LIFE LESSONS FROM THE GREATS

LIFE LESSONS FROM THE GREATS (ON THE FIELD AND IN THE SHARK TANK)

At the 67th Annual Food Shippers Conference in March, keynote speakers Daymond John, a fashion executive and TV star, and Andrew Whitworth, a Super Bowl champion, shared illuminating and inspiring wisdom based on lessons that they have learned in their highly successful careers.

John is the Founder, President and CEO of global fashion brand FUBU and an investor on the popular ABC reality television series, Shark Tank. At the conference, he detailed his five-point SHARK system for success, noting its importance to his own life and career. “Every single time I’ve been successful, every one of these points is in place and every single time that I have failed, just one of those points is missing,” said John.

1. Set a goal.

John told the audience that “the most valuable thing that I can tell you that I have ever done in my life is set goals.” In fact, setting and chasing goals is so central to

John’s approach to life that each night before he goes to sleep, he reviews his 10 ongoing goals.

John said setting goals is about taking control. “If you aren’t in charge of the goals that you set, you will let others set goals for you,” he said.

2. Do your homework.

John emphasized that no ideas are truly new –something that he sees first-hand with contestants on Shark Tank. However, there are fresh ways to execute ideas that have come before, he said. That requires doing your research and appreciating the history of your idea, your market and your competition.

3. Amore: Love what you are doing.

Success requires passion. He noted that FUBU, the company he founded, was born out of his love of fashion. Other successes are similarly conceived, he said.

4. Remember, you personally are the brand.

To build a business or a career, John said you should be able to define yourself for others or you will risk allowing them to define you.

“Can you walk into a room and not leave it up to us to interpret who you are?” asked John.

5. Keep swimming.

As is often noted, sharks are always swimming, even when they are asleep. For John, that means we should be relentless and always moving forward no matter the challenges. To keep swimming, we need to take care of ourselves so that we can be in position to excel when the opportunity arises, he said.

Whitworth shared a similar message of perseverance at the conference. Noting his time with the Cincinnati Bengals during a time when wins were scarce, Whitworth said he learned to emphasize the importance of consistency and pursuing excellence daily, even when success seems hard to come by.

“I’m going to make mistakes,” Whitworth said. “I’m not going to win the game I wanted to win. I’m not going to win in life on certain days, I’m not going to be my best all the time. But I’m going to wake up the next day, I’m going to get back up, and I’m going to keep moving forward.”

During his NFL career, Whitworth was recognized for his work both on and off the field – making four Pro Bowls and being recognized as the NFL’s Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2022 for his work in the community. A 14-time team captain, Whitworth said leadership is not about commanding other people but being someone that others want to face challenges alongside.

“To me, the greatest form of leadership is that if we need to walk out a door and we don’t know what’s on the other side, I’m the person you want to walk through that door with,” Whitworth said. “To me, that’s what real leadership is.”

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Vari ants.

Labor shortages.

Hurri canes.

A steroi ds.

We've seen a l ot i n the l ast

80 -pl us years, ex cept for maybe the asteroi ds, but w e'l l keep on trucki ng.

It's i n our bl ood.