting realistic goals and creating a detailed action plan.

I recommend applying to the COMMIT Foundation and taking their Pursue Your Purpose Course. Based on his best-selling book, Simon Sinek offers a deep discount on his acclaimed online Start with Why Course.

2. Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield (IPB)

Intelligence Preparation of the Battlefield #IPB is vital to mission planning. The first step is to Define the Operating Environment. This involves collecting actionable information you can use. Do your homework on the level of sports you want to work in, the various career fields, sub-specialties and positions available, and the education, training, and certification requirements for the roles you may be interested in. A common misconception is that you have a background in sports, which is untrue. Having a passion for sports to some degree is required.

There are many career fields and specialties in sports, including, but not limited to, athletic coaching, referee/umpire, sports management, athletic administration, athletic counseling, sport and performance psychology, athletic training, physical therapy, nutrition, strength and conditioning, sport science, player personnel, sports video, sports marketing, sports communication, sports journalism, etc.

3. Prepare: Friendly Forces and Building Your Network

Just like identifying our team and friendly forces for a military operation, building a partner network is essential for a successful transition into sports. The network is your most powerful tool in sports. For example, most athletic coaches at all levels of sports got to where they are because they a) played the sport and b) someone they knew hired them. I recommend using networking tools like LinkedIn to establish connections with people in the sports industry. LinkedIn offers a free year of Premium to active duty service members transitioning and veterans. This upgrade has advanced features you can leverage, and yes, it's worth it.

Pro-tip: LinkedIn algorithms automatically associate you with and make recommendations based on your experience and people you know or are connected to. This creates a digital 'fence' that can confine you to veterans and people or organizations associated with the military. You must intentionally break out of that fence by seeking out people in the sports industry.

Warm introductions from mutual friends, connections, or colleagues are always a best practice when connecting on social media or via text and email. Could you think about the last time you responded to a stranger online? When making 'cold connections', please make a personal note where you briefly introduce yourself and for advice and perspective, NOT for jobs or opportunities. Randoms and Bots on LinkedIn are constantly selling things to contain themselves. The more high profile the person, the more requests they get, so take this approach to lower their guard and increase the chances of a meet-up.

I have many LinkedIn friends and have even started ventures with people I had never met until years later. Considering humans need to socially evolve faster to keep up with technology, authentic, powerful, and meaningful connections still require in-person interactions. As such, I recommend joining professional associations related to your field and attending international, national, and regional conferences to meet new people, learn more about the profession, and expand your network. Follow up with virtual 'cups of coffee' by talking to professionals in your desired field to better understand their work and what you need to do to achieve your goals.

Pro-tip: Don't make business cards if you're a Millennial or Gen Xer because most people misplace or lose them. You can use accessible smartphone apps and digital business cards to exchange contact and social information. LinkedIn also has a QR code you can have others scan through the mobile app.

4. Execute: Gain Experience and Further Your Education and Training

Most civilians in athletics or any industry, who have never served in the military, don't know the difference between a Lieutenant and Lieutenant Colonel or a Private and a Sergeant First Class. Big differences in our old world - not so much in the civilian world. So, regardless of your rank and years of service, like it or not, you're starting over again. The quicker you accept that fact and start attacking your next career like a white belt (novice who is always willing to work and learn), the more process you'll make.

For more on the #whitebeltmindset, check out the featured article on my profile.

According to research by the VA, 80% of veterans change jobs at least once in their first two years of getting out. Very little, if any, research on military spouses or children is currently available. There are many theories on why this is, but there is a large gap between what we think we know and what we actually know regarding skill development (see graphic below. In many ways, veterans transitioning from active duty start in Skill Level 1, 'Unconsciously Incompetence.' This means we 'don't know what we don't know.' That's not a good or bad thing - it's neutral. It takes some time and experience to move to Skill Level 2, 'Consciously Incompetent,' meaning 'we know what we don't know,' and eventually move to Skill Level 3, which is 'Conscious Competence.'

For example, I loved my brief time in pro baseball, and in many ways, I lived a childhood dream. But like the military, pro sports is a lifestyle that requires a high degree of sacrifice that I wasn't willing to make in the long term. It wasn't until I was in it that I experienced Skill level 1 because one of the 'unknowns' was the negative impact of extensive travel disruptive my travel on my personal health and family life (during an 182-game MLB and MiLB baseball season). This undermined why I retired in the first place: to get (mentally and physically healthy) and spend more time with my family. This friction grew and ultimately led me to leave pro baseball. When I reflected on that experience, it informed my decision and agreement I made in pro football, which I've found thus far to be more manageable and predictable for my overall health and family.

Many veterans operate under the assumption that they have to find their dream job when they get out. This is an unrealistic expectation. There is nothing wrong with getting a job to help you pay the bills and buy yourself some time to pursue the career in athletics you want. It's not settling. It looks like an experiment where you learn and grow by closing the skill development gap.

Education and Training:

Prioritize the education and training requirements by deciding what's critical (must have), essential (important but not critical), and enhancing (lovely to have). Factors to consider are time, cost, and importance. Like getting married or having children, there's never a perfect time to return to school. So leap by incrementally working on the education and training requirements to qualify for the positions in athletics you're pursuing. As you know, leverage your U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs VA benefits at the federal or state level and explore fellowships or scholarships available for veterans. Most certifications and advanced degrees are available online and designed for working professionals.

Pro tip: Chapter 31 can be used for advanced education. Please get in touch with your local VA representative for more details.

Two Veteran Service Organizations #VSOs specialize in helping service members, veterans, military spouses, and children transition into sports. Soldiers To Sidelines offers free in-person and virtual courses for various career fields and has a tremendous network for placement across the country. If you are stationed in Texas or considering moving to the great state, check out the 美国德克萨斯A&M大学 Coaching Academy's Veteran Coaches Program, which I helped start in 2019.

Experience is Your Ace Card

Real-world experience or what we used to call 'On-the-Job-Training #OJT is invaluable and, ultimately, your 'ace card' in the sports game. Consider volunteering at the youth and club levels of sports. Many organizations desperately need help and provide excellent opportunities to gain practical experience. This experience will also help you determine what you like and don't like about coaching or your roles of interest.

At the collegiate and professional levels, the key to getting your 'foot in the door' is often through season or summer internships. These are highly competitive, and the application window is usually six months out. If you don't get accepted the first year you apply, keep applying, as selection committees give credence to candidates with perseverance.

Regardless of rank, I highly recommend using the DOD Skills Bridge Program if you're a veteran. This can be challenging if your terminal position is in a command role or you need a replacement. If you are a Special Operations Forces #SOF service member, spouse, or military child, consider applying for the Warrior Care Program through Care Coalition sponsored by Headquarters, US Special Operations Command. I used this program, which made all the difference during my transition.

5. Assess: Seek Continuous Improvement

We don't learn from our experiences alone. We learn from reflecting on our experiences.

The most crucial phase of any operation is assessment. In the military, we often don't take our lessons learned from the After Action Reviews and feed them into the planning process for the next mission. During your transition mission to sports, I strongly recommend that you continuously assess your experiences and what you learn. Research on learning suggests that writing down helps you store information in your long-term memory. So take notes after every interaction and conversation with someone in your desired field using your trusty green notebook or digital tools like Evernote.

Even if you hear similar things repeatedly, resist the temptation to become desensitized and use it as actionable data. If multiple people are saying the same thing, then it's likely true, or there is some truth to what they are saying. Could you identify what you know, what you're good at, and what you don't know and need to work on? Seek trusted guides and build your 'Tribe of Mentors' who can provide advice and feedback to help you close gaps and gain a competitive edge.

Summary

Transitioning to a career in sports may be challenging, but it is possible with determination and a strategic approach. Your military experience has equipped you with unique skills and a strong mindset, making you a valuable asset in the sports community. Embrace this new mission with the same dedication and discipline you brought to your military career, and you'll find success on and off the field.

Keep training your brain to lead, grow, and win from within.

See you in the arena.

*Written by AR and not AI