Soccer has been a constant in my life since I was born. My dad played back in college before most Americans even gave a shit about soccer. Then, I followed in his footsteps, playing all the way through college myself. It’s literally in my DNA. So, it’s no wonder why I come up with so many sports analogies for sales. It’s what I know. And everyone knows that about me. What you may not know is how much of an impact soccer has had on my career path.

My dad started coaching soccer in the early 80’s and still coaches to this day at 72 years old. But, he’s not just any coach. He is one of the winningest girls soccer Coaches in Northern California history. And it’s actually knowing him as a coach, not a player, that has shaped who I am today.

My whole life, I watched my dad dedicate every hour of every day to two things: getting better, and making his team better. Over the years, I got to see the impact that made on a lot of those kids’ lives. That’s a huge part of what drives me to do what I do everyday.

I think everyone goes through a phase in life (usually their teen years to early twenties) when they know absolutely everything and you can’t tell them shit. Some of us are lucky enough to grow out of this. Everyone I know who I choose to spend time with has reached the point in their life where they realize they actually know very little, and that the less they pretend to know, the more they can learn. It’s a humbling epiphany, but quite liberating, as well. When I found out how little I knew, I was able to focus on learning. Now, I am constantly looking for new information, new ideas, new ways of doing things. I strive everyday to be a better father, husband, sales leader, and a better person to myself. None of that would be possible if I still thought I was already perfect and knew it all. I have to stay humble enough to remain teachable. I have to remind myself that I can always do better, I can always learn more. And I’m addicted to that growth.

That addiction to growth extends to everyone around me. Like my dad, I get my joy from helping others get better. Half the reason I even care about making myself better is to be better able to help others become who they want to be. My drive to build other people up and help them achieve their goals was no doubt inherited from my coach dad and is what has fueled my passion for sales leadership. To me, there is no greater feeling than coaching a team to victory and being a part of their wins. It is exponentially more rewarding to me than winning on my own. The feelings of winning something myself and coaching a team to victory are as different as the feeling of riding my bike to the end of the block and teaching my son how to ride for the very first time. There is just no comparison. The latter is the feeling I go to work to chase every single day.

Consistently striving to become a better coach and to coach others to become better is the purpose behind everything I do. I consider myself very fortunate to have discovered my purpose and to find a way to pursue it. Have you gotten there yourself? What is your purpose and how do you live for it every day? Or are you still looking for an outlet for your purpose? Or do you even know what it is at all? We’re all in varying stages of our own journeys. I’d love to hear where you are in yours and help you if I can. It’s my purpose in life to do so.