Blaze Your Own Trail - Episode 19: Building Brand Equity For Athletes With Sam Leaf

Episode Date: April 10, 2020

In this episode we discuss: Sam's early years The sports he played How he got in the industry Who some of his clients are Some tips on getting into the sports agency world Connect with Sam here: Instagram Personal: https://www.instagram.com/samleaf/ Instagram Business: https://www.instagram.com/entourage/ Website: http://www.entouragemgmt.com/ Thanks so much for listening!! Be sure to follow us on our Instagram page for behind the scenes content and more: https://www.instagram.com/jordanjmendoza/ Installing strategic sales systems & processes will stop the constant revenue rollercoaster you might be facing which is attainable through our 6 Week Blazing Business Revenue Coaching ProgramBook a discovery call with Jordan now to learn more! Are you an entrepreneur?Join my FREE Group Coaching Community where we have live calls, Q&A and more! Our Trailblazer Ecosystem also enables you to network with other entrepreneurs and creator hub eliminates multiple subscriptions and logins creating a one stop shop to take action!Use code: FOUNDING100 for 12 months access FREE and Founding pricing for life! (While Supplies Last)Join now! Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Hey, everybody. Before we get into the episode, I wanted to just say, I hope you all are safe and well. I know this COVID-19 pandemic seems like it's not going away anytime soon. So just wanted to say that up front. And this episode's so great with Sam Leif. He's a NFLPA license agent, so a sports agent. And he's had an amazing journey getting to where he is today. So I really, really hope you enjoy it. And I can't wait to chat after the episode. Hello, everyone, and welcome to the Blaze Your Own Trail podcast. I'm your host, Jordan Mendoza. And I've got a very special guest with me tonight. His name is Sam Leif. And Sam, can you just give the audience a little bit of insights into who you are? Yeah, first of all, Jordan, thank you so much for having me.

My name's Sam Leif, obviously. I'm a sports agent based in Los Angeles. I'm an NFLPA certified contract advisor. So I represent NFL players. I run an agency by the name of entourage management, full service agency based in LA. They have a music division. I run the football division. Outside of that, I kind of work in the field of sports marketing and business development,

doing a couple different things. But the most notable thing I do is I actually work with a performance coach by the name of Jamal Liggin. He's the owner of JLT in Los Angeles. So yeah, those are my two kind of main responsibilities being a sports agent and working with with Jamal Liggin. And, you know, I work with a couple other people at a similar capacity that I work with Jamal. But, you know, being a sports agent is what they call the day job. Yeah.

And I just think it's funny. I think every podcast, every podcast post always introduces their guest as a special guest. So I'm glad to know that you, you. you see me as special, Jordan. Appreciate that. Hey, everybody's special, in my opinion, right? We all have something to add to the world and we all have value. So let's rewind a little bit. So the audience just got a little bit of insights into who you are and what you do today.

But, you know, I'm super interested to find out. So let's rewind back to being a kid. So when you were a kid, were you into sports? Like, did you play sports? And if you did, what were the sports that you played? and who were, you know, what part of the country did you live in and who were kind of the people that you looked up to in the various sporting worlds? Okay, wow, that's an interesting question. I don't think I've ever been asked that before. I grew up in Orange County, Huntington Beach, California.

Growing up as a kid, I was into sports, but like I didn't play a ton of sports growing up. Like, I played soccer, but it was like a fight for my mom to get me to do it. And I had played basketball. and I played one year of football as a kid, and I absolutely hated it. Once I got into high school, I actually ended up going out for the football team in the middle of my sophomore year. So actually, my first year of football was my junior year of high school. And the love was kind of born for me there. I played football and I wrestled high school.

And like I said, football, my first full year was my junior year of high school. But I was able to somehow still get a scholarship. From there, I went to Baylor University initially, but I was only there for three semesters. I ended up transferring to a Division II school. But anyways, we're getting a little ahead of ourselves. But yeah, so that was like, I mean, I became a real big sports fan, like, in my early 20s, like, in like, you know, 18 through like 22 is really when I became like an avid sports fan where I felt like my friend used to call me ESPN.

Like I was just, you know, new, you know, new everything. I grew up a big Lakers fan. Kobe Bryant was obviously like my hero. And I'm not, you know, that's anyone that knows me, knows my love for Kobe Bryant. But you got to remember, like, I grew up on him. You know, he came to L.A. as a 17-year-old. I just thought it was the coolest thing. And I kind of just watched his journey.

So, yeah, I would say the Lakers were my only team growing up. Like, I never had an NFL team. Just I was a big Laker fan. my brother's best friend was a player played at the University of Washington. I don't know if you remember his name Tony Parrish. And he ended up playing for the Chicago Bears for like six years. He was a second round draft pick and then spent some time with the San Francisco 49ers. I think he's like on the 49ers all decade team.

His name is in the University of Washington, you know, in the stadium. And he's retired at the stadium. He was probably my idol growing up. But it was only because he was so close. Like I considered him like a brother. and he you know i watched him get drafted in the second round i watched him do all these things that you watched everyone else on tv and i had this up close kind of behind the scenes you know look at life in the nfl and you know he was a superstar in my eyes and you know he was name was a big name

when he had played and so that kind of was like where the love of football really came from was seeing someone make it right to the you know to the you know to the you know to the you the highest mountain in this industry and have success and kind of be able to like see the backscenes version you know the backstage version of it if that makes sense no that makes a whole lot of sense and yeah so you know you being growing up in l.A you know the tragic loss of of cobi and and his daughter and all the other people i mean such a major tragedy and you know me growing up in Portland. We didn't like Kobe. You know, we, Pope, yeah, for sure. We hated you guys. Yeah,

Cody Pippen, Rashad Wallet. Who was it? Rashid Wallet? Yep. Rashid Wallet. I mean, we had some squads, but for whatever reason, man, we just, we just couldn't get past. We kept running into us. We kept running into, you know, I remember that, that game where we should have, you know, won that, that championship and we blew that big lead and you guys just broke our hearts you know so yeah and i believe that was on our route to our first championship that was the the beginning of the three p if i remember correctly yeah but that was a hell of a series i remember great series it felt like world war two like as a kid watching that

like i just it just felt big you know what i mean it just felt bigger than yeah and you know for coby bryant like every teenager and a hundred miles i mean all over the world but really down here Like that was our Jordan. Like I think it's kids that grew up in Chicago in the 80s and the early 90s, right? They, they, when you see these athletes that you know every, first of all, every professional athlete is gifted, right? And it's special to be able to do what they do. But every now and then, we're grace with the presence of these guys that make that, you know

what I mean, that stand above even the game. And I feel like Michael Jordan was one of them. I feel like Tom Brady is one of them. And with Kobe Bryant, I think that's another one. And when you see it up close where the local news is always on that and you can see him around town, it just creates this connection that, that, you know, that carries, you know, decades, decades, you know, so. Absolutely. And he was definitely a global icon, right? Not just in the States or not just, you know, to LA, but like two people all over the world with, you know, not just what he did on the, on the court, but what he was.

was really doing off the court, especially after, you know, he retired and all, everything that he was investing in communities and things like that. So, uh, definitely gone way too soon. Um, and so, yeah, so it sounds like, you know, having the, you know, the family friend get drafted and, in going through that really kind of, uh, paved the way, if you will for, uh, down the road when you decided to get into the sports agency world. So, you know, how, you know, how. Um, how, um, How did that conversation actually, like, come up? Like, when was the first time you remember, like, talking to somebody and saying, you know, I want to actually represent athletes.

You know, for me, it didn't really happen that way. Like I said, my journey was the one, you know, the less traveled. And, you know, if you were to ask me, you know, 10 years ago or 12 years ago, if you thought I would be doing this, you know, the answer is no, like, this is the last thing I thought I was going to do. So I finished my college eligibility at a division two school, West Texas, A&M. I graduated from there. I went through the whole pro process, never making an active roster, but kind of going through training camp and whatnot.

And when I got done with that, like, I thought football was done. Like, I never thought I would be working with it. I actually wanted to do what you're doing. And I wanted to pursue stuff in front of the camera and more of like a on a broadcasting front. you know, that was kind of where I thought my future was going to be because of the fact that I grew up in Orange County, I kind of took advantage of the fact that I could move to L.A. and have a lot of resources and, you know what I mean, be able to kind of get going from here. So I kind of moved to L.A. and pursued the entertainment industry, working a lot of working a lot of production jobs, doing a lot of roles in like creative capacities, whether it was pitching shows or helping writing what they call sizzle reels to pitch shows, right? Like I was, pursuing the entertainment world, which was this world where you just kind of go from gig to gig, you know, like, and you kind of had to hustle and you eat what you kill type of mentality. And, you know, I had a lot of friends that were in the NFL because I had played for so long

and had known some people around the industry that were kind of knew that I worked in entertainment. They knew I kind of had like a marketing point of view, right? This is kind of before Instagram and Facebook was still in its early stages. so the society looked a little different, right? So my friends that thought I worked in entertainment, or excuse me, my friends that knew I worked in entertainment thought I can help their football careers away from the field.

But looking back, that they were more so looking for like PR support or like, you know what I mean, brand support, trying to help create a brand. And so that actually kind of caused me to come around the industry again. And for me, it was one of these things where I kind of got around the sports industry, I kind of looked and see, you know, what agents were and kind of what they did, right?

Because the only other experience I had was my was when I was represented by an agent. And my agent was a former player, which is completely different than what the norm is in the industry. So for me, it was just, it was a gradual transition. But I kind of identified early on that recruiting was a key part of this industry. And I felt like I was going to be able to do that because I was. I was a former player. And so that's kind of how it really started for me. So it took some time.

But, you know, I grind it. I grind it. I was fortunate enough where in 2002, this would have been 2011, there I had been kind of dabbling in it a little bit, helping some of my friends out with some marketing stuff away from the field. And I had met an agent who had just become an agent. He was an attorney, which is what most agents. are and he wanted to be he basically started an agency and he kind of brought me on board to help him out because he knew I had played that was it right you knew I'd played he knew I can help him out

that job ended up being like if I did not meet that guy there's no way I would have been here today because that gave me exactly what I needed to get my feet wet in this industry because it was a guy who started from the ground up. So I really got to learn everything from the ground up and kind of learn how this industry works from that side of it. But he actually ended up getting out of it pretty quickly. And now I was in this situation where I had a taste for it. I knew I wanted to do it.

Like I knew I wanted more, but I didn't really know where to go. Like I had gotten lucky that I kind of found an agency and found a home where what I did well was exactly what he needed. And once that went away, I was kind of left scrambling, trying to figure out like, okay, how, I know this is the industry I want to work in now. Like, there's something there.

I got a small taste of it. And I kind of had to climb from there, if that makes sense. Oh, that makes a ton of sense. So what did you do next? Was it, all right, let me Google. How do I become, you know, how do I become an agent? Like, how do I get certified or like, so what was kind of the next thing, right?

Because now you're in a place. Do you really want to know the next step? Like, you really like, I really want to know. Exactly. Curious. So this is what happened. So while I worked for that agent, we worked in a building, okay? This is, I had no leads. I had like no leads, okay?

We had worked in like a Wells Fargo building. So there were like financial advisors and all these other offices in the building. And there was a guy who next door knew what we were doing. And he had played football at SC, right? And he was now working as a financial advisor. I used to talk to this guy when we would find ourselves in the restroom at the same time. Like we would interact in the hallway. That was the only time we would talk.

And one day he handed me a metal business card with a gentleman by the name of Billy Miller, who played in the NFL for 11 years and was now an agent, was running an agency. It was rival sports group in Beverly Hills. He's like, hey, you should hit up my, he's like, if you guys ever needed, if you guys ever needed help, you should hit up. This is my friend. you know, he can help you guys out if you're ever looking for general advice. So it's a metal business card.

If you saw it, you would keep it. It was just interesting. So that sat in my wallet for a while when I had, when the agency that I was working at, which really wasn't an agent, who was a lawyer who had it, who was certified and started assigned clients. That was it. It was a law office with an agent, like with a certification. I tried to contact agencies, seeing if I can get in.

I couldn't get anyone to give me the time of day because I was uncertified. I didn't really have any experience. All I had was this belief that I think I'm going to be good at this. That's it. And that I had played. So I knew a bunch of people. You know what I mean? That was all that I brought to the table.

So one day, like, I was, you know, struggling. And one day I busted out the metal business card. And I was like, let me just hit up this. Let me just hit up this guy. It took me forever to even get him on the phone. Okay. And I finally, after. a couple months, get him to meet up with me. And I, you know, drove to their office in Beverly Hills.

I sat down. I pitched myself to him. He basically told me he didn't have a job. There was no opportunity for me. And like, I wasn't going to leave that room without something. And so I just asked him, I said, you know, talking, you know, small talk, like, who are you guys recruiting? Who are you guys going after? Because it was like, I didn't want to leave. Once I walked in there, I knew this is what I want to do. But it's hard. It's hard to get, it's hard to get, you know, jobs in an agency, especially when you're not an agent. You know, I saw these two names, you know, he, you know, he gives me a couple names of who they're recruiting. And I was like, what ams if I can bring you one of them? Like, what ams if I can

bring you one of them? And this is how we get started. And this will give us an opportunity to kind of, you know what I mean? To work with one another. And, uh, that was like a really shitty way of saying, I wish I could re-say that. Basically, what I had asked them to do was like, help out recruit the guys that they were recruiting. I found a couple names of guys that they were recruiting, and I basically made it my mission that I was going to get in contact with these guys and create an opportunity for myself at rival sports group. I worked for free for like four and a half months with no promise of anything.

I don't suggest anyone should do that in 2020, but like at the time is what felt right for me. And I busted my butt and like, It got to the point where as I'm working for free, they're starting to see like, okay, he can do something. He got in contact with those guys. He got us meetings. They started to kind of pay for the recruiting to send me out there to recruit these guys.

And I ended up being able to deliver one of the two guys for them. Okay. Once I did that, they automatically had to give me a job. Okay, but I wasn't certified. So then they kind of helped me begin the process to get certified and figure that stuff out. And that's how I got into my next job. Like I presented myself and really worked from the ground up just to create an opportunity for myself at rival sports group. I had the opportunity of working under Jerome Stanley, who was one of the legends in the industry.

I learned so much from him. And I spent a couple years there and felt like I had done everything that I needed to do. And like that was it. I was in the industry. I knew this is what I was going to do. And that's how I got in. it was, you know, like I said, the road less traveled. And it gradually happened for me.

First I got in, I didn't even know if I wanted to be an agent. I just thought maybe I wanted to do, you know, managing and marketing and really kind of make recruiting my thing. But over time, it eventually made sense for me to become an agent. And, you know, I just wish I started this maybe six years sooner than I did. Who knows where I would be now? but I'm definitely blessed to have experienced the things that I had experienced in this industry. Well, and I love it, man.

I love that story because, like, that's what it's all about, right? It's about an unorthodox journey that makes it so meaningful because, like, you could have easily just thrown in the towel after that guy's office closed down, right? You could have easily said, you know what, like taking that business card and threw it somewhere on a desk and forgot about it, right? But you kept it. You held on to it. And you were not going to let yourself give up. So this is a story of like perseverance, right? Like you were, you were like, you know what? I'm not even going to leave this guy's office until I figure out a way to add value to him with with no expectations in return to get my foot in the door. So to me,

like, that's a beautiful journey because it's yours, right? Like you trusted the process and you persevered and you gave it all you had and it's paid off for you. Yeah. I mean, when you put it like that, you make me want to almost kind of restart and do it again. But yeah, it was definitely perseverance. And I mean, anyone that's in this industry and I'm not just saying this because I'm on the phone with you, but it's like anyone that a sports agent will tell you this business is about being able to persevere. This business is about being able to stand in there, take it on the chin and like get back up and go fight because that's what it is. I don't think that there is a harder job or harder industry to make it in like and then the industry that I'm in.

Like it is so difficult and I have been in this now for for almost like about a decade and you wouldn't believe how many people I have watched come and go. Like so many people that I work with and so many people that at one point I looked up to aren't even in the industry. like the like the guy that i told you about the metal business card not even in it he's coming he's doing something completely different the first guy wouldn't doing something completely different but i had found the love in it and i knew like because here's one thing this is true and like i've never really said this like especially in a format like this but like i was a former athlete and when you get done playing and especially when you play at a hard level it's hard to figure out what you're

going to do next. And it's hard to figure out what your identity is. And I went through that. Like, I didn't know what I was supposed to do. Like, my brother was a doctor. That's it. He knew he was going to be a doctor for like, you know what I mean? Like that was what he wanted to do. I didn't mind. My thing was be a professional athlete. And so beyond that, I didn't know what my identity was. And so I was this and I was a kid at the time. I was like this young man in the world trying to figure out, how am I going to a living from myself, but more importantly, how can I commit myself to something that means so much to me that I'm going to make it my life? Because that's how I grew up in sports. Like growing up, you know what I mean playing football? Like it was my life. And I wanted something

like that. And for me, this is it. You know, being an agent, working in the sports management industry, like that is, that is my thing. And so to be honest, It's like I'm blessed to have found it. And there were so many times where like I should have left because it's really hard. And if I were to take this same effort and I would, if I were to take this same drive and apply it to any other trade or any other industry, I would probably be a billionaire. But for me, this is, this is what I love. And it's, it's what I'm supposed to. It's, you know, I believe this is what I'm supposed to do and, and, and I'm good at it.

like I truly enjoy the process of meeting, of meeting a player and, you know, building a relationship and helping this young man get to this thing that's his identity as well. You know what I mean? Like it's his identity to make it in the NFL and to help them get there. It's a very rewarding industry. It's a very rewarding feeling, I should say. But it's also difficult because, you know, your success is contingent on what other people do. You know what I mean?

Like you, it's, you know, like, yeah, you have no control over the outcome. You depend on these athletes that are really depending on body parts to get the job done so you can do your job and make a decent living out of it. You know, but it's what I love. And that's it. and you've hit it really on the head. Like if you are passionate about something, and for the audience that's listening,

I don't care if you're passionate about building stuff. I don't care if you're passionate about sales, if it's real estate, if it's sports agency, if you're passionate about something, like you will drag yourself through the mud through thick and thin and like it'll actually like the fibers in your body get impacted by it because you have so much passion for it. And I can totally hear it in your,

voice that like this is the place that you are supposed to be. And the fact that you get to not only help these young men start a start a career, but you're also helping them off the field, right? So can you tell me a little bit about what that means to you to be able to take somebody who has this dream in their eyes, this dream of playing professional football, but then you also get to kind of coach and mentor them at life and help them build a personal brand and become good human beings overall. What does that mean to you? Yeah, it means a lot because you got to remember, I was once in their shoes. And the one thing that they, the one thing every professional athlete has in common, whether you're Tom Brady or someone like me, everyone's got an exit date.

And everyone's got to find something else to do. And like I told you, it kind of puts everything full circle. It's not an easy transition. And not everyone's Tom. Brady. Not everyone is going to retire and can sit on their money that they made. You know what I mean? It rarely works out that way. And our industry, the professional sports industry, has these amazing, elaborate entrance plans for the guys, but it's got no exit point. And the guy's left to fend for himself and figure out what he's going to do. And for me, that's probably the most important thing to me, because it's the one thing that everyone's going to go through. Right?

And before you get to that point, I look at it as a challenge when you get to take an athlete and you could take a person and see how much can you stretch their potential away from the field. Right? Because you and I, what we do, we get to do, I get to be a sports agent until I'm 70 years old. These players, if they're lucky, they're going to get four years. Right. So think about it.

They have to make as much money as much money as they can and create as much opportunity as they can and only a couple years. And they don't know when they're exited. They rarely get to leave the game on their own term. So it's this challenge to me that once we get in, it's about go, go, go. You know what I mean? Obviously, you want to strike at the right time. You don't want to water down a player's product. But I'm looking at the grand scheme of like, you know, five years.

You got to help this kid make these five years feel like they're 20 years. and help him create a brand so that he can use that as momentum when he's done playing. So what I try to teach my guys is I try to first understand what it is that they're passionate about. What is it that they're interested in away from the field? And then I'd like to teach them and show them how they can create opportunities from, you know, from those things while being an NFL player, right? Because it's like when you have the title active NFL player, there's a lot of opportunities. opportunities that are available to you.

There's a lot of people that will take your phone call. So say broadcasting is something that you're interested in. Why wait until after you're done playing? Why not give a local, a local, the local media, right? The local news an opportunity to do something with the current, you know, Washington Redskin or why, you know what I mean? Create opportunity for what you have now because you don't get to keep this forever. You get to keep the status for a certain amount of time.

and then it goes away and then you're on your own. And every day that you, every day that you're further from the game, the game slowly starts to forget about you. And I think if I didn't, if I wasn't a player and if I didn't sit there, if I wasn't a young man when it was all said and done and kind of stared at the sky and said, okay, what am I going to do next? Now what? If I didn't go through that,

I don't think I would have the point of view that I have today where I, I look at it as it's my responsibility to help our clients make the most of their time in the NFL. And they control 100 yards of grass. The clubhouse, what you do on the field, that's all you. What I can do is take the things that you do on the field and create opportunity away from it. And I think you remember how I told you, I was, you know, and in the entertainment industry, I had that creative twitch in me where it was about creating. to take those same muscles and that same passion that I have there and apply it to my guide,

but to create opportunity. And I think I'm pretty good at it. I don't want to sound ragadocious, but I think it's what has made me who I am. And, you know, myself and our agency, we continue to grow every year. Just this last year, we had our most successful year as a group. So I know we're on to something. And I know, and more than anything, our clients are happy. Because they know that they are not like there is someone there to help them turn over every rock that's awesome and i and i think um you know one of the reasons why you've had your success is like you said like you've been through the process like you were in their shoes and so when you're talking to these kids you're able to relate to them right you're able to actually relate to them about the feelings that you went through

and that experience with your brother's friend being right like you actually got to experience a lot of these things for yourself and with other people. And those are powerful stories to be able to share with these young kids that don't know what to expect. Like they don't have any expectations of what the process is really going to be like. And what I really love about what you do. And if I had to kind of sum it up into my own words is you're creating brand equity. Like literally, like you're building equity into their brand. And, you know, one guy that I've seen that does a job at this who's who plays from my Portland Trailblazers is C.J. McCollum. I mean, what an amazing athlete, but also, like, he started a podcast, you know, with George's

the pull up on. And, like, I mean, I'm just so impressed by, by what he does because, like, he's also doing this, like, after games and, like, you know, during the season. And, and so he's doing exactly the type of thing that you're actually training your athletes to, start to get into. Yeah, you actually just put a huge smile on my face when you brought him up because you're one, A, you're 100% right in what you said about him. Guy, guy's an innovator. He started a, he started an entirely new industry, which is player run podcast, podcasts that are administrated by a professional athlete. He started the trend. Watch one year from now, how many professional athletes have their own podcast. And it was, and it all goes back to him because look

what he created. And I was a fan from his podcast from the very beginning. He plays the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday. And on Thursday, he's giving you a 45 minute in-depth, you know what I mean, an in-depth perspective of what's going on? Not necessarily the X's and O's, but you know what I mean? He does cover some of that stuff, but leading up to it. And it's like, it is all about feeling connected to these guys and feeling a part of their process. And it, and, in, it, and, and, you know, And it's like what you said, it gives equity to their brand. When you can create that emotional attachment, these people will follow you forever. Look how we, like we were talking about Kobe Bryant early on.

It's the same thing. And I love the fact that, yeah, he gets it. And he understands and it's going to pay dividends for him once he's done. And now you've got to understand that not every athlete is in his position, but I'm a firm believer. And every professional athlete has a marketing. they have they have marketing they have marketability it's just a matter of figuring out organically what is their market what is the ceiling of it and how you get in there and it starts with their passion that's that's one of the first things i like to do is learn what is it that you're going to

do anyways if gaming and video games is what you love and you're going to spend three hours a day playing video games why don't we do it in a way where you can play video games for three hours but it leads to something. That's exactly. And it's super interesting because, you know, a lot of what you do with athletes, I actually do with people in business. So I do consulting and I help people build their brands. And a lot of the work that I do is on LinkedIn, right?

I teach them, you know, how to optimize their profile to position themselves as a thought leader in their industry. And then how to actually create content at scale that adds value. And then how to use that equity to start marketing and doing whatever you, want to do, whether it's you want to launch a book, you want to start a show, a podcast, and you're really just building that brand. And you're absolutely right. It starts with, what are you passionate about? Like at the end of the day, like, you know, turn the lights off and think about what is something that you can see yourself absolutely doing? Because

where you can figure out people's passions, the sky's the limit. And you're definitely a true testament of that with what you've been able to do and how you've been able to scale the business. Yeah, and I can relate a lot to what you do. And yeah, it is very similar because they are their own brand and they are their own business. And their businesses, yeah, what they do on the field can determine what they can do off, but they still got to go out and get it. And like people think when they think a professional athlete away from the field, they think of endorsements, like being sponsored by Gillette or Old Spice.

Man, there's so many. There's more opportunities available to players today than ever before. And so many different ways. And it can also be hoping the guy, but guys passionate in the community. I had a client a couple years ago by the name of Randall Telford. He was a Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee, which is like the Community Service Award in the NFL.

Community was patty. Community service and giving back was one of his biggest passions. And so when I identified that and I said, okay, so then let's, let's, you know, let's do that. And let's use that as a way to build you in the community. He played in the Cleveland market for about three years. what we did from a community service standpoint in the city of Cleveland and the surrounding area, he is a made man in that market for the next 20 years.

He won't even be remembered for what he did on the field. He'll always be remembered as a brown, but it's all the things he did away from the field. And he gave himself opportunity where now if he needs to start a business or he needs a loan or he needs funding for something or he's trying to get an underwriter to start a new charity event or whatever it might be, he's got 200 people in Cleveland that will jump for him if he asks because of what he did during his time there. That to me is an example of helping, finding what they're passionate about and then utilizing that to help them make the most of where they're at and create longevity with it. Because like I said, you are in an industry where you rely on

body parts that can give out at you at any moment. When those body parts give out at you or when your team feels or your, you know, front office feels that you're too old or you're too expensive, then what? And all this that you did, everything that you did here dies, that's a true. That would be a tragedy. You know what I mean? Yeah, and I think, I mean, you know, let's face it, like when you look at it from the context of business, players are a commodity, right?

And like you said, if one twist here, one injury there, and that's why, you know, in kind of the research that I've seen, like the average span of a player is, what, about three years or so? And that's crazy to me. Like, right? Because you see the Tom Brady's of the world and you see, you know, how long Peyton played in the league and Eli and a lot of these guys. And that kind of like paints this narrative that there's a lot of longevity. but when you really kind of get into the behind the scenes of it, they don't really have a whole lot of time. So I think that, you know,

the framework that you have in place and what you're doing to really start like from day one, that's going to make a lasting impact. Right. Absolutely. And it's a responsibility that, you know, I take very serious and everyone at entourage takes very serious. And once again, I was there, you know, I was there. And it's what's right for these.

guys. And it's like you said, the average career is not long and the NFL is a little under four years. And I think it's even shorter than that, to be honest. And some guys, you know, or, yeah, it's, it's what I do. And the cool thing about it is, is we're in this time and we're in this space where everything's changing. You know, everything's changing. And that's fun to be a part of it. It's fun to figuring these things out and being on the innovative side, Like write something that no one's ever heard of before, but now everyone's going to follow suit. It's like you look at Amazon. What were they doing?

And this is an extreme example. I understand that. But look at Amazon and what were they doing in 2007? They were selling books. But they saw where it was going, not where it was at, but where is it going? And they made a decision. And they said, let's make everyone go through us. And the rest is history.

Yeah. You know, and you. Innovation at its finest right there, right? Yeah, absolutely. And so let me ask you this. So, you know, for the audience is listening, you know, we're going to have some younger generation, some kids that are in high school and college, and we're going to have some people that might be a little further in their career.

So if there are people that are listening that say, you know what, I'm super inspired by Sam's story and his journey. And, you know, I'm up for a hard battle in a challenge. So what would kind of be your top three tips to getting into the sports agency world just for the folks out there that might hear this and say, man, like that sounds super exciting. It sounds like something I want to do. Okay. Number one, be passionate about it. And whatever sport you're most passionate about, whether it's football, basketball, soccer, start with that hockey.

Find the sport that you're most passionate about and start with one. Networking is key. you can never know enough people understand that you are in the service industry you are in the industry of providing a service to someone you can't do everything on your own you need these companies you need these relationships to be able to move the needle as they would say networking is key and number three i mean it's good to have money it's really hard to do this industry without money it's been it costs a lot of money for us to do what we do think about it i recruit we try to say to sign five guys every year. We'll probably recruit 30, 30, 35 guys. It's a lot of money.

Every time I get on the road to go meet a kid, it's like 700 bucks total. You know, you try to, you and it just racks up. It racks up and then to make the investments to be able to get the guys ready at all cost money. So put yourself in a situation where you have support. You can afford to do it on your own, do it on your own. If not, find somewhere where you have some support. But I think the biggest thing is just be passionate about it. You have to love this industry. It's not Jerry McGuire. No one is R.E. Gold, right? Or it's not like ballers, right? There's a very few percentage of people that I think are experiencing that. But if you love this and if you want to do something where you want to help people transition and maximize their potential,

you should get into this industry. You know, that would be my advice for them. And what awesome advice that was. So for those you listen in, Sam, I appreciate you sharing, sharing those tips, right? Because there might be some people out there that, you know, have heard this and now they're like, man, like, I think this is something that I want to do. I'm super passionate about hockey and maybe I can be a hockey agent one day or, you know, baseball or what have you. So appreciate you sharing that. And so for the audience out there, where's the best place? if maybe they have someone that's, you know, in college and they're like, you know what, we're going to be looking for an agent soon is what's the best place to get in touch with you?

So if somebody wants to reach out and connect. Yeah, Instagram's easy. All my social media is the same. It's at Sam Leaf. It's pretty not hard to get a hold of me there. Just drop me line there. Our agency's entourage management, I think we're just entourage on Instagram, which is pretty cool. So you can find me on either of those places.

and would love to get in touch and hear from people. But I, yeah, I just want to say one thing too. And it's like if you have a passion and something else, like there's no excuse not to go after something in 2020. There's so much information available to anybody, no matter how old you are, no matter where you're at. There's something that you want to accomplish in this world. Honestly, you can do it.

It's just a matter of rolling up your sleeves and relentlessly pursuing whatever your goal is. And society's made it very easy for us. It was a lot harder 10 years ago. Definitely a lot harder. That's awesome. And I love to end the show with that encouragement. So everybody, that was Sam Leif.

Sam, thank you so much for coming on the Blaze Your Own Trail podcast. And I'm sure we'll be talking here soon. All right. Thank you so much. Wow. What an amazing episode with Sam Leif. You can definitely tell the guy cares about what he does. But most importantly, he cares for his clients.

Listen, if an NFL agent is on your list of positions to hold one day, don't be afraid to reach out to Sam. I'm going to make sure all his info is down on the show notes so you can reach out and connect with them. Or maybe you just want to say, hey, what a great episode. So thank you so much for listening. If you have not subscribed yet, make sure you subscribe and tell your friends about the Blaze Your Own Trail podcast. Our goal is to make sure that we can impact as many people as possible. I'll be there.