When you’ve played on teams with Kobe Bryant and LeBron James and for coaches like George Karl and Mike Krzyzewski, you know how to contribute to a team made up of talented people. Olympic gold medalist and former NBA All-Star Michael Redd applied the lessons he learned from basketball to business as the founder of Twenty-Two Ventures, an angel investment company that has mentored and invested in 85 technology and media companies around the world.
In a post-game interview, Michael was asked by a reporter how he felt about his failure after he missed the game-winning shot. His response took everybody by surprise.
“Did I really fail?”
“What do you mean?” the reporter countered.
“Well, I have the opportunity to be an NBA player,” Michael began. “I have the opportunity to be a starter in the NBA. I won the trust of my coaches and teammates to have the basketball at the end of the game. I actually got the ball where I wanted to shoot it, and I was able to shoot the basketball. Did I really fail?”
Had he wanted to drive the point home, Michael might have mentioned that in addition to playing for the Milwaukee Bucks, he was a member of one of the greatest collections of talent ever assembled in basketball as a member of the Team USA squad that won gold in 2008. But he’d made his point. In basketball, life, and business, “You will make some shots. You will miss some shots,” noted Michael. “There may be a moment of failure, but that does not equate to you being a failure.” The sooner we can naturalize that broader perspective into our identity, argued Michael, the more successful we can be.
Michael once scored 57 points in a professional basketball game, but the number he is most proud of is the 85 companies Twenty-Two Ventures has invested in and mentored. As a mentor, Michael leverages an athlete’s deep knowledge of controlling the controllables.
“Whether we know it or not, we exude what we expect,” he offered. “If you are spiritually, physically, or emotionally fatigued, it will show in your business.”
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"Don is one of the best storytellers I’ve ever met. I’ve known him for a long time and every time we talk I walk away wiser and more inspired. He is the best in the business at teaching you a skill – storytelling – that will last you a lifetime.”
“The ability for athletes to get hired is carried on through you because you are putting out the message that lessons learned from sports are important in life. It is embedded in this podcast, what you’re doing is significant.”
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“Many of the leaders I have worked with were excellent athletes, and I think there is a direct correlation. You’re one of the few people that really has pursued this study, Don. Keep up the great work. What you are doing really makes a difference.”
“Don, you have mastered the skill of interviewing and asking great questions. That is a great skill all leaders need in order to understand their team members’ thought processes.”
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