099: Ed Molitor: Former Texas A & M basketball coach on being purposeful, positive & energetic after overcoming adversity.

June 11, 2019

Ed Molitor

Ed Molitor of The Molitor Group and Athletics of Business Podcast is a former NCAA basketball player for Creighton University and Basketball Coach at Texas A&M University. He founded The Molitor Group in 2016 to help ambitious individuals, organizations, and teams think, act, & execute at an elite level. After leaving the sport of basketball, Ed went through a period of his life where he struggled with a lack of identity. As a result, Ed struggled with Alcoholism for a period of time before receiving advice to change his mindset from “Why is this happening to me?” to “What am I going to do about it?”. This change of mindset put him on the path to freedom and has carried over into everything that has since transpired in his life. Now Ed’s helps business executives close their performance gap by adopting the traits and behaviors deployed by elite athletes and high performing teams.

On this inspirational episode of Finding Your Summit Podcast, Ed Molitor shares his experience as a lifelong student of the game of basketball and how his transition from athlete/coach to corporate America left him questioning his identity. Listen in as Ed discusses Taking Ownership, Self-Awareness and the Servant Mindset as key themes in his personal and business success. Ed’s authentic story is one of honesty & selflessness; I hope you find some nuggets of truth in this episode to help you grow in your own journey…I know I did!

Listen to “Ed Molitor: Former NCAA BB Texas A & M assistant coach on being purposeful, positive & energetic after overcoming adversity.” on Spreaker.

What You Will Learn:

Ed discusses his love for the game of basketball. Growing up, his dad was his coach, mentor, and best friend and taught him the significance of the mind in athletics. Ed’s dad taught him more about life than he did about the game of basketball. His dad’s sole intent was always to get you ready for the next level of life.

Ed and I talk about Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success which ultimately leads to “competitive greatness”. You can’t skip steps or negotiate with the reality of the situation. Physical skills aren’t enough to achieve greatness; it takes full commitment.

Ed recalls coming back to Chicago at the age of 28 to enter the mortgage industry. This is when the realities of life hit him hard for the first time. He says, “I identified who I was with what I did.” Ed began overcompensating with alcohol because of his lack of identity. Eventually, he was in full-blown addiction – bouncing back between the corporate world and coaching. Ed’s Alcoholism brought him to and through two near-death experiences.

Ed shares about the light bulb moment he had that truly began his recovery. He says, “When you switch from “Why is this happening to me?” to “What am I going to do about it?” it makes a big difference.” This is where the light bulb went on for Ed. This thinking has carried over into everything that has since transpired in his life. 

Ed discusses the importance of External Self Awareness – this is where a lot of us are very uncomfortable. We have to push past this comfort zone and ask others what they truly think of us. We have to dive into external self-awareness. When your inside of the frame it’s hard to see the picture sometime.

Ed shares his thoughts on “The Servant Mindset”. The key to happiness is to embrace this mindset. You can get anything you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want. Ed says, “If I’m struggling with something then I just go help somebody else.” 

Dribbling down the Court:

With each of my podcast episodes I look to provide you with tales of overcoming adversity and finding freedom. The story of Ed Molitor is a perfect example of a man who faced his own questions of identity and realized the strengths in asking for help. Ed experienced not one but two near-death situations as the result of his Alcoholism. His struggles led his pregnant wife to experience medical complications of her own. Ed made a commitment that his baby daughter would never have to live with a parent in active addiction and this began his journey to recover. Many people never make it back from a life debilitating issues like this and they become defined by their failures.

Dribbling Back Up:

But Ed’s story doesn’t end here…something different happened with Ed. While in treatment, someone gave Ed the advice to stop playing the role of a victim and start taking the ownership to find a solution. Not only did he embrace this advice, but he now lives his life by this motto. Ed believes that you have to be transparent and honest with yourself about where you’re at if you want to set the right goals to get to where you’re trying to go. He says that to be selfless, you have to first work on yourself. This enables you to be the best version of the leader, father or husband you need to be. Ed now teaches business executives how to win via his brand and curriculum, The Athletics of Business: A leadership mindset that believes the traits and behaviors deployed by elite athletes and high performing teams are key to your success in business. He helps his clients in three main areas: 1 on 1 executive coaching, On Site/Off Site Corporate Consulting & Training, Keynote Speaking

Themes that Ed focuses on include Maximizing your Potential, Bridging your Performance Gap, Giving yourself Permission to be Great and Unleashing your Greatness. Ed’s story reminds us that there is no finish line for greatness. It’s not about standing on top of the mountain; it’s about the process of getting there. 

Links to Additional Resources:

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