When I was approached to start writing for Brickhouse I was excited to do so, however I had a small hesitation in my chest knowing that everything I would eventually write about would simply be regurgitated information I have learned from all of my amazing mentors over time. As a young strength and conditioning coach I went through stages. I was young, relatively intelligent and had lifted a lot- so I knew so much right? I was energetic and determined so of course I had all the answers. Then I was trying to fit a square peg into a round hole for a while and blaming everyone other than myself when it didn’t work. I got my first full time job and my boss in a gracious manner helped me see that there was more than what I thought to training athletes. I got the opportunity to work for our Men’s Basketball strength and conditioning coach, Jonas Sahratian, and was humbled even more. I was lucky enough to learn from him and eventually call him a good friend. Without a doubt he made be a better coach and person. Along the way he introduced me to a long list of names that go on forever. He learned from these people in person, this was before the social media craze and the abundance of resources that could be accessed from the internet at an instant. He spent his own money to go out and learn from these individuals and assimilate all of his findings in a practical manner to get the most out of his athletes while not just using 100,000 different techniques that amount to just confusion. He never claims the knowledge as his own even though he went well out of his way to attain it. So as I start to write for Brickhouse I want my first posting to be about giving credit to the giants I have learned from. I owe my career to a few individuals and my knowledge content to a ton more.

The best way to give credit to your mentors other than just referencing their names and accolades is to do your best to present the message they conveyed to you correctly. Too often I see professionals play the game of telephone on what they have learned from others. I will do my best always to present what I have learned the way I learned it and even more important when I work with my athletes I will teach them the way I was taught, that is how I will give credit to the greats that I have learned from. So while I will not write a long list every time I write, let it be known that I am just really fortunate to have learned from some awesome people who have been in the trenches. If you are a young professional you need learn from mentors who work with PEOPLE on a daily basis. What we do is a blend of art and science. Thank you to all of those who have helped me along the way, I will do my best not to embarrass you!!