The Detached podcast
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Sophia
The Detached podcast
Ep: 83 Why You Should Never Settle for Less than Your Goals - Fadi El Khatib
This week, we share an inspiring journey of a multi-sport athlete who reflects on the lessons learned through basketball, football, and beyond. His story is one of passion, resilience, and continuous growth in both sports and life.
• Exploring the impact of continuous sports participation on injury prevention
• Discussing the influence of family and initial sports exposure
• Sharing pivotal moments of learning from legendary athletes, like Michael Jordan
• Addressing the unique challenges faced by today’s athletes
• Examining the role of social media in modern entrepreneurship
• Emphasizing the importance of mental toughness and resilience
• Discussing perspectives on sleep and physical recovery
• Encouraging listeners to find and embrace their passions
• Highlighting the significance of supporting young athletes’ dreams
So how are you feeling today? Good yeah, tired, tired. Yeah, because you're always on the move all the time.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah, played two paddle games, so that stuff.
Speaker 1:So you still play basketball.
Speaker 2:Not really More now. I'm playing paddle probably every day, so whenever there is a game I'm in, you'll find me in, and I love it because it's a competitive game and at the same time you enjoy, you work out, you do cardio and it's two against two. So it's a nice community-building game. So I'm loving it.
Speaker 1:So you were a football player before, weren't you? Yeah, so can we dive back into that stage in your life when you played football?
Speaker 2:Well, football is still one of my favorite sports because I played it. Pro football was everything to me. I was young and then I played. I remember I played one year on a good level Division One and I was loving it. I was loving it. Then, you know, they invited me to the high school, to the basketball. The coach said because I'm tall and this, try basketball. And that was it. You know. It took off so, but till today, you know, whenever there is an occasion or an event or something, I do play football.
Speaker 1:I can't imagine a tall person like you playing football.
Speaker 2:I used to be good. Yeah, I used to be good, good control, good shooting, physical, you know, fast. So it was a good game. I loved all kinds of sports. So I played football, I played basketball, I swam. I used to swim probably four or five times per week for two hours nonstop Yoga, everything you know. Because you know the new science says, when you're doing multiple sports, you're moving your muscles in different directions every sports you play in and that's why you prevent from having injuries. You know because now if you play basketball, your muscles are memorized to be, you know, as a basketball player. Now, when you move your muscles in a different sports and then another doing hot power yoga, example, and swimming, so now your muscles are moving in different directions and different activities. So that's why you prevent injuries and, thanks God, my career ended with no severe injury. Trusted ankle stuff like this it happens, but severe, severe surgeries never.
Speaker 1:What kind of family did you grow?
Speaker 2:up Sports family. Yeah, although my parents were against me in playing basketball. They were like, no, no, you should continue studying. And then you know I was obsessed. Just you know I can't, I have to play basketball, it's a must. And I told them you know I will leave everything, I will leave the school, everything, just to play basketball. It's a must. And I told them you know I will leave everything, I will leave the school, everything, just to play basketball. If you will stop me, this is what I will do. And then you know, they saw the passion and they saw the skills, although my dad was a Romanian wrestler.
Speaker 1:Romanian wrestler yeah.
Speaker 2:No way. So you know the Romanian wrestling. Yeah, yeah yeah, my mom was a volleyball player and, yeah, they still do sports, until today.
Speaker 1:How old are they?
Speaker 2:Dad late 70s and mom two years younger than him. But you know my dad they do. My dad does sports, probably two, three times per week and mom kind of.
Speaker 1:Do you think you were at an advantage of having an active family then no.
Speaker 2:It's about you know the passion, you find your way and you find something that I wanted to have my own direction in life. So that's why you know I was into sports and then I found basketball. This is my dream, this is my goal and I took it, you know, and I told my dad at 15, I remember I was 15 and a half I signed my first know, and I told my dad that I remember I was 15 and a half, I signed my first contract and I told him this is the last time you spend money on me and that was it. I spent school, school, scholarship, but you know everything after that me buying my own car, house, work, job, business it drops down, then stand up, then fall down, then stand up. Buy my own car, house, work, job, business Drops down, then stand up, then fall down, then stand up, fall down by my own.
Speaker 1:Is it normal to be able to fund yourself at 15 years old in Lebanon?
Speaker 2:No, you know, sometimes there is occasions and you know I was one of those who was really talented and skilled and I had an opportunity and I took it and I was up to it, you know, and there was a challenge. But this dude, we're going to bring him in with another big player he's a very close friend of mine now and build the team around him. And I took the challenge and I was up to it and we did probably the best duo in basketball in the history of basketball in Lebanon, and I continued my journey after that.
Speaker 1:As a kid, being as tall as you were, you obviously stood out a lot. Yeah, what happened with that standing out?
Speaker 2:Duh.
Speaker 1:Did you ever feel like anyone tried to push you down because you stood out?
Speaker 2:There is a lot Every day, every day until this day. This is the nature of life, you know, and I don't take things personal, trust me, because this is the nature of how people some people are built Out of hate, jealousy, whatsoever, however you want to, whatever you want to call it, call it whatsoever. However you want to, whatever you want to call it, call it. But what matters is me and how to stand up, how to move forward, how to study my steps. After falling down and learning and you know, okay, I fell down. What should I do now? Stay down or move on? You know, have bigger steps, better steps, have bigger direction, bigger goals, better directions. Uh, organize my. You know my mission now and my new vision and what should I do? So and I always say it before you challenge any person outside the room challenge yourself. That's your number one challenge in life, you and yourself.
Speaker 2:When you break that, you can break anyone outside, Because when you break that, you broke the fear. You broke the fear. When you break that, you broke probably the the devil sitting inside your head who's pushing you down, and then now you kicked him out. So when you do that, you can challenge any person outside, any person and any obstacle comes in your way, it's going to be in his obstacle. There is a lot of times that I face severe issues. Critical Big People say like this probably can make a mountain fall down, and I was like that's fine. You know, we move on. This is God's will. We cannot change it. Either we have to move on or sit and say what should we do now can?
Speaker 1:I've never asked for help, ever so I think that's a blessing and a curse as well, yeah.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, there is a lot of times. You know, I've never took any advantage from my PR, from my friends, from who I am, mama colon, never, even in my business, ever. I don't like to do that. You know, do things and let you let your services, let your job, let your organization, let your skills and talents speaks out for themselves. You know, instead of hey, you know, can I have this, can you do this?
Speaker 2:oh I mean they will come to to you. You know, no matter what, if you're successful and you're doing proper things, they will come to you.
Speaker 1:You mentioned big issues that you had in the past. Can you elaborate a little bit more on that? What's been the biggest issue you've had?
Speaker 2:There is probably a million. But you know doubting when I used to, you know, be one of the, you know, called one of the best players to come to Asia and people started doubting. And you know, if you play one bad game and you lose a championship, he's out, he's not good, he's not going to be good anymore. He's out, he's not good, he's not going to be good anymore. He's 33. He's old and this. So you face stuff like this on a daily basis and then it's up to me to challenge myself. First, you know I'm going to break it and I'm going to move on. Another thing you know I was broke because I went into a big business with my friend my closest friend and turned out that he's a bad guy. Money's gone. What kind of business was that? It was car rented. We had probably the biggest car rental in Lebanon.
Speaker 1:What year was that?
Speaker 2:It was 2005.
Speaker 1:And what happened?
Speaker 2:It turned out that he's a bad guy. I don't know, same here. But money is gone, business is gone, company bankrupt. We're in bad situation, company needs to close or pay the and I have spent back then almost 450,000. Everything I got I was 23. Yeah, 24. No,000. Everything I got I was 23. Yeah, 24. No, 25. Learned a big lesson. I was like you have to be on top of things. You cannot get into something and not to be on top of it. And since that day I'm on top of everything. I entered in, so I do business. I'm on top of everything. I enter in, so I do business. I'm in and that's why I do my own businesses, even if you know I have a collaboration. Everything I'm involved in it. It's not just values. You know shooting or doing content and that's it. No, I'm involved to make sure that you know it's sustainable, it's credibility, that's, you know, people looking for. So that's my main, my main thing. After that point, you know everything you have to do in life be on top of it.
Speaker 1:When you're bankrupt, what kind of mental state are you in in terms of performance?
Speaker 2:I mean, I was super good, happy, smiling, but now my life continues. I went to my president. I used to play basketball, so I went to the president of the club. I told him listen, this is what happened. I don't need any support from you. All I need is half salary until president of the club. I told him listen, this is what happened. I don't need any support from you, all I need is half salary until end of the month. And so I continued. To me, life continued.
Speaker 2:Money comes and goes. Today, you can be a billionaire. You sleep, you wake up, gone Up in Lebanon, billionaires, millionaires, millionaires, businesses, everything. They slept one night, woke up. No money, banks are gone. You cannot withdraw your money. So it happens, you know. That's why you cannot relate your happiness and your and life to only the money related to what you are doing, what added value you are giving and you're doing in the community, what's your targets, what's your goals other than making money? Okay, today you have 1,000 AED. You go spend it in the shop right. Gone. You have another one, you go spend it in the shop Right.
Speaker 2:Gone you have another one, you go spend it for food. So money comes and goes.
Speaker 1:What do you value most in life?
Speaker 2:What you're doing, what's your goals in life? Yes, you have to have at least the minimum to live, you know, but don't relate your happiness. Yes, you have to have at least the minimum to live.
Speaker 2:You know, but don't relate your happiness in life with money, because you never know what happens you might be, you know, with no money, what should you do? You go suicide? No, you continue. You stand up again and you build yourself. I've seen people.
Speaker 2:I was sitting with one of probably the biggest entrepreneurs in the region yesterday and you know we were chatting, and he's a big, big sheikh in Saudi Arabia and he owns one of the biggest holding companies in Saudi. So we were chatting and he told me I was seven years old. I was selling bottle quarters on streets to the cars. I was 12 years old. I was working in a supermarket. Just wait for customers to get in, wait for them on the cashier. Run back to the cashier to grab their bags, put it in the car and give me one riyal, one riyal, one riyal. So I save them and give them to my mom.
Speaker 2:Now he worth five, six billion. So this is life. You know. He survived. He worked hard, non-stop, even with this, but this made him become who he is now this selling water on the streets, working in the supermarket. This is what made him become the man he is now. So people say, oh, I don't want to do this. No, it's not my level, it's not my class. I'm not doing that. No, no, you learn from these things because everything you do in life is a lesson for the next step. You know, and I always say you know, we learn every day.
Speaker 1:What's your thoughts on modern society now and entrepreneurship? Do you think it's too easy? Yeah, because you think it's harder now or it's easier.
Speaker 2:It's easier, yeah yeah, think about it. Now you have social media. Now you have a lot of elements that you can be an entrepreneur out of. Back in the days they used to sell water, work in gas stations, work in supermarkets, you know, unless your dad is a billionaire. But you know those people who made it through this tough life. It was not easy at all for them. I will simplify it for you. So back in the days Michael Jordan used to play basketball, Imagine Michael Jordan with the social media. Just what? Where he's going to be now in terms of even if he's the highest or the richest athlete now, but he will be probably double and triple. He'll be way more known, even if he's, you know, the best athlete of all times. But imagine this. So it's the same thing in business. Yeah.
Speaker 2:You know social media changed everything, made life more easier for us. You know, to work, promote our businesses, promote ourselves, promote our brands or whatsoever Back then sponsorship and ambassador and you know you shoot for social media content. Never happened before, yeah.
Speaker 1:I want to bring you back to your story because I know in your career there came a point where Michael Jordan called you yeah what goes on in your mind, then point where Michael Jordan called you, yeah, what goes on your mind then?
Speaker 2:I was probably the happiest person on earth. I was you know, you're seeing the goat the best player ever, you know, the best athlete to me by by far in front of you for two months, calling your name, practicing with you, talking about you. It was the best two months I've ever spent on a court in my life. I learned a lot from him. 2003 was the change of my career. When I came back I was like a totally different person. The guy mentally is built different.
Speaker 1:What's different?
Speaker 2:He's probably the toughest person you'll ever see in your life Mental toughness. He doesn't accept losses. He doesn't accept coming for fun, for practices. It's not fun when you're on the court, you're competing. He's probably the most competitive person you'll see Non-stop, non-stop If you're shooting free throws. He's competitive, he's challenging you. So that's why he won many championships. That's why he's probably the best leader as a basketball leader. So he succeeded in basketball and he succeeded in basketball and he succeeded in business. So that's for you to know what type of person he is, because he's very competitive.
Speaker 2:He challenged himself a lot, he works hard a lot and he ended up with a great career. And after his career, he ended up with a great career. And after his career, he ended up with a great business. And being with him was, you know, one of, if not, the best lesson I've ever learned in my life. I became mentally tough because of, just from those two months, what I learned how I saw him in the court, how I saw him competing, how I saw him, you know, challenging, even if the challenge wasn't up to his level. But he's kept challenging people. Come give 99% here. You left 1%. This 1% will hurt you so bad. Don't leave any percent on outside, not on the court. Give it 200%, not 100%. So he's that type.
Speaker 1:Did you ever feel nervous around him?
Speaker 2:Yeah, definitely, I can imagine. I stayed three minutes before I say my name. Stayed there, took me three minutes to say my name.
Speaker 1:Having that fear and nerves. Do you think that's important when you're performing?
Speaker 2:Yeah, Definitely Listen, not even a single player or a singer or a performer who goes up to the stage or play basketball or play football and tells you, don't feel nervous that's not true.
Speaker 2:there is the nice fear and there is the fear that drops you down and you won't be able to perform. But we had fear, definitely, and we were nervous. You know, playing the final game example, playing the world championship, playing, playing Asian final game You're nervous and you have the fear, but definitely the nice one and if you're up to it you'll handle it, and not many people can do that.
Speaker 1:Has there been times throughout your career where that fear has overshadowed your performance? No, never, never.
Speaker 2:Ever Since day one, since I was 16, put me on the court and I see good performance. You'll see a guy with zero fear performing. Even from inside. I'm feeling nervous, but you'll never find out this and you'll never see it on my face do you ever argue with your thoughts?
Speaker 1:at times, you know, do you ever feel like you've?
Speaker 2:that's why I don't sleep.
Speaker 1:I know you don't have a good sleep routine, right?
Speaker 2:three hours. That's it. I think they're gonna send an email. It's like please take it off, it's not for you. Yeah, we made, we made this you know tracker for people that sleeps well, recover well. You're on red all the time and you're burning 4 000 to 4 500 calories daily and you're not sleeping, you're not recovering. Why you're wearing this? Get a calorie tracker, that's fine. So I I don't like sleeping. It's not that you know, um, I don't. I hate sleeping. It's the waste of time, honestly yeah, I can be.
Speaker 2:Wait, I can be a lot uh better if I'm doing a proper recovery in my daily time as a recovery for my body. Uh, then go on just sleeping and wasting four or five more hours from my time. You know I could. I'll be doing things with those four or five hours, definitely, even if I'm not doing anything. I'm enjoying my day, so I hate sleeping. There is a lot you can do in this additional four hours or three hours so I wake up happy.
Speaker 1:Are you excited by life, so you can sleep?
Speaker 2:I love life, but at the same time I accept anything comes. So I have this that if God will take my life, I have zero fear from that. Zero fear Because this is a fact. It's going to happen today, tomorrow, I don't know. But at the same time I love life. You know so, because I know that you know anytime it might happen. I want to enjoy.
Speaker 2:I want to be awake, I will sleep, you know. They asked me one great question. This is one why you don't sleep. I told them you know, when God takes my life, I'm going to sleep a lot. So you know there is time for sleeping. Now it's time to be awake, so that's why I don't sleep.
Speaker 1:How has that actually impacted your health? Inside Zero.
Speaker 2:I'll tell you something Yesterday example. I'll give you exactly my number. So yesterday I slept 3 hours and 50 minutes exactly, and today I played 3 and a half hours non-stop paddle with high intensity.
Speaker 2:Three and a half hours non-stop paddling, burned with high intensity, and the second game I was more efficient than the first game. It's just how you treat your body and how you give your body the rest that you need to give to your body in terms of doing proper recovery ice bath, hot tub, norma Tech, vitamins, eating well all this Probably in those three hours that I'm only sleeping, or four hours I'm sleeping in, I'm taking exactly the best energy out of those three, four hours that my body needs, because they tell you, you know, there is time when you sleep this one hour or two hours, this is what your body needs and that's the only time you take the energy from your REM sleep Exactly. So it might be like this and now I'm doing the additional stuff you know in my daytime. So I do ice bath daily, I take vitamins, I eat well, I take care of myself, so probably that's why you know I can sleep 10 hours and wake up tired.
Speaker 1:So any of these famous basketball players like Michael Jordan, do you think he slept 3 hours? No, no, no, I doubt. What kind of advice do you think he'd give you? I?
Speaker 2:would go sleep. You know, everyone is like go sleep, go sleep, go sleep, go sleep. It's not that I know that probably my body needs more sleep I hate. The thing is I don't like to do something that I don't like it. If I like it, I'll do it. I don't like it. So why you want to push me to go to sleep? I sit on bed, I'm watching TV and then suddenly I'm out. I wake up at five. I'm ready to go.
Speaker 1:Do you think you'd achieve what you've achieved with sleeping seven hours a night?
Speaker 2:Because obviously you have a lot of time back if you sleep three hours, you must have a lot I don't think they're linked, no, but probably yes, you know, because, uh, back in the days, you know when, before I stopped basketball. So it was you. You know I wake up, but I wasn't waking up because I have work that I have to do, you know, to take care of the business. So I was waking up just because I'm. You know I'm waking up. I have practices and things to do other than business. So now, probably, I'm waking up because I know that, you know I love Champs, I want to grow this organization and I'll keep on growing it. And it's like, you know, everything happening in my mind while I'm sleeping, before I sleep, and the best time to take, you know, good stuff from me and the marketing takes good stuff from me is between 1 and 2 am. That's wrong. Everything comes to my mind. So, yeah, probably I would have achieved the same things.
Speaker 1:Have you ever been tested for anything like an overactive disorder or anything?
Speaker 2:I hope, yeah, yeah, I'm happy I've never been tested, because I've definitely, uh, would have been an overactive guy yeah, I think this is your superpower.
Speaker 2:I think there's something there. No, you know, I will tell you a story. So the principal, or the president of my school, he loves basketball, so Fadi was to him everything. No one talks to Fadi in the school. So I was young, I was 14. And he's 14, 15 years old. He loves me a lot.
Speaker 2:Yesterday we were at the dinner and you know, in the dinner you know we were the old friends that we were together in the school and we were talking about the same thing. So, uh, because he knows that I'm super active and he knows when I start being active in the class, that means no more studying, that means 30 person in the class. Fadi is going to make them, you know, stop studying. He's going to turn the class to chaos. So, you know, then I will have conflict with the teacher, teacher throw me out of the class because I'm being overactive, I'm making everyone not focusing on his studying.
Speaker 2:And then he made a meeting with the teachers and I told him listen, when you feel Fadi is starting to turn out to be this, an overactive guy in the class, send him to the basketball court. The ball is there for him. He'll shoot around for 10 minutes and he'll go back to the class Honestly, and it worked perfectly. So probably every two hours he'll be like I'm out, I'll go shoot 10 minutes and come back. Super con. So he was smart yeah.
Speaker 1:Do you ever think that maybe the education system needs to mold around the students?
Speaker 2:yeah students who? Who needs probably this five, ten minutes and took me 10 minutes only. But yes, I think you know there is the old, old schools. Today they're hammering kids with stuff that I can't remember, why I took them, why I studied them back in the school, why you know history and unknown. If you want to be, take the basics, the math, the languages and all this. Yes, if now you ask me about the history that we used to take it back, then it's….
Speaker 1:I don't remember oh nothing, zero.
Speaker 2:So there is things that you know. You're pressuring more on the kid. No, instead of that, give him more from the basics that he needs to carry on in his life, from you know, the math, the English, the Arabic, whatever language you're in and the chemistry. If the basics comes from biology, we go into the lab and we see, you know, I'm not going to be a doctor. You know, and until today, all the biology classes. I cannot remember anything from them and I'm 100% sure 99% from the people cannot remember any class from the biology back in the days. So that's why and it's very important after a certain age you start eliminating classes.
Speaker 2:That is not going to be related to his major. You know, when he, you know, reach college. So okay, if I want to be a doctor, I will start, you know, pushing for that. If I'm going to be a business guy, I'm going to push for another thing. I'm going to be an engineer. I'm going to push for chemistry, probably math and physics sorry, math. So in that way you're making kids focus more on what they want to be after they reach, when they reach, college. So now just put everything together, throw, go study.
Speaker 1:How important is passion for success.
Speaker 2:It's everything. Passion is everything. Imagine you're going to marry someone. If there is no passion, that means that's a Because from passion, love comes respect and and and. So if there is no passion towards the other person, that means this is a dead end. If there is no passion to sports, that means you're going to do sports for a couple of times and then you're going to stop because there is no passion. I do sports, I do gym, because there is passion. I have this passion. You know I don't play basketball anymore because I don't feel the passion anymore than I used to have. I played 30 years. I lost it, you know, and definitely I love basketball and I love what I've done, but I had probably the biggest passion towards basketball, but you know I don't feel passion anymore. So why I should play it? That's why passion is everything.
Speaker 1:For an entrepreneur starting out. How do they figure out their passion? What kind of advice would you give them?
Speaker 2:Search, I mean for what you love. First, what's the things that makes you happy, what's the things that you know when you know what's the things that makes you happy, what's the things that you know when you know what's the things that makes you happy, that's passion. I'm not talking if you're going to have an ice cream. Ice cream is going to make me happy. That's passion. No, I'm talking in terms of business, in terms of sports, in terms of relationships. What makes you happy? You know you can sit with a person and the vibes is not there. You know the you're not happy sitting with him. That means there is no passion. You know, when you're sitting with another person and you're feeling happiness true happiness that means you have passion towards the person. When you're feeling happiness true happiness that means you have passion towards the person. When you're doing football and you're not enjoying playing football, cut it, do another sport until you find out what's your passion and that's how you find your talent in your kids nowadays. And that's how you find your talent in your kids nowadays. So when you see your kid insisting for one kind of sports, and since he got passion to that kind of sport, now you start kicking on with your boy or girl towards that sport. So this is where you start learning about your passion coming from happiness, coming from being comfortable and enjoying whatever you're doing in terms of sports, relationship, business.
Speaker 2:When you feel happy, I have probably the biggest passion towards champs. I wake up, I want to go, you know, work and do stuff for my organization. It's a pure passion. That's where you know that it's not just a job or work or a company. No, if it was that, I wouldn't have succeeded in what I'm doing because I had passion. And people feel that Whoever comes to Champs from moms, dads in the academies, from paddle players, from gym members they feel the vibes. You know it's a nice vibe. Why? Because someone has a, you know, a lot of passion towards this. It's not and they know that it's not because I have passion, it's not commercial club. And from there they see, like you know, it's a nice vibe. We feel nice vibes, you know, and because I have passion towards that, I'm not taking it commercially. It's not a commercial business.
Speaker 1:What does it take for an entrepreneur to be successful and to build a business? What does it take?
Speaker 2:A lot Determination, dedication, discipline, faith and probably they need to be having this. You know, when you have a big heart and you can absorb a lot in your heart, it's the same thing in business you need to have. You need to absorb a lot sometimes losses, failures, challenges, ideas, employees. You need to absorb everything to be able to take out of it one successful thing that this door might probably push you to the next level. So you cannot close your eyes and close your mind, and this is my idea. This is what I need to do and that's it. Move on, I don't care. No, you need to absorb a lot. You need to accept failures, you need to accept challenges. You need to accept ideas. You need to accept others. You need yes, you have your vision and mission and you are alpha if you want to say go ahead. But it's a team.
Speaker 2:One hand doesn't clap alone and one person will not be successful by his own. He needs a wife to have a great family and great kids. If they can have a family and a kid being by yourself, then why people are marrying? Example, and then they will answer oh yeah, they can have kids without marrying. That's bullshit. It's the same thing. It's just on a paper, you know. So that's why one person cannot have kids by himself he needs a partner.
Speaker 2:Same thing in the business you have your ideas, you have your vision and mission and everything, and you're the captain of the boat, but you have a team that works with you. You need to absorb all their ideas. You need to implement them. You need to absorb all their ideas. You need to implement them. You need to absorb and accept failures and put them in and then know how to work for your next step to be able to be successful and to know that okay, my previous step was bad. Now I learned from it. Now I need to do a better step and you take step by step, step by step, step by step. Don't jump from the first step until the tenth because you're going to fall down and break your leg. So go step by step up in a proper way and as.
Speaker 2:I said, you know life and businesses and relationships and everything is all about ups and downs. Today you're driving on a road. You have bumps, right, you go up the bump and you go down and you keep driving, but the road takes you to your destination. Even with the bumps, the car keeps on moving. This is the same thing in life. There is bumps that will take you down to your destination. Don't stop after the bump, turn your car off and say you know, I can't do anything, I'm done. You will reach your destination.
Speaker 1:You have to accept the bumps and challenges that comes in your life have you ever come to a stage where you want to stop the car and you don't want to keep driving? Never, I don't want to keep driving?
Speaker 2:never, I don't think I will. I don't think I will let anyone around me from the people I love to. I will keep pushing everyone, even my kids. They are mentally there in terms of this, telling them listen, kids, and they are mentally there, you know, in terms of this, telling them listen. When you do that, especially in my position, you have a lot to lose.
Speaker 2:It's not a lot to lose about business. I don't care. Credibility I care about as the people look up to you as this tough person, that we look up to you as this tough person, that we look up to him as a leader, not a boss. As a leader that we learn from him, from his mental toughness, that he will never give up. Whatever pass and whatever happens in his life, he will never give up. So if I turn the car off, they're all off now. And what did you do to them? What lesson you gave them that? You know all my life I'm. You know I'm talking about this and this and this. Out of sudden, I turn the car off so they will feel down, they will not believe anymore. And you know, keep the car on and move on and reach the destination, even the bombs.
Speaker 1:So this is what I care about does that give you energy to keep going?
Speaker 2:yeah, a lot. Yeah, the people that looks up to you, the people that you know believes in you, believes in what you are doing, and they, you know, uh, probably if I post one, one post working out in the early in the morning or late in the night and I say you can find time, and then I have thousands of messages saying that you know, uh, we thought that you know, we don't have time to work out, but after seeing you doing that, we went to the gym and that's satisfaction to me, satisfaction I've done. I've done a great thing in my life now to push them to go work out and do good things for their health.
Speaker 1:What's important if you want to become a high-level athlete.
Speaker 2:Any sports you're doing. If you have 24 hours in your life, take my sleeping farm away. Sleep seven eight hours. Nobody can sleeping farm away. Sleep seven eight hours.
Speaker 1:Nobody can compete with you.
Speaker 2:Sleep seven hours, eight hours. Spend the rest as long as you can in your sports. As long as you can, as long as your body can keep on going, spend it on the court. Don't waste any second without doing extra steps from any other person outside there. To be able to become better than him, you need to do more things than what he's doing. I told my son what do you want to be? What's your goal? He said NBA. I told my son what do you want to pitch? What's your goal? He said NBA.
Speaker 1:I was like, okay, is he following the same footsteps as?
Speaker 2:you Three of them. They're technically way better than me skills-wise and they will definitely be better players. So I told them what you are doing. You want to reach the NBA. What you are? I'm practicing with the team. We're going to the gym. Okay, isn't your teammate doing the same thing? He said yes, he's like why he won't be in the NBA and you'll be in the NBA. For what reason he might be in the NBA before you? What are you doing extra than him? I clicked you know in the NBA before you. What are you doing extra than him.
Speaker 2:I clicked, you know. Now I told them you have to put more efforts than anyone else to be able to satisfy yourself. First, to say I'm doing something good, I'm doing more than anyone out there and I might have a chance. But sitting and doing, you know, saying okay, I want to sell probably 10 big uh villas. I'm not doing calls, I'm not doing anything and I'm not just sitting waiting for the leads. If you're not going to go, work for your leads, calls and do sales and promote it on your media, you're not going to get the leads you want Same thing. So doing more efforts, doing more steps than any other person outside, will make you achieve a self-satisfaction and will make you achieve your goals. Once you are self-satisfied from what you are doing as an efforts, that's where you become and you feel that you are exhausted because you're doing more efforts and more efforts than your teammates and your colleagues. That's where you start. You know having the chances to reach your dreams as a high level.
Speaker 1:Do you think the standard now, obviously being a father who's super successful like you, do you think the standard now is just so high for your kids?
Speaker 2:No At all yeah, I'm all yeah, I'm tough. Yeah.
Speaker 2:I'm friends. They are my best friends. You have no idea. But raising my kids in a proper way, it's a red line. You know they need to be responsible. They need to be. I told them why I'm doing this Not to rely on me in life. And I told them one day I'm here Now I'm here. One day I might not be here If I'm not here. You need to continue your life being responsible. Now you are taking responsibility of your mom and younger. You know sister and brothers, so that's where what I care about. I give them more love probably than anyone any dad Super close to them. They're friends. We talk on video calls daily. We go out when they're here, like I don't see any of my friends, we go to the mall. They're friends, friends and that's how I treat them. But responsibility not being spoiled. How do you? How do you? Yeah, I don't spoil my kids yeah at all.
Speaker 2:Anna, my son lived in in turkey when he played in fenerbahce. He was 15 years old, by himself. I used to give him a certain amount for delivery per week. Other than this, he needs to cook. That's it, you know. Take responsibility.
Speaker 1:Does he not ever question that, especially with he knows that yeah.
Speaker 2:He knows and they know and they accepted it and they knew that this is better for them and better for their you know career and I, I, you know. I'm happy that. You know. The good thing here is the calls we get after our kids spend one day at their friend's house. That's the proper satisfaction I get when the other parents call us and they tell them you know, I just want to appreciate you guys for what you have raised, because you're boys and they're very well raised, so that's the best thing.
Speaker 2:And you know from there that they're not spoiled. They never talk about cars, brands whatsoever, never. They don't ask Congratulations. What they think about now is their career in sports, because that's what they lived the life of an athlete with me and they saw how dedicated I was and how passionate I was. And I was, you know, into basketball a lot. I was eliminating everything in my life, all the fun, satisfaction out. Basketball, basketball, work, basketball, work, basketball. So they got this from my mindset. I had and I probably did, put them in the situations that they lived alone when they were at a young age and they took responsibility and I told them you know now if anything happens to me, you can carry on with doing an excellent job.
Speaker 1:Do you think kids are becoming a bit too soft with parents in modern society? What I see, yeah.
Speaker 2:A lot. They rely a lot on the parents and you know it's like oh, don't talk to my kid like this. Oh, coach is not allowed to talk to my son like this. Oh, the trainer is not allowed to shout on my kid what, what? He's not disrespecting him, he's not swearing at him, he's shouting at him because he's done something wrong. On the court. My coach used to rip my jersey off, rip it, and I was like on 50 points, on high school average 50 points. There was one game I was on 47. I did one mistake. The coach ripped my shirt.
Speaker 2:Imagine my dad will go say why you did this to my son, will go say why you did this to my son. And I was. That's something you know. Parents need to understand. You're their parents at home, coaches, trainers. They are their mentor on the courts. Don't interfere. Don't let your kids come and tell you I, the coach, shouted at me.
Speaker 2:Your reaction after he tells you that is the most important reaction ever when you tell your kid okay, did you do something bad? He needs to shout at you because you need to learn. So, that's fine, learn. So he doesn't shout at you again Instead of saying no, tomorrow I'm going to do a big sin. I start calling in front of my son. Why did you shout? Why did you do this? Did he disrespect your son first? Did you swear on your son? Did he do any bad thing towards your son other than teaching him by shouting or raising his voice? It's fine. That's fine. You know he needs to.
Speaker 2:You see, now that the coaches in the high level EuroLeague and NBA they go nuts on players, pro players. What the player? Why you're shouting at me? I used to be on playing on the highest level, best days in my life. My coach used to probably shout all game on me. Never, you know, felt any humiliation or disrespect. I was learning. It was part of the process. The parents' reaction is the most important reaction. Sports psychologist I can't handle this. I you know. Now, with due respect to life coaches, to sports psychologists, I don't believe in it At all. You tell me now doctors and yes, they studied. They studied seven years to be a doctor.
Speaker 2:Life coach what Two, three sessions? You got the certificate as a life coach. I can be a life coach. I can teach people how to overcome challenges, obstacles. I'll call myself life coach. Yes, you know, one of the things it's good to have in our basketball academy at CHAMS sports psychologists. So they teach and they stay with our kids talking about this and this and this and this and I told them. Okay, one question Now. You cannot sleep One day, two days, three days, four days, five days. One week, your body started you know, started to collapse. You went and took medication to sleep and you kept on taking medication to be able to sleep. If you stop the medication, what will happen? You won't sleep again. So did you do something natural or not natural? Something not natural temporarily to be able to sleep, because after that, after stopping the medication, you'll not be able to sleep. Okay, I brought a sports psychologist to your son, to the basketball player at Chubbs, stayed with him one year, one and a half year, two years left. What will happen to the son?
Speaker 2:go back to bad habits it's not only go back to the bad habits. He will feel there is no support anymore. His character gonna drop, his passion gonna drop. His passion gonna drop. There is no this support anymore.
Speaker 2:Instead of teaching them, mental toughness is the most important thing by their coaches. They need to handle pressure. They need to handle, and the parents are the best mentors for the kids. Go, don't talk to me. Go to the coach. This is your coach. You want basketball? This is your game. Oh, I want to change academy. Okay, I'll change your academy. Oh, I want to change the team.
Speaker 2:I don't like the coach. You know how many coaches I've changed in my life? More than 45 coaches, imagine. Every time I love the coach, I would say no, no, no, no. I will not change the coach anymore. This is basketball, this is sports, this is life. So parents will say that's educating. Probably that's what psychologists need to be to the parents more than their kids, honestly speaking, so they can be educated in how to treat their kids when they come and say, oh, it was tough today, the coach was shouting. The coach is always shouting and no, it's part of the process. You never know when you are in a pro level, what kind of coach you're gonna be facing what you will say I don't want to play anymore, I signed the contract, I'm out now because I don't like the coach voice or he shouts a lot.
Speaker 1:You need to adapt I've loved this conversation that we've had and I feel like I could speak to you for hours on end, because this is the Detached podcast. What would you detach yourself away from that's limiting you today? Limiting me yeah, there's something holding you back. I feel like nothing can hold you back, for I don't know, um, I don't know.
Speaker 2:Yeah, you know there is nothing. That is because if there is something you know will be holding me back or is holding me back, I will definitely break it for sure or I will find my way out of it. But there is a lot of, probably, things that I want to do and it's not happening as quick as I want. But there is nothing, you know, I want to step away from or detach myself from. You know, yeah, I can't think of something that you know, because everything, the most important thing I, you know I have in me is I've never regret or doubt anything I've done. I never regret for one reason because even if I'm doing something now, I want to no, I've done. I never regret For one reason because, even if I'm doing something now, I want to no, I say no. If I'm doing something and it's a bad step, it's a great lesson. It's not that I need to. Oh, why I did it? No, I did it. I learned. Now I know that it was a great lesson for me.
Speaker 2:So, I never regretted anything and I don't want to detach myself from anything that might be a lesson for me or might be a success for me. You got my point. So everything that's happening is either a lesson or a good thing for you. There is nothing going to be a bad thing. Relationship you enter a relationship. It's a bad relationship you move on. But you knew what mistakes you've done, what kind of person you need in the next relationship, how you need to take things you know and how you need to be focusing on stuff that you know. You made mistakes out of a previous relationship. So don't regret, don't feel bad, but it's a great lesson.
Speaker 1:Thank you for that answer. I think there was a lot of value in this podcast today and, yeah, I could have spent longer time with you.
Speaker 2:I love talking about this, this podcast today, and uh, yeah, I could have spent longer time with you. I love, I love tokyo especially. It's, it's uh, it's an experience thing. You know it's, it's coming out from from, from an experience and what I'm living nowadays and uh, you're amazing, you're. You're a great as well entrepreneur and a great example. You're a hard worker and I've seen you know it's been two years that we know probably each other and you know you've done everything. You want to do a lot and you will. You know you're achieving them because you're a hard worker and really you're an example. Thank you very much. Thank, you're a hard worker and really you're an example.
Speaker 1:Thank you very much.
Speaker 2:Thank you.
Speaker 1:Pleasure.