7. Mitch Williams: Telecommunications executive, former professional racquetball player on the power of adaptability, finding your way to win, measuring what matters, doing less is more

Today's episode is with my friend, a former colleague, and a professional racquetball player, Mitch Williams. Mitch and I started at Ericsson at the same time and on the same team. Much of our telecom journey to date has been very similar as we seemed to make similar moves at almost the same time and in a similar direction. I had a lot of fun speaking with Mitch about many topics related to sports, cross-pollination of sports, how sports shaped us, including the joy and pain we get from winning and losing. We discuss the painful transition from the sport we loved into what I call the normal civilian life and the mindset we have learned by playing the sport, and how we are now applying it in the next chapter of our lives. Mitch shares many fun stories from his upbringing, racquetball journey, and his current life of being a dad to three young daughters and the only male in his house - living in Arizona with his wife, three young daughters, and two female dogs. Other topics covered in this podcast:Mitch gave great examples of strategic alliances and having a network of people who helped him get to different positions. The importance of timing in life, measuring what matters, and focusing on the things that make a difference.The importance of knowing yourself, knowing what drives you, and being self-aware of where one finds purpose, fulfillment, and career/ job-fit.Article about Mitch and his racquetball retirementSome of my favorite quotes from this episode:Winning and losing:"I learned in racquetball; there is a lot of different ways to win. You don't have to win just by doing this one thing."On the transience of a loss or a win:"That's the hardest thing to tell a kid that you coach: It doesn't matter how you win the game today. You win. You are going to play tomorrow. And tomorrow, you can wake up and have the worst game of your life, or the next hour or the next match, it all disappears.""I love sports. I love the immediate response of a win or a loss. That's the greatest equalizer in life."Racquetball and sports in general:"Racquetball definitely gave me a different view of the world and how I conduct myself in the professional life."Timing:"If I were to summarize my professional racquetball career, these were the two big examples to learn from that: 1. Timing is everything in life, and what you do with that and what you do with that time and that opportunity is important, and 2. then how do you step back and really focus on what's important and how do you make yourself better."Preparing and doing less is more:"And a lot of it was early on; I never allowed myself to be successful because I was chasing a dollar and not preparing. So that's that mentality of how do you learn to be a professional. That was eye-opening. How do you focus on the things that are really impactful?"On transitioning from racquetball to the next chapter of life:"I needed to get to the professional environment and learn a trait or a skill outside of playing racquetball for lack of better terms. So it all kinda worked out, and it was the right time. It wasn't at the time. It was a pretty dark couple of years of my life because everything gets taken away when things are going well. But in the end, it made me realize two things: 1. At anyone one point in time, something can be literally taken away from you, whether you like it or don't like it. 2. So enjoy the moments that you do have with something."Send us Fan MailLEORÊVER COMPRESSION AND ACTIVEWEARGet 10% off Loerêver Balanced Compression and Activewear to elevate your confidence and performance8 EIGHT SLEEPSave $200 on 8Sleep and get better quality and deeper sleep with automatic temperature adjustmentTESLAUse my referral link for Tesla and get up to $250 off and 3-months of Full Self-Driving CapabilityDisclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. If you make a purchase, I may receive a commission at no extra cost to you.This content is also available in a video version on YouTube.If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with someone who may enjoy it as well, and consider leaving a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. You can also submit your feedback directly on my website. Follow @GrandSlamJourney on Instagram, Facebook,  Twitter, and join the  LinkedIn community.