T.J. Walker argues athletes can earn more from media work than playing. He cites Tiger Woods and notes the average NFL career lasts three years, then pitches Media Training Worldwide's four core skills: looking confident on camera, shaping your message, answering questions, and creating sound bites.
Questions this video answers
212-764-4955
About three years
Four
Chapters
Media training for athletes.
If you are a professional athlete or.
A star athlete on your college or.
Even high school team, it is essential that you learn how to speak to the news media. These days, if you really want to look at your career long term, you're.
Likely to make more money in front.
Of the camera talking to the media.
Than you are on the playing field.
Look at some of the star athletes of our times.
Tiger woods makes infinitely more money as a spokesperson appearing in the media than he does on the golf course.
So you might not like the media.
You might think it's just about the game and what I produce on the court or the field, but it's not.
In fact, some leagues like the NFL.
Actually require players to speak to the media. If you don't, you are fined. Well, why is this? It's because big time sports and I'm including college in this, really a media entertainment business, it's about making money through advertising. It's a media business.
So like it or not, you are.
A part of the media now.
All you have to do is look.
At the tenure of a typical NFL.
Player, which is about three years, versus.
The tenure of a John Madden in.
The media for decade after decade after decade. The real money is in being an analyst on tv, play by play, a talk show host, a spokesperson, an endorser, someone out on the public speaking circuit. That's where the real money is in sports.
Certainly if you want to be a coach, you've got to learn how to communicate what it is you've done in.
Your games, what you're aspiring to do. Many coaches contracts at universities and elsewhere include your own TV show, your own radio show. That's where a lot of the money comes from for these million dollar salaries for coaches. So that's why it's not just an extra, it's not a luxury to learn media skills. If you're an athlete, it is absolutely essential. So what do we do at Media Training worldwide? When it comes to media training athletes, we teach you four very specific skills.
The first, knowing how to look comfortable, confident, relaxed anytime you're in front of one of these.
A video camera.
Not scared stiff, nervous, uncomfortable. The second skill, knowing how to shape a media message. And how do you make a message.
Interesting even though you're talking about a.
Game where many of the same principles applied today as they did last week and the week before. The third skill, how to answer questions in an interview. And the fourth skill, the final skill in many ways the most important, how to package your messages with sound bites. So that you know in advance exactly what quote is going to end up in Sports Illustrated or the New York Times business or sports page or on ESPN tonight.
It's that level of control.
That's what we teach you in our Media Training for Athletes course here at Media Training Worldwide.
If you'd like to get more information.
About media training, your athletes, your team, please call us. I'm T.J. walker, 212-764-4955.
