This list Covers all sorts of negatives and positives that we can all stand to learn from as athletes. Listen up well because we are about to go on a crazy ride.
1. Michael Vick
He is my poser boy of athletes that we all must learn from. This guy was a superstar and he had the attitude like one. He clearly lived his life in a way that showed he thought he was untouchable. Like lets be real, he was a highschool football start, went to VT and was a college star and got drafted to the NFL and did the same crap he was doing in highschool to grown men. It can start to get you your head after a while.
The Lesson: Stay humble and remember where you came from but do not use it as an excuse because no one will care. Vick probally had the most homies in the world before he got in trouble, but when he was going to jail and the whole world was kicking him do you think he had those same friends? Watch the company you keep because the company you keep may not watch out for you. Vick also taught us that it is a long fall from the top but it is possible to win back hearts again.
2. Marcus Vick
If you did not guess it Marcus Vick is Michael Vicks little brother and he also went to Virginia Tech. Marcus was the perfect example of what happens when you live in a bad placed but become spoiled with money because your brother is a super star. He let it get to his head. He had so many legal issues, and behaviour problems at VT that they eventually decided to boot him off the team. He then declared himself into the draft, never got picked up because he was too much of a risk. He got picked up as a free agent from the Dolphins and was cut not too long after.
The Lesson: Marcus Vick shows us that talent and even money will only take you so far. Eventually you have to put your head down and work until you are unable to work any longer. It is not to say that people do not make mistakes, but he just made so many that it ended up costing him the dream life of being in the NFL, instead of just living off his brother.
3. Peyton Manning
He is a field general and for the past 10 years has been one of the key Quarterbacks in the NFL. You might be surprised to see him on this list because you are expecting this list to be full of athletes who did bad things this is not the case. This guy has been a BOSS in the game, cutting up defenses like a grown man playing pee wee football. He has started a crazy amount of games for the Colts, won them a superbowl. In the 2011 season he missed the whole season with a neck injury where the Colts had an awful season.
The Lesson: I will never forget when Manning was early in his career, maybe 3rd or 4th pick. He was a top pick in the NFL draft and was on a contract that was pulling him in hefty money. My dad showed me this picture of him sitting in this small apartment reading his playbook while he watched ESPN. He wanted me to see how he was smart with his money he was not out blowing it, but he was living a modest life. He has never been a big in the spotlight guy, or known to be all about himself. He just throws touchdown passes and gets out the spotlight.
4. Mike Tyson
Where do I start with this guy. Mike Tyson is probally one of the most misuderstood athletes on the planet. He is often knowing for biting a mans ear off. There is so much more to this guy story that people do not know. I read this boxing book when I was younger that broke down his life and it was really surprising.
Tyson was a monster in the ring and he lived boxing. His dad left him at a young age, and his mom died before he was even in highschool. He never finished highschool and grew up in communites full of crime. He quickly rose up to be the best in the world, as he got his championship belt at age 20.
He managed to pull in about $300 Million in the next 1o years of his life and still somehow managed to go bankrupt. I will put it like this, he got married and divorced 3 times, had lots of kids, got into lots of trouble in which he had to pay lawyers for. He also liked to live large which came with the basic shopping sprees of buying every fast car he could, big houses all over the country, jewllery and a whole bunch of other things. It was once reported in his prime he had to spent about $850,000 a year just on his insurance payments. Never mind the fact that he hung around people who never cared about him, but love to take his money.
The Lesson: On a positive note Mike was a student to the game of boxing. He lived it and studied his opponents very hard. Athletes should love watching film and knowing more about what it takes to be the best. On a negative note I think it is kind of clear what we should learn from Tyson. Watch who you call your friends and be wise with your money please.
5. Evander Holyfield
He got his ear bitten off by Mr.Tyson but he was another athlete my Dad made sure he taught me about. He was a heavyweight champion of the world at one point and that may have been his downfall. He had rediculous spending habits and a massive mansion that he lived in for a while until it got repossesed. He lived the life of an athlete who thought he was larger than live. His lesson is much different from all this though.
The Lesson: He could not let go of getting his belt back. His downfall was the fact that he did not know when it was time to be done with the sport. He was kept fighting and getting killed losing respect as being one of the all time greats. He wanted the belt back so bad that he forgot about everything else that he had in his life. You never want to be that athlete that refuses to let go of the sport. When your time is done walk away from a great career.
6. Michael Jordan
I am not even going to talk about his brilliant play on the court which made him a NBA hall of famer and one of if not the greatest of all time in the sport. Jordan created a legacy and a way for his name to live on forever. By creating brand Jordan and signing other great athletes like Chris Paul, Dwayne Wade, and Carmelo Anthony his name will always live on. His brand is so popular that there have been numerous instances of people getting murdered over his shoes. Jordan never was satisified with being great on the court. He found other ventures that he always wanted to be involved in. A lot of people do not even know that he actually has his own motor cycle racing team (with bikes that look so wicked I might add).
The Lesson: If a legend like Jordan had to look for ways for his name to live on. We all have to look for ways for our names to live on. Sports will come to a close and the Jordan brand is a constant reminder of that fact. Always be thinking of what you will do if you found out you could no longer play your sport starting tomorrow. How would you filll that void in your life?
7. Travis Henry
This guy was in the NFL but his story is really quite simple. He ended up being broke like many athletes, but what made him broke is what gets me everytime. He had 11 kids with 10 different woman. This added up to $170,000 in child support payments every year. Which is possible when you are in the NFL but once he retired he could not keep up. He ended up getting into drugs trafficing and getting time in a federal prison while also having to pay a 4 million dollar fine.
The Lesson: I think this one is pretty straight forward. Think about what you are doing. Never turn to selling drugs like there are so many more legitimate ways to make money in this world. Now he has a bunch of kids who will grow up with out a dad because he wanted to be stupid.
So What…
My whole life I focused really hard on not making the same mistakes as those people close to me. My brother is a good example of this. Most of the things Justyn got in trouble for growing up I did not do because I learned from what he did. I still made my own mistakes but it helped me to learn from his. When I hear about the things that these athletes have done – good and bad, I only hope that we all can learn from them and better ourselves.
(original image by Christian K McCoy)
