Why ‘Doing Nothing’ Is No Longer #RetiredBallerGoals

Millions of young athletes dream of playing professional sports to make a ton of money, to retire, and to never have to work again. The typical baller’s retirement goals usually include retiring somewhere warm and spending their time doing whatever it is they feel like doing on any given day. Moreover, the dream is made sweeter by being able to buy anything they feel like buying, with no regard for having to lift another finger after all the sacrifices and time invested into sports. Unfortunately, the dream does not and will not end that way for 99% of athletes.

I have two young children, a boy and a girl. Like most young parents, my husband and I want to expose our children to many experiences and opportunities to learn. And even though they haven’t entered Kindergarten yet, they are busy! School, karate, soccer, basketball, and Computer classes fill our weekday evenings. And the load will only get heavier as they grow through grade school. Since we are both former professional basketball players, we also hope they are very athletic and very gifted in sports.

As young boys and girls excel through sports and dream of making it to the big leagues, the topic always comes down to money. Whether it is scholarship money or contracts, young lives become consumed with playing sports for money. The media shows us a side of sports, where athletes are either spending money, giving away money, losing money, or fighting for it. Then, when the time of playing for money passes, time is expected to stop and allow us to spend what we have worked so hard to earn.

The perception about life as a professional athlete is what causes such a shock for many athletes. The checks don’t look the same as they did in the dream, because they didn’t take out taxes, they didn’t anticipate taking care of so many people, they didn’t realize how many purchases they’d make on auto-pilot, they didn’t dream of getting hurt. And when they are forced to consider what the next step entails, it MUST be something sport-related.

While athletes are slowly figuring out that they need to consider the long-game, they still struggle to envision what retirement looks like. Many still find themselves on auto-pilot, putting retirement planning off until later and gravitating toward paths that keep them connected to their comfort zone and sports fan base. Over the past decade, we have seen a surge in the number of former professional athletes - both financially secure former players and those one check away from bankruptcy - jump back into the workforce post-career in several common fields, such as:  

Coaching/Training

Scouting

Professional Speaking

Entrepreneurship

Executive/Management

Athletes, like former NBA All-Stars Mo Williams, Penny Hardaway, Jason Terry and former NFL stars Kurt Warner, Deion Sanders, and Donald Driver, have found great joy coaching and teaching high school and college athletes. We assume they aren’t doing it for the money, but their retirement goals include serving the youth through sports. While many are forced to figure out a second love beyond sports to retain the ability to pay their bills and support their standards of living, many enter the workforce for different reasons. Here are MY top reasons why #RetiredBallerGoals should change from doing nothing in retirement, and notice how four out of five of my reasons are about more than just money:

1.      We need something to DO!

For their entire lives, many athletes have put forth a great deal of energy and time into sports. As they become accustomed to the busy-ness of the lifestyle, it can cause a great deal of anxiety to keep pace with their slow-paced ‘new normal.’ Doing nothing in retirement sounds appealing for the freedom from schedules and commands, but Idle time doesn’t sit well with many athletes. Most athlete make poor decisions when they have a lot of free time, and this is more apparent during the off-season. Overall, there is a perceived negative correlation with laziness, unproductivity, or failure, because we have been wired to be busy for most of our lives through sports.

2.      We need something to direct our energy and effort toward.

In sports, we can easily direct our energy toward a common goal or purpose – winning. Without that easily identifiable target, it can become difficult to direct meaningless and uncoordinated activities toward some important purpose. Everyone wants their life work to mean something, and for athletes, this is compounded by having their targets clearly defined and easily measurable. Wandering aimlessly through retirement – with freedom – is cool for a while, but the need for direction is an important pillar of achievement and fulfillment. Having nothing to do is satisfying, until having nothing to do gets old.

3.      We need to transfer the 'high' of sports to remain sane.

Some athletes do plan for retirement. They prepare for a career, making a lot of money to continue their standard of living. However, their perceived successful transition to the public becomes an internal nightmare. While they are doing the right things, those things aren’t what makes the athlete happy. Very few athletes consider which parts of the game they miss most. For example, if they enjoy the travel of playing sports, they should consider careers that travel. If they miss the comradarie of being on a team, they should consider careers that allow them to work closely with others. If they miss the physical aspects of sports, they should consider careers that require them to remain fit. This is the only way they can get the same sense of enjoyment and satisfaction beyond the game.

4.      We need to give something back to others.

Athletes who work on teams are natural helpers. And in our off-season time, we generally spend time giving back to others. Whether it is through camps, clinics, charity events, speaking engagements, or signing autographs for fans, we find joy in serving others. Not only do we have much to give our peers and the youth, we have much to offer the world. Sports is a tool that brings people together from all over the world, and it offers athletes a platform to give back. Our retirement goals should offer us opportunities to give, and I think we should focus on mentoring aspiring athletes.

5.      We need financial security.

This is the reason most athletes consider when they think of working in retirement. “How much money will I make?” Honestly, many athletes end up having to do what is necessary to earn an income stream to care for themselves and their families. Their professional skill set may not be at the appropriate standard, and they are desperate to do anything to earn a living once their checks stop. As more athletes file bankruptcy a few short years into retirement, the need to establish retirement goals becomes important to survival. To combat this pressure, athletes should set and work toward retirement goals in college or earlier. Having a post-career plan will alleviate a lot of the stress, pressure, and financial woes in retirement.

That’s why when I talk to athletes, I don’t limit their career search and transition preparation to when they finish playing. I focus on maximizing their careers, with the post-career being a by-product of what they do NOW. The way the industry frames that entire topic makes athletes believe they have more time than they actually do to get this right. However, there is no time like the present to make #RetiredBallerGoals a reality! Help me show our young sports stars what more of our former ballers are REALLY doing in retirement!

After working with over 40 NBA, NFL, WNBA, and overseas athletes, my mission is to teach athletes and their families how to navigate sports decisions and business strategies to earn success in addition to the game. You can learn more at www.tywannasmith.com. I offer a high school athlete development program, I offer collegiate leadership development, and I brand and consult with professional athletes through The Athlete’s Nexus. I have created a best-selling book blueprint and athlete coaching system - both entitled ‘Surviving the Lights.’ I also offer a coaching system for business professionals who want to break into the athlete market and better serve athletes.