The Athlete’s dilemma

Kim Brady
5 min readDec 3, 2020

Who are you without your uniform? The athlete’s dilemma…

I always ask the players I coach, especially when they are trying to figure out what college to go to: “If you can’t play soccer any longer, what college would you like to get a degree from?” So often, athletes are picking schools because of their sport and the hope of a scholarship vs. the balance of the education and the sport combined. So few athletes play pro sports after college and only 2.8% of high school athletes become Division 1 collegiate athletes.

One of the biggest dilemma’s for the athlete is figuring out who you are after your sport especially when you don’t get paid to play and you have no sponsorships etc. “Life after sport” is difficult for many especially if the end of the athletic career was premature such as an injury or in my case, integrity regarding the coach and a fellow teammate.

I was offered scholarships to play two schools and I always describe my choice to go to CalBerkeley felt like I was wearing my favorite pair of jeans. It felt PERFECTLY. I knew if I couldn’t play soccer because of an injury, I knew I was getting the degree from the #1 public university in the country and it felt like home. I felt safe and loved my teammates and the coach and it was just right. The other program never felt like it would be the right fit. Had I gone there, I know I would not have been happy. I felt it deep in my bones.

I often describe my corporate career in this manner. I knew I was a great therapist and that career path was right for me for a time, and I was also coaching soccer as well. So I still had the love of the game and had a literal foot in the game by being involved. When I had to stop coaching because my corporate job and schedule was not conducive to coaching, I knew I was ending an era in my life. And it felt like something was missing ALL THE TIME.

The Athlete’s Dilemma, in my opinion, comes when we have no idea who we are outside of our sport. The tools and skills we learn as athlete’s are highly valued in the corporate world but I find that many of my colleagues sometimes feel as if something is missing. In a perfect world, I would NEVER wear a business suit again — the only “uniform” I felt comfortable in were my soccer kits. My favorite pair of shoes were my soccer boots. Trading all of that to go into corporate sales environments never felt right. But I knew I couldn’t get paid enough money as a coach to put a roof over my head. The lifestyle I wanted was not something I felt was available to me. I kept plugging along in sales and chasing arbitrary quotas and my self-worth became wrapped up in corporate events and hitting goals but never feeling fulfilled.

I was constantly CHASING the feeling of what soccer gave to me in the professional corporate world. When my nephew held a mirror in front of my face 10 years ago stating he wasn’t going to follow my advice because I wasn’t doing that for myself, I knew instantly, that I needed to quit my job and pursue something else. Not only to show my nieces and nephews that I would walk my talk, but to also follow my dreams again.

The “something else” that ultimately helped fuel all of the feelings of a team sport and soccer came with building my own company from the ground up. Never being afraid to get my hands dirty, literally or figuratively, and going all in on creating a company and a team environment that supported employees and clients alike became my sole focus.

I knew I wanted to move back home to California. I knew I needed to build something that would help others and provide jobs to others. And I knew if I could help others with their goals and dreams that I would feel my sense of purpose again. I would feel the teamwork again. I would feel that I needed to ensure that I would do whatever it took to pay my employees and treat them with love and kindness with a drive and work ethic just like I did on the field.

And Little Bit Cleaning LLC® was born. The company name was one of my nicknames as a soccer player and I created #TEAMLBC for my staff and clients. Building my own company was the only thing that replicated my love for team and passion for others. I have been an #entrepreneur longer than I was a therapist and longer than I was a sales person. And in those careers, I switched companies several times. I am beyond grateful for the experiences I had in those careers because they also gave me the tools to build a #business. But the ultimate creation of my cleaning company was built on team principles of sport and soccer fundamentals.

I have hired multiple business coaches to help me build my company. I had multiple coaches throughout my soccer career. I have gone to many therapists, not only when I was a therapist, but also for many years now. Being a business and life coach is a culmination of all of my life experiences and the majority of my clients are all ex-athletes. My style of coaching comes from having been there, done that. I have been on both sides of the couch, both sides of the pitch as a player and coach, and I have been a business owner who built a company from scratch and was able to sell it 10 years later. If you can relate to “The Athlete’s Dilemma”, my style of coaching is right for you. I partner with you and help you find your passion and dreams again tapping into that inner athlete.

#kimbradybusinesscoaching #entrepreneur #businesscoach #leadershipcoaching #mindsetcoaching #teamdevelopment #businesscoaching

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Kim Brady

Unleashing Your Winning Mindset: Elevate Athletic Excellence in Entrepreneurship | External COO | Business Coach | LGBTQ+ 🌈 Speaker | 2x Founder | 2x Author