SE Blog

Don’t Let Fear Get in the Way of Your Job

Your heart is racing, your palms are sweaty, and you’re struggling to breathe—you are experiencing fear. We have all been there. It’s ok, even healthy, to be afraid sometimes. The important thing is to not let it get in the way of your job.   One of the most common fears is failure. I’ve felt it myself, sometimes to the point

Minor League, Major Impact: Charlotte Knights

Minor League, Major Impact: Charlotte Knights

The Charlotte Knights are not a major-league team. They lack the deep resources, the top-notch roster, and the national media coverage of, say, the Chicago White Sox (the major-league team the Knights are affiliated with). But they do play great baseball. And if you live in Charlotte, as we do, you know that the Knights

The Popularity of Productivity Simply Means Time is More Valuable Than Ever

The past five years has seen a staggering number of articles, vlogs, podcasts, books and stories published related to productivity. Searches on Google, within Facebook, or on any other social media platform will return seemingly endless results. Some of it is great, some of it not so great, though most of it has advice that at least some people will find useful.  Productivity means doing more, better, and

Sometimes You Just Need to Change It Up: Dwight Howard and the Charlotte Hornets

The Charlotte Hornets of the NBA have been stuck in mediocre purgatory for the last few years. They have been on the brink of the playoffs, but never quite over the edge. The team is not bad enough to get a top-three draft pick, but not good enough to compete for a championship, either. It’s a rough spot. How are the Hornets going to get out

Focus on Your Game

This Is the Golf Way. Focus. You and three of your friends tee off on the first hole. It’s a beautiful Sunday morning. You don’t get to play with these guys often, but today you get to spent four hours or so together on this incredible course.   The first three golfers all hit great shots. Each one does better than

Think Strategically About Your Employees: The Example of Odell Beckham Jr.

The New York Giants are going to have to think carefully about Odell Beckham Jr.  On the one hand, based on the quality of his performance, Beckham is one of the most underpaid players in football. That’s because, while his compensation is fine for a rookie, he doesn’t play like a rookie—he’s producing like a top-five receiver. He

Who Is Your Under the Radar All-Star in Your Business?

As the MLB All Star Game came and went, fans were busy choosing players to appear in the game. Being named an all- star is a great honor, of course, and there are a lot of players who clearly deserve it.  But sometimes the guy who gets the nod is not who everybody expects.  For the New York Mets, this

Building Your Brand: The Chicago Cubs

In today’s world, everybody wants everything now–fast food, fast money, and fast accomplishment. However, that’s not always the way it works. The Chicago Cubs, for example, are best known for going 108 years without a championship.   And then they finally won.  In 2011, the team started one of the most successful rebuilds in the history of sports. First, they signed Theo Epstein as president of baseball operations. Epstein

How Do You Acquire Talent For Your Business?

Last year, we explored the idea that talent for your business matters, that while raw talent alone is not enough to ensure victory, it’s hard to get very far without it. The Cleveland Cavaliers demonstrated that principle very well last year.  This year, the Golden State Warriors helped us make the same point again.  But how do you get

Building a Business is the Fun Part and Kevin Durant Missed It

By no means is my business a finished product. Like most other companies, mine is a work in progress and probably always will be. And every day I wake up excited to work on the build.   The business world is something of a roller coaster, with wins and losses, disasters and triumphs, but building a team capable

Take Control of Your Email Inbox by Unsubscribing

I follow a lot of incredible thought leaders, from Seth Godin to Gary Vaynerchuk to Lewis Howes (and the list goes on from there). I keep tabs on a lot of interesting companies in fields from marketing to tech to sports to insurance. Then there are products and brands I like to be kept in the know about. All of this following means getting lots of

3 Reasons Why Getting Laid Off Is Not the End of the World

So, you’ve just been laid off. You’re probably an emotional wreck, thinking about not having an income and not knowing what to do with yourself all day. That’s understandable, but losing your job is really not the end of the world. In fact, it may just be the new beginning that you have been needing. 

The Cleveland Cavaliers’ Mindset

When the Cleveland Cavaliers were crowned 2016 NBA Champions, we wrote an article called, “5 Ways Mindset Helped the Cavaliers Win the NBA Championship.” The 2017 season also went great for Cleveland, with a third straight spot to the NBA Finals. Yet, while last year’s article was about winning the championship, this time we are looking at

Kevin Durant’s Decision: A Year Later

Kevin Durant was under major scrutiny last summer for his decision to join the Golden State Warriors. The unexpected move shook up the NBA, made us uneasy, and gave fans something to talk about. We weighed in on the discussion with an article ourselves, giving you 4 Things You Can Learn from Kevin Durant’s Career

Why an Entrepreneur Needs to Delegate to a Project Manager

As an entrepreneur, you are already very busy. Your day-to-day tasks may include software issues, programming, setting priories, and taking care of budgeting concerns. You are most likely faced with new challenges daily. Keeping up with all your projects can get very overwhelming.   This is where a project manager comes in. While your job

The Bandwagon Effect and How You Can Use It in Your Business

Next time you are walking around town, take a look at the shirts and hats people are wearing. You’ll probably see a lot of Chicago Cubs, Golden State Warriors, and Clemson Tigers apparel. These teams are all current champions in their respective leagues, so it is only natural for fans to start hopping on those

The Los Angeles Clippers: Why You Need to Adapt to the Business World

The NBA offseason is here and this is a great time to analyze the direction for many NBA teams and of course tie it into helping your business. Let’s begin with the Los Angeles Clippers–a team filled with talent. They have made the playoffs six years straight. However, they’ve never won the title—in fact, they have

Leadership Thought: How Can the New York Mets Turn Their Season Around?

And How You Can Apply it to Your Business The New York Mets have not been World Series Champions since 1986. So far, this year doesn’t look good either, though the team has one of the best pitching staffs in baseball and a great hitting core. In fact, the Mets were slated as one of

If ESPN Can Fail, So Can Any Business

As many of you know, ESPN has been in the news recently for laying off around 100 people, including big names, like Ed Werner, Jayson Stark, Marc Stein, and Trent Dilfer. So why has ESPN resorted to laying staff off? What could have possibly gone wrong? Is twenty four hour sports network not what it

Don’t Manufacture Off-Days: A Cleveland Cavaliers Story

I believe that leading by example is a great form of leadership, in business or otherwise. When the leaders give it their all, it’s inspiring. When they don’t, it has a negative effect on the team as a whole. That’s another part of why I was concerned by the Cleveland Cavaliers apparently trying to coast

Excitement Drives Success

Getting Pumped Up for a Big Game Enter any locker room just before game time and you will find players getting themselves ready—from pre-game music, to jumping up and down to yelling and screaming to coaches giving motivational speeches (here are 3 of examples from the movies Any Given Sunday, Miracle, Friday Night Lights). Whether it

Why the Carolina Panthers Need a Succession Plan

Wes Connor Insurance is a leading Property and Casualty Agency in Charlotte, NC. Thanks to their love of sports, entrepreneurialism and insurance, they have sponsored this article. You can find the office of Wes Connor Insurance on Providence Road in South Charlotte near the new developments of Waverly Place and Rea Farms. If you are looking

Paying Attention to Process, But Not Context: The Cleveland Cavaliers

The other week, we posted an article about how the Cleveland Cavaliers aren’t respecting the process of the regular season of the NBA. That’s one way to look at it. Another possibility is that the Cavaliers are thinking very carefully about the process—it’s the big picture they’ve lost sight of. Look, I’m a fan of

How Business is Like a Major League Baseball Season

It’s opening day in baseball. The grass is freshly cut, the smell of hot dogs is in the air, and everyone in the stands is excited about their team’s chances this season. But the playoffs are a long way away—the season is 162 games! If you exhaust yourself early, you’ll never make it, but if

The Importance of Rookies in Business: Dak Prescott and Ezekiel Elliott

Everybody gets to be a rookie at some point. Maybe you’re just out of college. Maybe you’re switching careers from management to sales, or starting your own company. Beginning something new is always a risk—not all rookies succeed. But some do very well.   Ezekiel Elliott was chosen fourth overall in the 2016 NFL Draft.

Create a Blog that Ties Into Your Business

Insider: It’s Why Sportsepreneur.com exists   Have you ever thought about creating a blog based around your passion and then tying it into your business. For example, within KazSource we have done this by creating a blog using sports to write about entrepreneurialism (Sportsepreneur). Sportsepreneur becomes the content platform. People would rather read about sports

Thought Leader: Are You Willing to Pick Up the Ball?

This running back is one of your team’s most talented players. The problem is he makes mistakes more than he should. He is young and inexperienced. While he is getting better, he has a problem with fumbling the football. You and your teammates are willing to live with this fumbling problem, because this player is

Are You the Business Leader?

Your young and talented player is in a funk. He can’t seem to find the back of the net. In college, he led his team in goals scored, but as a rookie, he has not found the same success on the ice. As a coach, you can understand. You, too, led your team in college

Thought Leader: Too Much Dribbling

The point guard dribbles up the court, looking to start the offense. The goal is to score a basket. Teammates run to their positions. Everything is set. The point guard dribbles left and doesn’t find an opening. He then dribbles right and is unable to find a play to make. He dribbles back to his