Game Changing Leadership
Recently I interviewed Rennie Curran for the LION 40 Podcast. Rennie is the son of Liberian immigrants and, indeed, he has seen his share of ups and downs. Even though Rennie was considered by most coaches and television announcers to be undersized for his position in football, the first half of Rennie’s life was dedicated to a highly successful career in the SEC and NFL. The public’s characterization and pressure over his size shaped his mindset and dedication to exceed beyond what anybody expected. Now, in the second half of his career, Rennie uses his experience and God-given talents to speak to audiences about how to lead well, persevere, and be resilient when life gets challenging.
“A lot of the most successful leaders are born out of adversity; born out of challenge; born out of positions where they weren’t a leader, or they weren’t in that position of success. On the other side of it, when they come out, they have so many intangibles that they can offer – and one of the strongest things is empathy.” – Rennie Curran
In addition to this quote, here are 5 points of conversation that resonated with me most deeply.
Leadership is not about me.
Leadership is about empowering everyone else around me. Why? Because life has “valley moments.” It goes up and it goes down. When I have a valley moment, and then get to the other side of it, I should not brush it off because of shame or guilt. I should use it to inspire others and help them through their own valley moments.
Going through tough times can give me a mental edge.
It can help me understand things others cannot. It can produce empathy, strategic thinking, holistic thinking, and a unique determination to overcome obstacles in smarter ways. Further, knowing what it feels like to be devalued and knowing what it feels like to not have a voice, can fuel some of the very best of leaders. Mindsets centered on resilience, perseverance, growth, and, at times, faith, are born out of adversity.
When I feel alone – I probably am not.
I just need to look for and find my team. Being my personal best, in fact, depends on my team. I need a team both on the professional field and off the professional field in my personal life. I need people to both support me, push me, and, sometimes, to just say “it’s going to be okay.” I also need someone to hold me accountable to my goals.
Being held accountable for my goals will directly impact my success.
In this episode, Rennie also talks about his experience being on tape and having to watch playbacks with an accountability partner, his coach. If we lived our life as if we were being filmed, as if we would have to watch it played back the next day, we would all be performing at a higher level. Rennie calls this, “staying in the weight room,” or “winning the game before the game,” and he continues on to say that simple routines, habits, intentionality, and accountability - not only increase our production - they can dictate whether we run into ‘human problems’ with life-load, burnout, negative mindsets as well as organizational problems with culture-drift and low morale.
Most people underestimate their ability to lead well.
Anyone can be a leader. Title doesn’t matter. Perfectionism doesn’t matter. Anyone can do some of the smallest things that have the biggest impact. Pouring into people in need, giving voice to people who don’t have one, and things as simple as opening a door, providing a ride, or saying ‘it’s going to be ok’ are much more important than we know.
Learn more about Rennie Curran, Keynote Speaker, Author, and CEO of Game Changer Coaching
As a successful author, former athlete, and dynamic CEO, Rennie Curran is able to speak to high performers across the board. That’s because Rennie understands the key components that create an effective leader, a successful business person, and an unstoppable athlete despite life’s challenges. He understands that many principles and practices of elite performers translate to any environment and works to accelerate and maximize results.
Throughout his life, Rennie has experienced his fair share of ups and downs. The son of Liberian immigrants, Rennie dedicated the first half of his life to excelling at high school, college, and eventually professional football. Even though he was considered undersized for his position, Rennie was able to utilize his mindset and dedication to exceed beyond what anybody expected. After stepping aside from the NFL, Rennie built his current brand and business, Game Changer Coaching, completely from scratch. Rennie credits his supportive family and community as a primary source of his motivation, and enjoys teaching others how they too can create a system that works for them.
Son of Liberian immigrants, former professional athlete, author, keynote speaker, entrepreneur, and leadership coach. Rennie draws on the knowledge and unique perspective he has gained from these experiences and the challenges he has faced to inspire others. He encourages his audiences and coaching clients to improve their mindset, build better teams, invest in a mission bigger than themselves, and never stop persevering toward their dreams.
Rennie empowers leaders, teams, and organizations to reach beyond their current goals, overcome adversity, and realize greater moments of success than they ever thought possible. His innate ability to engage and connect with audiences across all disciplines, professions, and backgrounds is what has made Rennie an incredibly sought after public speaker for more than 10 years. His inspirational, highly customized messages and practical approach have attracted a diverse portfolio of clients ranging from large corporations like Fidelity, Chick Fil A & Coca Cola, to schools, and associations.
You can learn more about Rennie at renniecurran.com, and we certainly encourage you to invite him to speak at your next corporate event. Also, we hope you will consider making a donation to The Game Changers Foundation, a nonprofit led by Rennie to develop student-athletes into future leaders who impact their family, community, and the world.
Follow Rennie Curran
Author Information
Natasha Ganem, PhD, serves as principal consultant and organizational psychologist at Lion Leadership, an executive education firm dedicated to helping company owners design world-class leadership teams. To learn more about Lion Leadership coaching services, management training, and off-site retreat facilitation, contact us at info@lionleadership.com.
Lion Leadership – an executive education company.
We coach and train leadership teams and mid-level managers so that people don’t quit because of bad bosses. Whether you need 1-on-1 coaching for yourself, a custom leadership academy for your company, off-site retreats for your teams, or just a few hours of morale building, we are here to get your organization ready for what’s next. Natasha Ganem, Ph.D., is the founder and principal consultant.
Follow Lion Leadership for more leadership tips