THIS IS AN EXCEPT FROM AN INTERVIEW WITH BILLY SCHWER - FORMER IBO WORLD LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPION
A couple of years ago I left LinkedIn to go it alone as a freelancer / consultant. It was successful in some ways, not so much in others. I learned a lot about myself. What I’m good at and what makes me happy. I realised I could learn new skills quickly and I learned that I didn’t have my consultant positioning quite right. I realised I was not cut out for 5 days a week by myself at home – I needed more human interaction than that. And I realised I hadn’t quite figured out what I enjoyed doing. What I really enjoyed doing. What was my… purpose.
I also started to think about people trying to find their own purpose in life. Purpose in their careers and how they navigate them to get there.
This has played on my mind for some time. Last month I started to delve deeper into this. I started reading about it, learning about how other people go through career changes and I started to think about extremities. People that pivot their career either through a structured plan or because they are forced to.
It was then that I reached out to Billy Schwer.
I’ve followed Billy on LinkedIn for some time. He’s a former British, Commonwealth, European and World Champion, and now a successful businessman – and I love his LinkedIn content.
I had liked some of his posts. Shared them too. Then I reached out to him and was blown away when he called me 10 minutes later. His energy and enthusiasm is palpable.
I asked him if I could set up an interview with a view to writing a short piece on how he moved from Billy the boxer to Billy the businessman so that others could learn from his experience.
“Dan, let’s record it”. “What… do a podcast?”, “Yeah!”
Within an hour I had researched podcasting, purchased a microphone and pop filter, looked into recording and hosting services, and even started building out a website – NextPlay.agency
We recorded the podcast last week and this is due for release in December.
Since then, I’ve recorded a further 5 podcasts and will release them in due course too. These include not only a world boxing champion, but an Olympic medallist and British record holder. Someone that works in corporate mental health, a social media expert and a decorated army officer. All have seen huge transition in their careers. All have stories to tell and all have something to teach us about our approach to life and our careers.
Some have been forced to change their career, others made the change through choice. All are successful.
Part 2 of this blog will come out in due course – but below is a short excerpt…
You don’t find your purpose,
you fight for it (part II)
I was in the back of an ambulance, on the way to hospital after just being knocked out. I’d lost my world title, and I’m in the back of the ambulance, sirens are blaring, we’re dodging through the traffic and we’re on our way to the royal free hospital, because the fight was at Wembley conference centre, and it was in that moment, in the back of that ambulance that I realised that my life as I know it was over.
To be continued….