WEBVTT - Study Hall: Steps to Become a Top Sports Agent with Nicole Lynn 0:00:00.400 --> 0:00:04.280 You just realized your business needed to hire someone yesterday. 0:00:04.800 --> 0:00:09.520 How can you find amazing candidates fast? Easy? Just use Indeed. 0:00:09.960 --> 0:00:12.680 Stop struggling to get your job posts seen on other 0:00:12.760 --> 0:00:16.439 job sites. With Indeed sponsored jobs, your post jumps to 0:00:16.480 --> 0:00:19.000 the top of the page for your relevant candidates, so 0:00:19.120 --> 0:00:22.119 you can reach the people you want faster. According to 0:00:22.160 --> 0:00:26.120 Indeed data, sponsored jobs posted directly on Indeed have forty 0:00:26.120 --> 0:00:30.040 five percent more applications than non sponsored jobs. Don't wait 0:00:30.080 --> 0:00:33.519 any longer. Speed up your hiring right now with Indeed, 0:00:33.960 --> 0:00:36.200 and listeners of this show will get a seventy five 0:00:36.280 --> 0:00:39.440 dollars sponsored job credit to get your jobs more visibility 0:00:39.600 --> 0:00:45.320 at indeed dot com slash pod Katz thirteen. Just go 0:00:45.360 --> 0:00:50.120 to Indeed dot com slash pod katz thirteen right now 0:00:50.479 --> 0:00:53.040 and support our show by saying you heard about Indeed 0:00:53.080 --> 0:00:57.400 on this podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Hiring Indeed is 0:00:57.440 --> 0:00:58.040 all you need. 0:00:58.960 --> 0:01:03.120 Good morning, afternoon everyone. Every one is having a start 0:01:03.160 --> 0:01:06.720 to their day. My name is Isaiah Jones. I work 0:01:06.760 --> 0:01:08.920 at UTA and our New York office side and then 0:01:09.120 --> 0:01:12.280 our comedy and live touring group. I have the pleasure 0:01:12.360 --> 0:01:17.320 today to introduce to Nicole Linda, one of our colleagues 0:01:17.319 --> 0:01:20.839 here at UTA. I think some of you probably are 0:01:20.880 --> 0:01:25.440 probably very familiar with her amazing success. But for those 0:01:25.440 --> 0:01:27.880 of you who are not going to run through a 0:01:27.920 --> 0:01:30.160 couple of things and then click kick it over to 0:01:30.560 --> 0:01:35.760 Cliff to introduce the eyl Nicole is a PRIG graduate 0:01:35.800 --> 0:01:39.200 of the University of Oklahoma with a bachelor's degree in 0:01:39.240 --> 0:01:42.680 Business management and Doctor of Law with honors. She has 0:01:42.800 --> 0:01:46.319 tackled Wall Street as a financial analyst and obtain both 0:01:46.360 --> 0:01:50.760 our Series seven and Series sixty three certifications. In fifty 0:01:51.760 --> 0:01:54.240 Nicole made one of the biggest touchdowns of her career, 0:01:54.280 --> 0:01:57.800 thus far becoming the first female agent to represent top 0:01:57.920 --> 0:02:02.360 NFL agency Players REP. Twenty seventeen, Players Rep was acquired 0:02:02.360 --> 0:02:06.040 by Young Money APAA Sports Agency, owned by world renow 0:02:06.120 --> 0:02:09.520 rapper Lil Wayne. I'm sure we all no. In twenty 0:02:09.560 --> 0:02:12.640 twenty one, Nicole elevated her career and joined the team 0:02:12.720 --> 0:02:17.440 that Clutch Sports Group as their new President of Football Operations. 0:02:18.000 --> 0:02:21.240 Nicole's incredible business avvy and strong will to succeed as 0:02:21.280 --> 0:02:24.560 letter to become one of the youngest female sports agents 0:02:24.560 --> 0:02:27.919 in the industry, signing her first client at only twenty six. 0:02:28.280 --> 0:02:32.320 Her extensive client list includes NFL players with the Denver Broncos, 0:02:32.600 --> 0:02:38.119 Oakland Raiders, Washington Commanders, and that's being nominated soft ball 0:02:38.160 --> 0:02:42.480 star and a ballerina from the famous American Ballet Theater. 0:02:43.760 --> 0:02:46.600 We are extremely excited to have her here with us 0:02:46.639 --> 0:02:48.079 and I'm gonna pick it over to Cliff. 0:02:49.480 --> 0:02:54.239 Hello, Hello, Hello, everyone. Happy Tuesday to everybody. So I'm 0:02:54.280 --> 0:02:58.600 more than honored to introduce these these two illustrious gentlemen, 0:02:58.680 --> 0:03:02.000 the hosts of the the Infamous and the Illustrious Earned 0:03:02.040 --> 0:03:05.360 Your Leisure podcast. These fellas have two of the top 0:03:05.520 --> 0:03:09.320 ten finance and business podcasts out with Earn Your Leisure 0:03:09.360 --> 0:03:13.640 and Market Mondays. They also have like their new show 0:03:13.720 --> 0:03:16.840 Assets of Reliabilities that came out, Please go check that out. 0:03:17.080 --> 0:03:19.480 They're also proud members of the Beer Gang as you 0:03:19.520 --> 0:03:20.120 all see. 0:03:20.960 --> 0:03:25.919 Okay, okay. They are probably. 0:03:25.919 --> 0:03:28.560 One of the most exciting clients that we have to 0:03:28.720 --> 0:03:33.200 date on the bleeding edge of culture, finance, business and sports. 0:03:33.360 --> 0:03:36.560 So we're extremely excited to introduce the men, the myth 0:03:36.640 --> 0:03:40.640 and the Legends, Troy Millings and Rashad Balah. 0:03:41.640 --> 0:03:43.880 Thank you for having us yl, Cliff. 0:03:43.920 --> 0:03:47.960 We appreciate that, appreciate that much. 0:03:48.000 --> 0:03:53.560 Love, So from here I'm gonna go ahead and let 0:03:53.600 --> 0:03:56.160 you guys take it over and allow you all to 0:03:56.200 --> 0:04:00.160 have the conversation. After this, We'll also have some have 0:04:00.240 --> 0:04:01.880 Q and a's that I'll be able to feed to 0:04:01.960 --> 0:04:02.480 you guys. 0:04:03.920 --> 0:04:06.600 Appreciate it for sure. I appreciate it, Isaiah Man. 0:04:06.800 --> 0:04:09.560 I appreciate you getting the Washington team right man, that's 0:04:09.600 --> 0:04:10.000 my team. 0:04:10.080 --> 0:04:13.920 So appreciate you. 0:04:15.600 --> 0:04:17.239 Nicole. First and foremost is honor. 0:04:18.279 --> 0:04:20.440 Thank you. I'm excited to be here. How's it going? 0:04:20.839 --> 0:04:22.279 Good? Good? You know, it's so crazy. 0:04:23.200 --> 0:04:27.279 We have posted you on our platform at the beginning, 0:04:27.560 --> 0:04:30.520 like three years ago, like when we first started Instagram. 0:04:30.640 --> 0:04:32.599 You were one of the first stories that we posted 0:04:33.440 --> 0:04:36.720 about the young Money thing and we actually tried to 0:04:36.760 --> 0:04:40.040 get you on the podcast then like three years ago, 0:04:41.400 --> 0:04:41.920 it be tough. 0:04:42.040 --> 0:04:47.040 Now look we're here, we're here. 0:04:46.600 --> 0:04:52.240 Yeah, three years later that before, it's yeah, but you know, 0:04:52.279 --> 0:04:54.360 big fans of what you got going on. So first 0:04:54.360 --> 0:04:56.840 and foremost, thank you for joining us, and congratulations all 0:04:56.880 --> 0:04:57.400 your success. 0:04:57.760 --> 0:04:59.200 Thank you. I'm excited to be here. 0:04:59.320 --> 0:05:00.000 Yeah, for sure. 0:05:00.120 --> 0:05:01.680 So I guess we could just jump right into it, 0:05:01.760 --> 0:05:04.800 so people might not be fully aware of your journey, 0:05:04.839 --> 0:05:07.480 and it just kind of gave some background. But it's 0:05:07.680 --> 0:05:10.440 interesting because you come from a finance background from Wall 0:05:10.440 --> 0:05:13.000 Street talking about Servy seven and different things like that. 0:05:13.000 --> 0:05:16.800 That's like in our world. So how did you transition 0:05:17.080 --> 0:05:20.359 from working on Wall Street being in finance to you know, 0:05:20.440 --> 0:05:22.719 being an NFL agent and now being you know, the 0:05:22.760 --> 0:05:26.560 head of the football division at clubch Yeah. 0:05:26.600 --> 0:05:28.640 So I, you know, I always knew that I wanted 0:05:28.680 --> 0:05:31.520 to work with athletes. I didn't exactly know that it 0:05:31.560 --> 0:05:33.920 was called a sports agent, but I knew the capacity 0:05:33.920 --> 0:05:36.040 that I wanted to work with them, and so I 0:05:36.080 --> 0:05:39.480 thought that it was a financial advisor. And so I 0:05:39.520 --> 0:05:41.640 moved to New York City. I worked at this big 0:05:41.640 --> 0:05:44.000 company called Morgan Stanley. I was actually doing investment banking 0:05:44.040 --> 0:05:46.960 at the time, but wanted to flip to the financial 0:05:47.000 --> 0:05:49.280 advisor side. And so I met with the financial advisor, 0:05:49.839 --> 0:05:51.320 kind of told him what I was interested in, and 0:05:51.360 --> 0:05:53.440 he's like, you want to be an agent. He's like, 0:05:53.480 --> 0:05:56.400 you don't want to be a financial advisor. So I 0:05:56.440 --> 0:05:58.040 was like, really, what does an agent do? And so 0:05:58.080 --> 0:06:00.320 he's explaining to me exactly what that is is. And 0:06:00.880 --> 0:06:04.120 once I realized I was in kind of the wrong field, 0:06:04.440 --> 0:06:07.160 I went and applied to take the lsat probably within 0:06:07.240 --> 0:06:09.680 like a week, and then applied to law school like 0:06:09.720 --> 0:06:12.480 it was, you know, really quick. In order to be 0:06:12.480 --> 0:06:14.880 an NFL agent, you have to have a postgraduate degree, 0:06:14.960 --> 0:06:17.760 so either a law degree or a master's degree. So 0:06:17.800 --> 0:06:20.159 that's why I ended up going to law school and 0:06:20.640 --> 0:06:22.680 went to law school graduate, waited there in two and 0:06:22.720 --> 0:06:26.400 a half years. Spent about six about eight months at 0:06:26.400 --> 0:06:30.720 the NFL Players Association before I got certified. Got certified, 0:06:30.800 --> 0:06:33.600 and then I started this dual career as an attorney 0:06:33.880 --> 0:06:36.400 and a sports agent. So I worked at the number 0:06:36.400 --> 0:06:39.160 three ranked a law firm in the world's huge international 0:06:39.240 --> 0:06:41.360 law firm, and then I also worked at Players Rep 0:06:41.360 --> 0:06:44.800 which became Young Money Sports kind of at the same time. 0:06:44.839 --> 0:06:48.200 So I was moonlighting as an agent for about six 0:06:48.240 --> 0:06:51.480 to seven years before I joined Clutge doctor Lynn. 0:06:52.240 --> 0:06:56.240 Okay, So I meant most people, I mean, especially for 0:06:56.320 --> 0:06:58.880 my generation, when we thought agents, you know, people we 0:06:58.920 --> 0:07:00.960 watched Jeri McGuire like sounds all. 0:07:00.880 --> 0:07:04.279 Right, But what is the actual role of an agent? 0:07:04.360 --> 0:07:04.599 All right? 0:07:04.640 --> 0:07:06.479 Because like most people think like that's the person that 0:07:06.560 --> 0:07:08.919 gets to meet the athlete and hang out on the 0:07:08.960 --> 0:07:11.360 sideline and what it's time to do a deal like, oh, 0:07:11.360 --> 0:07:14.320 they'll come around, but what is it the actual role 0:07:14.360 --> 0:07:14.880 of the agent. 0:07:15.680 --> 0:07:19.200 So the actual role my job description is that I 0:07:19.280 --> 0:07:22.400 negotiate the contract for the player on behalf of the 0:07:22.400 --> 0:07:24.880 player with the team. Like that is the box. That 0:07:25.000 --> 0:07:27.440 is really all my job is now from a day 0:07:27.480 --> 0:07:29.360 to day. It doesn't look just like that. That may 0:07:29.360 --> 0:07:32.560 be what the job description reads, but it's really me 0:07:32.640 --> 0:07:35.280 wearing a bunch of hats. So I'm a personal assistant, 0:07:35.320 --> 0:07:38.160 I'm a travel agent, I'm a friend, a mentor. You know, 0:07:38.200 --> 0:07:40.760 it could be anything from planning a vacation for an athlete, 0:07:40.920 --> 0:07:44.640 negotiating an endorsement deal, to being a therapist and talking 0:07:44.640 --> 0:07:47.200 about mental health. Like really, you're kind of the glue 0:07:47.280 --> 0:07:50.400 for the player. So it's an everyday thing. So when 0:07:50.400 --> 0:07:52.559 I'm repping a player, I'm talking to them at least 0:07:52.600 --> 0:07:54.800 once a day about it, any and everything. 0:07:55.960 --> 0:07:58.480 So we interview Bobby Wagner. 0:07:58.640 --> 0:08:02.160 Yes, great guy, and we know a few are a 0:08:02.200 --> 0:08:04.160 few other players in the league. We know a lot 0:08:04.160 --> 0:08:06.560 of players in the league actually, So what's interesting about 0:08:06.600 --> 0:08:09.280 him is that he does not have an agent. He 0:08:09.360 --> 0:08:11.600 represents himself and that's something that's kind of become a 0:08:11.600 --> 0:08:17.960 little bit more popular nowadays, especially what contracts kind of 0:08:18.000 --> 0:08:21.080 being set already is not really a lot of negotiation. 0:08:21.200 --> 0:08:22.200 Correct me if I'm wrong. 0:08:23.440 --> 0:08:26.600 So how do you feel about that players representing themselves 0:08:26.640 --> 0:08:28.640 and you do you think that that is a trend 0:08:28.680 --> 0:08:29.600 that will continue? 0:08:30.600 --> 0:08:32.840 So kind of to your point about contracts being lockstep, 0:08:32.920 --> 0:08:35.080 that's only in the rookie deal. So veteran deals are 0:08:35.080 --> 0:08:38.040 not lockstep. You very much have to negotiate everything from 0:08:38.080 --> 0:08:41.600 the money to the language to the payout. It takes 0:08:41.640 --> 0:08:45.240 a skill set. There are a few players that represent themselves, 0:08:45.240 --> 0:08:47.360 but I would say it's not a trend yet. I 0:08:47.360 --> 0:08:50.240 mean I could name maybe four out of two thousand players, 0:08:50.280 --> 0:08:52.520 so we hear the big name, so it makes us 0:08:52.520 --> 0:08:54.640 think that it's pretty common, but it's still not very 0:08:54.640 --> 0:08:58.640 common for me. If a player is able to right 0:08:58.679 --> 0:09:00.520 and they've got the knowledge and the expends to negotiate 0:09:00.559 --> 0:09:02.679 their own deal, totally do it. You know, I want 0:09:02.679 --> 0:09:05.400 you to feel empowered. I personally, if I need surgery, 0:09:05.440 --> 0:09:07.120 I'm not doing my own surgery. I'm going to a doctor. 0:09:07.440 --> 0:09:09.560 But that's just me. You know, some people like people 0:09:09.640 --> 0:09:11.840 google their symptoms. I like to go to the doctor, 0:09:12.200 --> 0:09:15.400 so I think it's similar to that. You know, there's 0:09:15.520 --> 0:09:17.640 Bobby did a great job with his deal, phenomenal job, 0:09:17.920 --> 0:09:20.080 but that is not always the case unfortunately. You know, 0:09:20.120 --> 0:09:23.199 we've seen some deals that have been negotiated by non agents, 0:09:23.240 --> 0:09:25.960 not attorneys, and they just you know, are not up 0:09:25.960 --> 0:09:29.280 to par with the market. So if you can do it, great, 0:09:29.480 --> 0:09:32.080 you know, I just what we're paid is such a fraction, 0:09:32.240 --> 0:09:34.280 and you know, I pay people what they're worth, and 0:09:34.960 --> 0:09:36.880 there are any expertise I think is worth it. 0:09:37.160 --> 0:09:39.640 With the commission got cut recently, it's like two percent 0:09:39.720 --> 0:09:44.200 now like that, No, it's three. Yeah, but it was 0:09:44.280 --> 0:09:46.520 higher than that previously, right, It's. 0:09:46.320 --> 0:09:48.960 It's always been three, but they're able to negotiate it down. 0:09:49.520 --> 0:09:50.240 Yeah. 0:09:50.280 --> 0:09:52.920 So so we're in a Black History month, and when 0:09:53.000 --> 0:09:55.959 we talk about history, obviously black future, Black Future month 0:09:56.000 --> 0:09:58.560 as well, because we shout out to yeah, that's right, 0:09:58.640 --> 0:10:01.640 Black Future Month, and that's about the future, especially for 0:10:01.880 --> 0:10:05.120 females and sports. Right, we don't really see females as agents, 0:10:05.160 --> 0:10:07.200 and we're starting to see it now and in the 0:10:07.240 --> 0:10:09.960 training and coaching, but I haven't seen many female agents. 0:10:09.960 --> 0:10:12.560 It's specifically black female agents. 0:10:12.559 --> 0:10:13.280 So what has that. 0:10:13.280 --> 0:10:15.920 Journey been like for you some you know, trials and 0:10:16.200 --> 0:10:18.079 tribulations that you've had to face as a black female 0:10:18.080 --> 0:10:18.720 indos industry. 0:10:19.440 --> 0:10:21.520 Yeah, I mean it's not easy. It's definitely gotten to 0:10:21.520 --> 0:10:23.720 a point now where people are used to seeing me 0:10:23.800 --> 0:10:26.400 in the rooms and there's not that well factor. But 0:10:26.559 --> 0:10:29.080 early on it was really tough. You know. I think 0:10:29.120 --> 0:10:31.600 the first half that made it difficult was recruiting. Right, 0:10:31.600 --> 0:10:34.720 I go into a player's room and I'm talking to dad, 0:10:34.760 --> 0:10:37.760 and Dad is quizzing me on the game of football, 0:10:39.160 --> 0:10:42.120 you know, charging me up. The other aspect of it. 0:10:42.280 --> 0:10:44.520 I signed my first client at twenty six. The first 0:10:44.559 --> 0:10:46.720 player I ever signed was a veteran player who was 0:10:46.800 --> 0:10:49.880 twenty five. And so these are my peers. You know. 0:10:49.920 --> 0:10:53.640 I'm finally aging out of the locker room, praise God. 0:10:53.720 --> 0:10:56.040 But my age was bigger of an issue than my 0:10:56.160 --> 0:10:58.880 gender and my race, you know. I think being young 0:10:59.000 --> 0:11:02.320 was such a trial and tribulation for me. So there's 0:11:02.360 --> 0:11:03.800 that half of it, and then the second half is 0:11:03.960 --> 0:11:05.839 dealing with the NFL and being taken serious by the 0:11:05.920 --> 0:11:09.240 general managers and the scouts and salary cap people, and 0:11:09.320 --> 0:11:11.679 that took a while. You know. I tell women all 0:11:11.720 --> 0:11:15.000 the time that excellence is your greatest currency, right, so 0:11:15.040 --> 0:11:17.680 if you are excellent everything you do, there will be 0:11:17.840 --> 0:11:20.400 no one that can question. And so for me, I 0:11:20.440 --> 0:11:23.320 always work harder than my peers. You know, I'm trying 0:11:23.320 --> 0:11:25.600 to show up excellent every single day. I want to 0:11:25.600 --> 0:11:28.040 make it tough for them to say anything about nicolon. 0:11:29.440 --> 0:11:31.120 So let me ask you this because I think there's 0:11:31.200 --> 0:11:34.800 a lot of college students on this. Of course, So 0:11:35.120 --> 0:11:39.000 let's get into like the education. What are the steps 0:11:39.000 --> 0:11:41.280 to become an NFL agent? Can you just kind of 0:11:41.360 --> 0:11:44.320 walk like step by step process. 0:11:45.000 --> 0:11:48.040 So graduating from college is a requirement, so NBA is different. 0:11:48.040 --> 0:11:51.280 This is just NFL graduating from college getting some type 0:11:51.280 --> 0:11:53.760 of postgraduate degree. So that can be a master's degree. 0:11:53.840 --> 0:11:55.560 You know, you can go get an online one year 0:11:55.600 --> 0:11:57.800 master's degree, or you can go to law school. You 0:11:57.840 --> 0:11:59.160 do not have to go to law school to be 0:11:59.160 --> 0:12:01.560 an agent. Get that question all the time. Do I 0:12:01.559 --> 0:12:04.439 think it was valuable? Yes? What I've done it again? Yes, 0:12:04.480 --> 0:12:08.520 but it's not necessary passing whatever masters or a JD 0:12:08.600 --> 0:12:10.960 program you're in, and then you've got to sit for 0:12:10.960 --> 0:12:14.040 the NFLPA exam. That exam is offered only once a 0:12:14.120 --> 0:12:17.400 year in July for two days and you have to 0:12:17.600 --> 0:12:20.960 apply for that exam in January. So you apply in January. 0:12:20.960 --> 0:12:23.240 You spend like three thousand dollars to apply. They do 0:12:23.280 --> 0:12:26.320 this big background check on you, all these references. They're 0:12:26.320 --> 0:12:27.680 going to do a credit check to make sure you 0:12:27.679 --> 0:12:29.400 don't have too much debt. I mean, it's a whole thing. 0:12:30.160 --> 0:12:32.840 And then you sit for the exam in July. The 0:12:32.880 --> 0:12:36.080 test results come out around October. This year, only thirty 0:12:36.160 --> 0:12:38.480 five percent of people that took the exam past, so 0:12:38.480 --> 0:12:41.880 it's a very low pass rate. And then you're registered. 0:12:42.240 --> 0:12:44.520 And then every year that you are an agent, you 0:12:44.600 --> 0:12:47.679 have to pay NFLPA dues, which are around twenty five hundred. 0:12:48.080 --> 0:12:50.560 You have to pay NFLPA insurance, which is another fifteen hundreds. 0:12:50.559 --> 0:12:53.200 It's five grand, five grand, no players, just to say 0:12:53.200 --> 0:12:55.920 you're an agent. You have to pay a fee in 0:12:56.040 --> 0:13:00.240 every single state you recruit in. So in Tech says 0:13:00.240 --> 0:13:02.439 it's five hundred in Alabama. I think it's a thousand. 0:13:02.840 --> 0:13:04.560 You have to get a surety bond in every single 0:13:04.559 --> 0:13:07.480 state you recruit in, so that's another thousand bucks per state. 0:13:07.760 --> 0:13:10.079 So if I recruit in five ten states, I mean 0:13:10.160 --> 0:13:12.640 easily we're talking twenty five thousand dollars a year to 0:13:12.640 --> 0:13:15.199 be an agent and not have a client. So when 0:13:15.200 --> 0:13:17.400 people ask me what's the big biggest barrier to entry, 0:13:17.720 --> 0:13:21.679 it's money. People that are agents have money, you know, 0:13:22.080 --> 0:13:25.040 or they had an investor, which is why I worked 0:13:25.040 --> 0:13:26.760 this law job for seven years because I didn't have 0:13:26.840 --> 0:13:30.560 no money. But that's kind of the steps. 0:13:30.920 --> 0:13:33.160 Now, that's good information. But then so also to follow 0:13:33.200 --> 0:13:33.520 up from that. 0:13:33.559 --> 0:13:36.800 Okay, so say somebody wants to they they can do 0:13:36.880 --> 0:13:39.960 that financially, they passed, they passed it, but they still 0:13:39.960 --> 0:13:42.560 don't have any clients. So the next step I would 0:13:42.559 --> 0:13:46.000 assume would be to try to work with an agent 0:13:46.040 --> 0:13:48.319 to try to get hired by an agency or do 0:13:48.360 --> 0:13:50.560 you see people doing it independently and just trying to 0:13:50.600 --> 0:13:51.920 just get clients on their own. 0:13:52.240 --> 0:13:54.280 Most young agents are on their own, so I know 0:13:54.320 --> 0:13:56.800 that we see the big clutch cias of the world, 0:13:56.880 --> 0:13:59.960 those are few far in between. There's nine hundred certified agent. 0:14:00.080 --> 0:14:02.360 I'd say eight hundred of them are on their own 0:14:02.520 --> 0:14:04.680 or in small little agents with a couple groups, like 0:14:04.800 --> 0:14:07.840 small little groups of agents. Most are not at big agencies, 0:14:08.040 --> 0:14:09.280 so most are going to be on their own. 0:14:10.440 --> 0:14:12.760 Yeah, So what led you to the process of choosing 0:14:13.000 --> 0:14:16.880 players rep. Because I mean at that point, I mean, 0:14:16.920 --> 0:14:18.760 I'm a huge I'm a huge wings fand by the way, 0:14:18.920 --> 0:14:21.880 but at that point, were you trying to find agency 0:14:21.920 --> 0:14:23.760 that says, you know what they're going to value me 0:14:23.880 --> 0:14:25.400 or what was that process like for you? 0:14:25.720 --> 0:14:25.840 Oh? 0:14:25.880 --> 0:14:27.640 I mean they were the only ones that answered the phone. 0:14:29.080 --> 0:14:31.080 I probably called one hundred agents, tried to get a 0:14:31.160 --> 0:14:33.960 job with everyone in the business. No one returned my call. 0:14:34.960 --> 0:14:37.360 The guy that ended up giving my giving me my 0:14:37.400 --> 0:14:40.440 shot was named Kenzarnoff. He worked a players rep. He 0:14:40.520 --> 0:14:42.560 rapped a bunch of players from OU and I went 0:14:42.600 --> 0:14:44.720 to OU and I was friends with a lot of 0:14:44.720 --> 0:14:46.400 these guys, and so I kind of leveraged it and 0:14:46.480 --> 0:14:48.640 was like, hey, I know all your clients. Can you 0:14:48.680 --> 0:14:51.600 give me ten minutes? And we got on a call 0:14:51.720 --> 0:14:54.120 and he just told me, Hey, this is a very 0:14:54.160 --> 0:14:56.720 terrible business. It's so hard to get in, and you're 0:14:56.720 --> 0:14:58.520 a woman, and you're a black woman. Like he basically 0:14:58.560 --> 0:15:01.360 was trying to talk me out of it. I get 0:15:01.360 --> 0:15:03.120 it now that I'm on the side, I totally get it. 0:15:03.720 --> 0:15:05.480 And he said, I get this call twice a week. 0:15:05.680 --> 0:15:08.600 Why are you different? He's like, what makes you stand out. 0:15:08.600 --> 0:15:10.080 Why would I give you a shot? I got one 0:15:10.160 --> 0:15:12.360 hundred kids that call me every day. And he's like, 0:15:12.400 --> 0:15:14.400 if you could get me a meeting with let's say 0:15:14.840 --> 0:15:16.840 the Raven Clark And this is a kid at the 0:15:16.840 --> 0:15:19.640 time that was like this top offensive lineman. He's like, okay, sure, 0:15:19.640 --> 0:15:21.160 I hear you out, like he just named a person. 0:15:21.760 --> 0:15:23.440 And so I end up actually getting him that meeting 0:15:23.480 --> 0:15:26.160 the next day and then he hired me. So it 0:15:26.240 --> 0:15:29.160 was one of those weird just god moments. 0:15:29.600 --> 0:15:31.120 You know who you never know who you know. 0:15:31.880 --> 0:15:34.560 It's actually, you know, you bring up a very valid point, 0:15:34.600 --> 0:15:37.360 and especially for all of the college students that are listening, 0:15:37.400 --> 0:15:42.720 because a lot of people like ask for internships or mentorships, 0:15:42.800 --> 0:15:46.040 but they go about it the wrong way. They go 0:15:46.080 --> 0:15:49.880 about it more so like you can help me, but 0:15:49.920 --> 0:15:51.720 that's more of a charity thing, and you can only 0:15:51.760 --> 0:15:52.800 do so much charity. 0:15:53.120 --> 0:15:56.600 But if you can actually add value to a person, and. 0:15:56.560 --> 0:15:59.000 It's like like how you introduced him to somebody that 0:15:59.040 --> 0:16:01.440 he was looking. Now, that's the actual value add You 0:16:01.440 --> 0:16:03.560 don't even have to have money to have some level 0:16:03.560 --> 0:16:06.000 of value that you can bring. So talk about that, 0:16:06.040 --> 0:16:08.040 because you guys said I know that. You know a 0:16:08.080 --> 0:16:10.040 lot of people probably hit you up all the time, 0:16:10.160 --> 0:16:12.040 like can I intern for you? Can I work for 0:16:12.200 --> 0:16:14.960 under you? Can I introduce me to this person that person? 0:16:15.040 --> 0:16:18.880 Like talk about how it's important to add value first 0:16:18.960 --> 0:16:20.800 when looking to be a part of something. 0:16:21.200 --> 0:16:22.920 I one hundred percent agree. I wrote a book and 0:16:22.960 --> 0:16:25.280 I have a whole chapter on this as being a 0:16:25.320 --> 0:16:28.680 value add when it comes to this mentor question. You know, 0:16:28.760 --> 0:16:31.200 I do have guys and women reach out to me 0:16:31.240 --> 0:16:33.520 all the time and say can you mentor me? And, 0:16:33.560 --> 0:16:36.400 like you said, that's charity. And although I do find 0:16:36.440 --> 0:16:38.040 in my heart to help as many as I can, 0:16:39.080 --> 0:16:41.200 it's tough to filter through who do you choose? And 0:16:41.240 --> 0:16:43.440 so when you're looking to find a mentor, you definitely 0:16:43.440 --> 0:16:45.520 want to see if there's something you can do for them. 0:16:45.840 --> 0:16:47.280 You know, like you said, it doesn't have to be money, 0:16:47.320 --> 0:16:49.400 but maybe it's a relationship, maybe it's a connection, Maybe 0:16:49.400 --> 0:16:51.920 it's just taking stuff off their plate. You know, Hey, 0:16:52.120 --> 0:16:53.920 can I be your assistant for free for a month? 0:16:54.000 --> 0:16:56.240 Let me organize your emails. You know, I noticed that 0:16:56.360 --> 0:16:58.480 when you post a screenshot on your phone, you had 0:16:58.480 --> 0:16:59.800 a lot of messages that run read let me go 0:16:59.840 --> 0:17:01.920 through messages, let me organize something for you. Whatever that 0:17:01.960 --> 0:17:05.080 may be, something that sets you apart. You know, it's 0:17:05.080 --> 0:17:07.240 got to be a mutually beneficial relationship unless you know 0:17:07.280 --> 0:17:07.679 the person. 0:17:08.200 --> 0:17:10.840 Yeah, you said that when you made the phone call. 0:17:11.119 --> 0:17:13.160 You know the general is trying to discourage you from 0:17:13.200 --> 0:17:15.200 taking it, and you understood it. Now being on this side, 0:17:15.520 --> 0:17:19.240 my gosh, So can we dive into it a little bit? 0:17:19.280 --> 0:17:20.800 Like what are the things that you that you were 0:17:20.800 --> 0:17:22.680 seeing it? You know, like, oh, I get it. Maybe 0:17:22.720 --> 0:17:24.399 he was trying to protect me. But I'm going to 0:17:24.440 --> 0:17:26.000 go with my intuition and my gut and this is 0:17:26.040 --> 0:17:27.760 my passion. So what were the things were you seeing? 0:17:28.320 --> 0:17:29.840 I mean, I think the biggest thing for me is 0:17:29.840 --> 0:17:31.680 that there are a lot of ways to work with 0:17:32.119 --> 0:17:34.080 athletes and a lot of ways to change the lives 0:17:34.080 --> 0:17:36.359 of athletes without being an agent. And so when I 0:17:36.400 --> 0:17:37.639 meet with people and they say they want to be 0:17:37.640 --> 0:17:40.480 an agent, I want to know that you can't sleep 0:17:40.480 --> 0:17:43.000 at night unless you're an agent. If not, you can 0:17:43.040 --> 0:17:44.639 work for a team and do some of the similar 0:17:44.640 --> 0:17:47.240 things that I do without the risk, right and without 0:17:47.359 --> 0:17:50.840 the work that is involved. We talked about the money part. 0:17:51.080 --> 0:17:53.080 It cost a ton of money. You know, we didn't 0:17:53.080 --> 0:17:55.040 even get into how much it costs to sign a player. 0:17:55.200 --> 0:17:56.679 You know, it could cost twenty five thousand to one 0:17:56.720 --> 0:17:58.720 hundred thousand dollars to sign a player, and god forbid, 0:17:58.760 --> 0:18:01.119 he goes undrafted. You don't get your money back. So 0:18:01.160 --> 0:18:04.320 it's almost like gambling, or you know you're in. You're investing. 0:18:04.840 --> 0:18:07.199 Just like investments, it can hit or or it may not, 0:18:08.000 --> 0:18:09.440 and so the amount of money you have to put 0:18:09.440 --> 0:18:12.000 in and the level of risk that it takes is 0:18:12.040 --> 0:18:16.120 not always worth it. You're never off. I'm always on right. 0:18:16.160 --> 0:18:18.320 I never have a day off. My phone is always buzzing. 0:18:18.320 --> 0:18:19.840 If somebody calls me at two in the morning, I 0:18:19.840 --> 0:18:22.920 take the call. I don't get to take planned vacations. 0:18:23.080 --> 0:18:24.480 There's never a day I can just go out the 0:18:24.480 --> 0:18:27.040 country and plan it in advance, Like that's not the case. 0:18:27.520 --> 0:18:30.160 So I just I want to make sure that people 0:18:30.200 --> 0:18:31.760 know there's other jobs where you can work with athletes. 0:18:31.840 --> 0:18:34.240 You don't have to have all the bad stuff. You know, 0:18:34.480 --> 0:18:36.160 you can be a publicist, you can work for a team, 0:18:36.200 --> 0:18:38.320 you can work for the Players Association, all of those 0:18:38.480 --> 0:18:41.240