Calvin Anderson, offensive tackle with the Denver Broncos, joined Up Close In Personnel this week to discuss his path to the NFL and the hot button topic of Name, Image and Likeness.
The first active NFL player to speak on the show, Calvin is the perfect person to talk about the ever-changing landscape of recruiting.
From signing with Rice University, starting 36 straight games and earning his degree in Mathematical Economic Analysis, to grad transferring to the University of Texas to start all 14 games there, he's been recruited twice and seen it all.
Now with the Denver Broncos after a brief stint with the Patriots as an rookie undrafted free agent and on the New York Jets practice squad, Calvin brings a wealth of knowledge to the forefront on what he's learned both on and off the field.
The mindset he has for goal setting and building his own professional brand is so important to hear during this time period. Whether you're a player, coach, recruiter or administrator, everyone has an opportunity to speak on what they're passionate about and what they stand for.
As far as goal setting, Calvin made a profound statement in giving advice to athletes when he said, "Don't allow someone else to determine your end-state." Determine what you value, what you want to stand for and who you are as a person, then you can get a bigger picture of where you are going. 1.) Set big picture goals and 2.) embrace the journey it takes to get there, since you can't map out every single step along the way.
Finally, when it comes to building your brand, it's all about being authentic to who you are and not what someone else is pushing you towards. You need a solid foundation that is based on the unique passions, interests, or aspects of you that make up who you are and what you stand for. From there, use your platform to speak up and use your voice, and be purposeful and proactive in the relationships you cultivate.
Everything you post, share, tweet, retweet, like, and follow combine to make up
1). your virtual resume but 2). your voice and what you stand for.
Calvin went out of his way to reach out to Rubik's Cube and is now a brand ambassador for them. Instead of taking the easy way out and say "I can't reach out to them since I don't know anyone there", Calvin found an email on the Rubik's Cube website and took the first step by cold emailing them. It won't always work out EXACTLY that way, but "closed mouths don't get fed". Be proactive and build the network that you want to bring value to.
Like I do each week, here's your cheat sheet to the topics covered on this week's podcast:
Life as an NFL athlete during COVID (4:00)
Honesty and Transparency in Recruiting (7:07)
Biggest Impact on Calvin’s Collegiate Career (13:40)
Goal Setting & Calvin’s Process for Getting Better (15:50)
Watching Stocks & Terrible Movies for Fun (17:38)
Discipline and Rules in the Anderson Household (19:53)
Economics & Developing High Level Critical Thinking Skills (28:53)
The Upward Trajectory of Rice Football (34:30)
The Impact & Value of a Rice degree (36:52)
Coming Back Home & Playing for UT (42:05)
Navigating the NFL & Lessons Learned as a Rookie (44:34)
Learning How to Be a Pro from Kelvin Beachum (49:35)
Topic of the Week: “Name, Image & Likeness” (51:38)
Impact of NIL on Recruiting & Unintended Consequences (54:18)
Rubik's Cube & Staying Proactive as a Professional (58:40)
Embracing Who Your Are & What Makes You Unique (63:30)
An Athlete's Guide to Using Social Media (69:50)
Sendoff Advice to Players, Parents and Coaches (73:20)
Thank you for listening to another episode of Up Close In Personnel with Alex Brown.
Be sure to follow Calvin on Twitter at @THE_CONDA25!
And if you haven't already, be sure to subscribe, rate and share the show!
Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/up-close-in-personnel-with-alex-brown/id1504584632
Stitcher: https://stitcher.com/s?fid=516832
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