Afleveringen
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Episode #5 of Retire with Rowdy' Chris spoke about 2 new projects he is working on and finalising. He shares why these projects are important to him and unpacks all the stages of development from starting as an idea to the final product.
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Episode #4 of 'Retire with Rowdy' has been all about networking. Rowdy has build a successful buisenss all from leveraging off his network and the sporting community. We have all heard it before how important networking is but for some reason or other we just don't do enough of it.
So instead of trying to explain it, this episode will give you a first sight into a week of Rowdy networking and how this has lead to new business and opportunities. -
Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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In week 3 of 'Retire with Rowdy', Chris hits the road to present 5 keynote presentations in a week. In between these presentations, he also filmed a new marketing commercial for a company called My Muscle Chef and some filming for the NRL as a part of the half time entertainment for the upcoming grand final.
Rowdy also shares some great advice on the power of networking, having clarity and finding the positives with the challenges that you are facing. -
Episode #2 of Retire With Rowdy, Chris reflexes on his last game in the NRL and the wave of emotions he went through as the day and the game came to an end.
Rowdy's hits the ground running with One Wellbeing, after spending the first week of retirement celebrating the year and his career with his teammate. A surprisingly busy week with a number of seminars booked in for him to present his corporate athletes keynotes. He also spent 2 days in strategic meeting with his business partner Leon Keir and their mentor Matt Smith.
A great first insight into Rowdy as a business owner and the steps he is taking to make his transition as seamless as possible. -
Retire With Rowdy is a spin-off series of 'The Be Ready Project' and is the story of 15-year veteran of the Wests Tigers Chris Lawrence (Rowdy) and his transition from the NRL into his business One Wellbeing.
At the age of 19 Rowdy started One Wellbeing and it is well documented how proactive he has been for the last 15 years preparing for life after sport. Along with his business, Rowdy has also been studying a commerce degree and now walks away from the NRL straight into a full-time role at One Wellbeing.
To set the scene of Episode #1 it is two days before Rowdy's last game. We speak about how he and his family are feeling, what it is like being at the end, what he is most worried about and what he is most excited about.
An incredible insight and I hope you can come along for the journey.
Will all the hard work pay off? Only time will tell! -
By 2010, James Aubusson had been 18th man in 2 grand finals. He had both the Cowboys and the Titans offering him contracts. So why did James decide to retire from the NRL at age 25? And, potentially, why did this decision set him on a path to success compared to if he had stayed in the NRL?
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Hearing Dean talk, it is hard to distinguish if he's down to earth approach is a result of growing up in outback Dampier, WA or simply being from the old school. “For me moving to Perth at 17, footy was about bus trips up the coast, beers with the boys and having fun”, admitting he might have done that too much during his early years. Regardless, this is something he still believes into this day while coaching at the Swans. “It’s about building culture. Young players coming from far away such as myself, it’s important to have the team as a second family for those players; so they feel welcome, they are supported and kept out of trouble”. He adds that if you tell a player not to do something they are going to do it anyway so it’s about building that relationship and managing them in the best way; not creating a divide.
Maturity comes with time: early during his career, Cox admitted that “study wasn’t for me”. He is now doing a Masters of Coaching, aged 39.Outside interests: “I had some business interests to keep me occupied away from footy as much as I could. (One business venture) The seafood restaurant didn’t last but taking your mind off and focusing on other things is important while playing”.Use your network of being a professional athlete: “Being an AFL player, there will be many contacts and sponsors of the club that will be happy to give advice and help. It’s not about just getting their business card but just form a relationship with them and things will come”Do not waste the opportunities given to you: “Most kids have to decide their whole life and career from school at age 15-16. Players have so many opportunities plus the luxury of deciding that at an older age over a 5-10 year career – don’t waste that time….you’ve got 40 years of work after footy!”Be confident and back yourself: “There are a lot of similarities between a footy club and a business with the challenges they have and the environment of working as a team”
Some players might try to stretch out every last year of playing but for some, it can happen overnight. For Dean, all it took was a very slight decrease in performance in his second last year for him to question himself. “I thought that if I had a decent career, I didn’t want to get to the stage of being told he had to retire or play reserve grade” Cox states that he could retire when he did as he had a clear idea and path of what to do upon retiring, unlike some of his teammates.
Dean Cox might only be 6 years retired but there are a plethora of tips he discussed that has helped him post-retirement: -
Mantras can be used by people from all walks of life in a variety of different ways. Some can inspire an entire nation (‘We shall NEVER surrender’ - Winston Churchill). Some can unfortunately turn into Instagram inspired cliches (‘live your best life’, anyone?) The most important thing is what they mean to and how they inspire that individual. If Rugby League player Bodene Thompson has a mantra, it would be ‘Attack that Fear’. He believes it so much, he unknowingly mentions it 8 times in a 20 minute podcast! But for this New Zealand born, somewhat Australian raised-Polynesian; living in Canada, playing mostly in England - what does it truly mean?
Sometimes we need to get out of our comfort zone to discover deep down what we’re really capable of. “Get out there and do things that interest you. Studying was always a fear for me. Attacking that fear is the mindset that I take these days. That fear can overcome you sometimes but attacking that fear and just putting things in motion, having more confidence and putting the feelers out there; just doing whatever you need to do to find your purpose” -
Robbie Farah has achieved everything in the game of Rugby League, what rarely gets mentioned is how a player faced with the pressure of being the captain of a joint venture club and busy playing rep footy managed to set himself up for life after Rugby League so well. As Robbie explains: “Have a plan. Don’t wait until the last year of your career. Be proactive; not reactive – footy isn’t everything. You’re going to retire then you’ve got another 20-30 years of your working life left!”. Let’s look at some of those ways Farah has set himself up for life after footy.
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It’s hard to believe Wade Graham is only 29 years old. Debuting way back in 2008 as a 17 year old playing five-eighth, there’s not many players who have had a long and successful career in the NRL as the Blacktown junior. On paper, Graham would be a prime candidate to be a ‘footy head’ - only focused on Rugby League, no need for school or education, not concerned about anything else. In fact, he references the term ‘tunnel vision’ several times himself. But now, the Hills Sports High alumni has and is continuing to smash that stereotype on and off the field.
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Being away from friends and family is an important issue for athletes at the moment with a number of AFL and NRL teams forced out of Victoria and New Zealand respectively due to COVID-19. Brad Haddin’s main driving factor towards retirement was to make that post-playing era a time to give back to his family for their sacrifices. “Being a cricketer constantly overseas, partners give up so much for that’. To be able to give back, a person also needs to be financially secure, something sport can provide. “Sport can teach you a lot of life lessons and it can set you up for life. To me, I wanted to retire on my own terms; I made sure I was all set up early because you don’t know when sport is going to end” Haddin explains.
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This episode feature 3 young superstars from the Canberra Raiders. A current Kiwi International: Bailey Simonsson, a ‘future QLD Maroons’: Corey Horsburgh and
a NSW Cup/first-grade player: Tom Starling.
We’ve all heard the stereotype about the young millennial NRL player – makes first grade, upgrades his contract handsomely then spends all his spare time playing Call of Duty. And hey, sometimes where there’s smoke, there’s fire. But, as often is the case, for every stereotype, there are plenty more antitheses; quietly working away and doing the opposite of what many think of them.
Despite all 3 players being at different levels within the NRL, they all share the same belief of setting themselves up outside Rugby League through education. It could have been tempting for Bailey to turn his back on studying after going overseas with the New Zealand team at the end of last year and think that he had ‘made it’ in Rugby League. But they are aware of the ‘bigger picture’ that a Rugby League career is short. The trio have been studying their Certificate III and IV in Fitness with One Wellbeing. While all 3 boys admitted they “didn’t really engage in the classroom” and only stayed at school to hang with mates and play footy, those past experiences with education haven’t stopped them from embracing learning a few years out of school. “Like Tommy, I wish I had tried a bit more at school’ Corey says cheekily, “I really encourage those boys in school now to sit down and learn….by the time you get to my age it’s already done….if you love footy you’ve got plenty of time for that”. -
Client Gurtherson 'Gutho' is right now at the top of his game not only being named captain of the Parramatta Eels, but he is also one of the most dominating play in the NRL.
Clint debut in the NRL when he was 18. 18 years and 364 days of age in fact - but still just ‘18’. Now at age 25, Clint admits it hasn't been an easy ride. Faced with 2 ACL reconstruction and being moved on by this beloved Manly Sea Eagles, it could have been easy to walk just away from it all.
In this episode, Clint opens up about dealing with the setback early on in his career and what he has done to become the player he is today. He highlights the importance of having interests away from sport and how he has used completing a fitness qualification as a needed distraction from the pressure of being a professional athlete.
A great insight to the man they call 'The King' -
Jason Stevens did it all throughout his career playing rugby league. A very proactive athlete that never just wanted to play footy but also had other interest that he wanted to pursue.
Not only was Jason working for Channel Nine on the Footyshow but he also found the time to write a book 'Worth the wait'. In 2005 after retiring Jason had everything lined up for a career after sport. Unfortunately, things didn't go to plan and he found himself for the next 5 years struggling to find his feet.
Fast forward to 2020 Jason Stevens has now started his own production company and in 2018 realised his first feature film 'Chasing Comments'.
I really genuine story and worth a listen -
Nu Brown is only 24 years old but what a journey his life has been already. Nu moved to Australian from New Zealand when he was only 16 years old to chase the dream of playing professional rugby league.
Nu was fortunate enough to debut in the NRL at only 19 and live his dream. Being so young and by himself without his family, Nu has struggled with the rollercoaster as a professional athlete ever since.
In this episode Nu speaks about dealing with depression and managing the expectations as a young athlete. Nu's advice is not to get caught up with it all and look at the bigger picture.
Nu knows now that football is not going to last forever and has found a new passion in videography. This passion Nu has turned into a business away from sport and he can't be happier. -
Liam Fulton was an absolute character when he was playing in the NRL and Lawro describes him as the glue to the Wests Tigers playing group. After a 12 years career Liam retired due to concussion.
While Liam was playing he also started a business with team mate Bryce Gibbs, supplying skill test mechanise to pubs, clubs and shopping centres. Soon after retiring Liam decided he wanted to become a mortgage broker and for the past 5 years he has been helping Australians secure a home loan through his business Fulton Financial.
An incredible achievement from a person who was known to be 'loose' in his playing days. -
Shannon Hegarty story 'The 3 Year Struggle' is incredible and really demonstrates the hardship some athletes may face once retiring from sport.
In this episode Shannon really opens up and speaks about the back end of his career and he got addicted to pain relief medication. How is he really struggled in the first 3 years after retirement and how this not only effected him but also his family.
Shannon explains how after hitting rock bottoms his inspirational journey back and how finally asking for help was the turning point. Shannon shares how after getting back on track he was able to start a successful fitness business in the US. Now having moved back to AUS to be closer with his daughter, Shannon talks about building a life back in Sydeny and how connecting with old teammates has made a massive difference and has helped him realise how amazing his rugby league career was. -
Part II of Lawro's story 'Double Life' he speaks about why it is so important to align your vision and values with anyone you go into business with and how fortunate he is to be business partners with Leon. He also shares how he almost lost the business in 2016 and how he reacted to save One Wellbeing.
Lawro opens up to about his horrific facial injury at the start of 2019 and how he again used the business to keep himself in a positive mindset throughout the recovery. He truely believes if it wasn't for the business he wouldn't still be playing today.
In finishing Lawro speaks about how he is preparing for retirement and once footy finishes how the fair tale ends for One Wellbeing. -
Chris Lawrence has played professional Rugby League for the Wests Tigers since he was 17 years old. Now at 31, Lawro is just about to start his 15th session in the top grade. What you might not be aware of is that for the past 12 years Lawro has also started and built-up his own business called One Wellbeing.
Lawro credits his success and longevity in the NRL to having One Wellbeing and a passion away from Rugby League. In this episode Lawro will share his incredible story on how he has been able to balance his double life and ultimately set himself up for life after sport. -
In it this episode Lawry and I sit down and speak to our cohost Craig Lambert. An AFL legend with 30 years experience within an elite athlete environment as a player, coach and welfare officer.
Lambo talks about completing his plumbing apprenticeship when he was younger, his philosophy on a holistic athlete, utilities your networks and tips on how to do it well. Lambo also shares his advice on managing expectations as a young athlete and why he believes athlete transition well and not so well for sport.
Hope you enjoy.
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