William Brandmeyer on Youth Sports, Recovery, and Building Resilience | Hidden Foundations Ep. 14

Viewer discretion is advised. This episode includes conversations about addiction, recovery, suicide, family pressure, and difficult personal patterns.In this episode of Hidden Foundations, Kendall sits down with William “Bill” Brandmeyer, founder of ShareWaves, to explore how youth sports, family business, recovery, faith, and honest parenting shape a person’s capacity for life. Bill shares why he believes kids need safe tension, why an easy life can create softness, and how sports can teach children discipline, teamwork, humility, grit, and resilience. The conversation also covers pay-to-play youth sports, play equity, the mission behind ShareWaves, his recovery journey, the boss who helped save his life, the Brandmeyer family business, generational wealth, family pressure, and why honesty may be the most important hidden foundation a parent can give a child.Chapters00:00 Cold Open: Honesty, Sports, and Resilience01:12 The Origin of Hidden Foundations04:04 Load Capacity and Time Under Tension08:16 Pay-to-Play and the Broken Youth Sports System14:06 ShareWaves and Removing Barriers to Play29:05 Why Youth Sports Became His Mission38:14 Recovery, Honesty, and Family Support50:22 Family Business, Privilege, and ResponsibilityCheck out ShareWaves here: https://www.youtube.com/@sharewaves/featuredhttps://www.sharewavesfoundation.org/Hidden Foundations is a weekly podcast hosted by entrepreneur and investor Kendall Schoenrock, examining how family systems, early adversity, and childhood dynamics quietly shape high-performing adults. Each conversation uncovers the “invisible wiring” behind resilience, ambition, leadership, and grit — told through candid stories from entrepreneurs, athletes, creators, and leaders.Guided by the thesis that strength is forged early at home, the show uses a consistent framework to explore emotional environments, money narratives, family roles, conflict patterns, and early challenges. Every episode delivers at least one practical, repeatable insight for parents, leaders, and anyone seeking to understand how greatness is built long before it’s visible.Subscribe to Our Newsletter: https://hiddenfoundations.com/#newsletterLearn more or connect with Kendall:Website: https://kendallschoenrock.com/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/schoenrock/SilverRock Ventures: https://silverrockventures.com/about-us/YouTube: youtube.com/@HiddenFoundationsPodSpotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6VKN6BBbuVxNDl4zKh4E3O?si=0c56c9aebfaf402eApple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/hidden-foundations/id1895154229#HiddenFoundations #YouthSports #ShareWaves