March 22, 2024 • 29 mins
Stepping onto campus as a first-year student athlete, Jaiden Woodbey was determined to defy the odds. His journey through competitive football and rigorous academia, culminating in three degrees over five action-packed years, paints a compelling portrait of discipline and ambition. We're thrilled to welcome Jaiden Woodbey in our latest episode, where we peel back the gridiron to reveal the steadfast resilience and time management wizardry required to juggle higher education with the high stakes of collegiate sports. Throughout our conversation, Jaiden's personal anecdotes serve as a playbook for anyone striving to tackle their goals head-on, regardless of the field they're playing on.
We dissect the parallels between the strategy of football and the tactics of effective leadership, highlighting how teamwork, focus, and an unwavering commitment to one's role are just as crucial in the corporate arena as they are on the playing field. Jaiden exemplifies the kind of leadership that's born in the locker room and refined in the boardroom, providing a masterclass for transitioning athletes and aspiring leaders alike.
The episode closes with a rallying call to the dreamers, the determined, and the dedicated: chart your own course, break through boundaries, and build a legacy that echoes long after the stadium lights dim. Join us as we celebrate a story that's not simply about sports; it's about the relentless pursuit of excellence.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
Hello and welcome to the Leaderbrew podcast.
I am Dr Rick Arawood and I amyour host for today, and I
always begin my sessions withsaying that I'm so excited to
have our next guest on.
But, truthfully, I am soexcited to have our next guest
on, and that would be JadenWoodbay.
Jaden earned three degrees infive years across two schools,
(00:42):
amid a global pandemic.
And then there was this thingcalled football, which we can
talk a bit more about as well,and I had the pleasure of
teaching Jaden while he waspursuing his master's in sports
administration at BC in theWoods College of Advancing
Studies.
So it is my absolute pleasureto reconnect with you.
(01:03):
The idea of the Leaderbrewpodcast is for faculty to have
some catch-up conversations withformer students and see what
that transition has been likefrom the classroom to the real
world.
So it's just going to be afantastic conversation.
So welcome.
(01:24):
And I see you are in sunnyCalifornia because the sun is
shining and you have shorts on.
Meanwhile, I have sweaters andjackets in New Hampshire, so
welcome.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
Man, appreciate you for having me, Appreciate you
for having me.
For sure you know it's nice andsunny over here.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Nice and sunny.
So let's go back to theclassroom and tell me about your
experiences in the classroomand what that was like, not only
being a student, but also anathlete.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
So I think that one of the common misconceptions of
student athletes is that youknow like they have a lot of
free time, but it's a veryrigorous schedule.
You know like when our coachour coach used to put up like
all of the hours that we wouldput in every day and it would be
(02:22):
similar to a 14-hour work day.
You know like we would wake uppractice is at six, so we have
to be there around like 5, 25,30 to eat breakfast and to warm
up and stuff and get ready.
You know, if you have treatment, if you have an injury, you got
to get there a little early, sothen you have time to actually
go to.
You know practice and performso from like six to maybe seven,
(02:45):
eight, 30, we're usuallytraining.
After that we'll have some typeof treatment or something that
we have to attend to after andthen usually we'll have a
mandatory lunch that we have toattend and then usually we'll
have classes or studying andthen maybe sometime throughout
the rest of the day we'll haveanother practice and then we'll
(03:09):
have another mandatory snack ora mandatory meal or mandatory
meetings that we have to go to,and then on top of that we still
have more schoolwork andsometimes we have late classes.
So a day can really be from,you know, 5.30 in the morning to
like 6.30, 7.00 at night, justdepending on how your schedule
is.
So it was definitely tough, butit wasn't.
(03:32):
It wasn't, it was doable, let'sput it that way.
It was definitely doable,especially, you know, my first.
My first three years I was atFlorida State.
That's where I got my undergradin international affairs.
I was working like a maniac,had probably 18 to 19 hours of
(03:54):
class or like however the unitswork.
I think it's like 19 units or18 units or hours, whichever one
of them, but you usually do 12max and I did 18 to 19 because I
wanted to graduate early.
So I did that for like my firsttwo and a half three years.
Then I got my degree and then Icame to BC and then I pretty
(04:17):
much did the same thing.
I completed the two-yearmaster's course in one year and
then I pretty much did thattwice to get two degrees.
So it was a lot of work, but itwas also worth it.
I feel like it was definitelyworth it and since I was already
so used to putting so much onmy schedule and doing so much in
(04:38):
a day.
It really wasn't that hard of atransition for me to do it for
my master's classes as well.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
And in terms of student athletes, you may recall
I would always say if I startto tell or make an analogy to
sports, someone should alwaysstop me, because not my world
and I would fumble the ball.
That's a good one, actually.
I should try and use thatexpression because I've heard
that one before.
But what I found veryimpressive about the students
(05:09):
who are on scholarships orwithin teams of various
universities, I admire that workethic, I admire that physical
stamina.
As you would reference, many ofthe Woods College classes are
in the evening hours and it'shard enough just for faculty to
(05:32):
sort of keep themselvesmotivated and going.
It's got to be even morechallenging from the student
perspective.
But my experiences with mystudent athletes was always so
incredibly positive.
Honestly, I don't think I andthis is an interesting that I'm
just now thinking this I don'tthink I have ever had a student
(05:53):
athlete send me an email to sayI'm going to be out because I'm
sick or I can't make it becauseI'm just sort of thinking that
out loud right now.
So one more reason to admirepeople who take on this track.
I mean, here you're talking toa faculty person who doesn't
(06:14):
exercise Right, so I admire youalready just for doing that.
That's fantastic.
So you know, as you werethinking about what's next, talk
to us about what was goingthrough your mind as you were
(06:34):
making that transition from youcould do it from your undergrad
to the masters or from themasters to sort of the real
world.
What was going on in your headBecause I think that's the
essence of this podcast is tohelp people that may have been,
say, student athletes ornon-student athletes.
(06:55):
How do you make that leap?
What can you take with you?
Speaker 1 (07:03):
So my whole college career was definitely it was
interesting.
You know I had a lot of ups anddowns, I went through a lot of
adversity, but the like, thefive years that I was in college
it definitely molded me intothe young man that I am today.
So this is from my perspective,because my perspective is a
(07:23):
little bit different.
So I always, in my mind, knew Iwas going to be a professional
athlete.
So when I went to Florida StateI was under the impression, you
know, I was going to do threeyears and then, you know, go to
the NFL.
But I got injured.
I had like a multi-legged kneeinjury.
(07:43):
That pretty much set me back alittle bit in terms of me
graduate, not graduating, but megoing to the NFL at you know,
such a young age.
But you know, one thing thatwas always stressed to me was,
you know, you always need tohave a backup plan or always
have you know another thinggoing on the side of football.
(08:06):
So I always made sure, you know, that I was doing all of the.
You know the lunches and themeeting, all of the people that
came for, you know, career dayand stuff and you know, grab
their cars, did some interviews,did some, some internships,
things of that nature.
So I always did those thingsand made sure that, you know, I
(08:27):
had something else to hold on to, such as a tray and things of
that nature.
So I did that and then that'swhy I ended up transferring to
BC.
You know, I just had a a prettymuch needed to going to a new
environment.
You know, I've been through somuch at Florida State mentally,
(08:48):
physically, emotionally that Ijust wanted a fresh start, a new
start.
So I ended up going to Bostonand I ended up doing the same
thing.
You know, I stayed another year.
Then I spoke with my coach.
He told me that it was best forme to come back another year.
Things didn't necessarily workout in the football aspect of us
(09:09):
having a good season and ithurt me to my detriment, and I
didn't get drafted.
However, I still am in the NFL,which was the ultimate goal.
So I'm still here.
So that's the blessing end ofit.
But the transitions andeverything that came along with
it you know there's a lot of upsand downs and a lot of things
(09:34):
that I didn't necessarily seecoming.
I didn't necessarily see me notgetting drafted and all that
means is that there's a certainamount of slots that NFL teams
have to call your name and pickyou to go to their team and then
, after those slots are allallotted, they have a free
agency period, which is abouttwo hours after the draft, and
(09:57):
then they can pick people fromthem too.
So then I got picked duringthat time.
But you know, I'm still, Istill, you know, achieve my goal
and everything.
But the transition is one thing,to talk about it and then, when
you're actually in it, it doesa little different, you know,
but I definitely feel like I wasprepared and I definitely feel
(10:21):
like, you know, I had to writemindset and I had to write just
everything in order to handlewhatever was thrown at me.
You know, I was still and likeI mentioned, you know having
those things on the side outsideof football.
You know, I have my lifeinsurance license, I'm licensed
in seven states and I have myreal estate license and I'm
licensed in Massachusetts andI'm gonna get my license out
(10:43):
here in California and thenwhatever NFL team I end up on
this year, I'm more than likelyget my life insurance and real
estate license for that statetoo.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
You know that sounds really fantastic because I think
you hit also at a key pointwhere you know when you're in it
it's a little bit morechallenging.
So, shall we say, you know,uncertainty, anxiety, all of
those things come along messingup motivation.
But you know, when you've had alittle bit of time to reflect
on it, it sounds like you knowyou got into that really good
(11:17):
position where you're at now.
I mean how fantastic you've got.
You know, more options.
I think oftentimes, particularlywith sports, athletes,
celebrities, et cetera, you knowwe only hear about, oh, this is
it, they've made it to the top,but we don't know about those
(11:37):
transition stories so much.
And I think one of the otherthings is, as you were talking
about it, I could hear in yourvoice this, just this immense
comfort with that transition.
You, even as you were talking,you were smiling, and you know
how many of us could reallysmile when we're having those
(11:59):
transitions.
That's usually not the timewe're smiling, but you know,
from a reflective perspective,it seems like that's one of the
things that I get from this, andI also love your strategy of
not putting all your eggs in onebasket, so to speak.
You know, and so where did youget that idea from?
(12:19):
How did you come about thisnotion of?
I mean, it's one thing, I guess, to have a particular goal, a
very specific goal, and this iswhat I'm going to do in life.
But sometimes, as you say, lifehappens, Sometimes we go in
different directions.
So how did you sort of know tohave alternate plans as well?
Speaker 1 (12:42):
So I definitely heard it from both of my parents and
I definitely heard it from allof the people that came and
spoke with us too Like the thingabout football and the thing
about professional sports is oneyou won't be able to play it
forever.
Like your body's going to giveup at some point.
You won't be able to run asfast, jump as high, hit as hard.
At some point you know it'sgoing to start to deteriorate.
(13:03):
So you want to be able to havesomething that's going to
sustain you.
And then also, too, it's likeyou could have a 20 year career.
Like, if I have a, let's say, Ihave a 10 to 15 year NFL career
, I will still be in my 30s.
So it's like you're still goingto be extremely young, but this
area in this thing that youpretty much devoted your life to
(13:26):
, for your whole life, is over,you know.
And then it's like you stillhave all of this life ahead, and
I think one of the things thata lot of people don't understand
, like one of the one of the thethe good examples of this, is
of Tom Brady right, tom Brady,the greatest quarterback of all
time, and he retired at 42 yearsold.
(13:48):
I that's still very young, 42years old, is still young and he
played football.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
He played football right.
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Yeah, Just checking just double checking, yeah, yeah
.
But you play football for aboutlike 23 years.
Sure, you know, he's still inhis 40s, early 40s.
So it was like you still have alot of life ahead after that.
You're still young.
So it's like people, a lot ofpeople, they come back and they
and they tell us about thesethings, and then it's like you
(14:19):
have a lot of influence as anathlete, no matter what sports
are in.
So with that influence, you'reable to, you know, go into rooms
that you might not havenecessarily been able to go in
Because you might not have hadall of the correct credentials.
However you're, you're anathlete.
So it was like if you're ableto use that to your advantage,
then you can be able to propelyourself in whatever area and
(14:41):
aspect that you want to be in.
You know, and that's what a lotof smart athletes I feel like
do you know?
It's like once you're, onceyou're in, you know a certain, a
certain level, you start to youknow like, let's say, you want
to do a business, or you want toget into modeling, or you want
to get into some of these otherthings.
It's like once you start tobranch out into those things,
(15:02):
it's like you're already soimmersed Once you're done
playing the sport, it's like youalready have the knowledge, the
experience and the connectionsand the people in order to, you
know, be able to make thetransition a little bit easier.
But you know, like thetransition is always going to be
the transition, it's alwaysgoing to be hard and it's always
(15:22):
going to be difficult,especially since it's something
that you've done your whole life.
But that's what.
That's pretty much whateverybody has told me.
So definitely it got instilledin me at a young age and I'm
able to implement it.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
That's fantastic.
You know, as I'm just sort ofmaking notes as you're talking,
I have a question I would havejust sort of test out.
I've never asked this questionbefore Again, you know, not your
sports professor here.
Is the art of football likelife and leadership?
The tackling that we've got todo, the, I think, this offense
(15:59):
defense, whatever that means infootball terms Is it?
Is it sort of like football?
Is it like life and leadership?
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Yes, and the.
The best way I can explain itis that and football is a team
sport right, you're as strong asyour weakest link and
Oftentimes that's really out ofyour control.
The best thing that you can doin football is your job.
So one thing that we always sayis do your 111, and all that
(16:32):
means is that there's 11 peopleon your side of the ball and
You're that one person.
So as long as you do your 111,then you're good.
You know, make sure that you doyour 111 first and then you
worry about everybody else.
And I think that that relates tolife as well, because there's
(16:53):
there's a lot of things that areout of your control.
You know you can do all of thethings that you need to do and
you know life is still gonnalife.
You know you still might notwin.
You still, you know you, youmight Catch the ball.
Right, you might catch the ball.
You might score touchdown.
However, the offense alignmenthe got a penalty on the play.
(17:14):
You did your job and scored,but now the touchdown gets
negated because there was apenalty from another player on
your side of the ball.
You know and you can relate thatto life and stuff as well, it's
like you can do all of thethings that you need to do in
order to get this job or inorder to, you know, get this
promotion, but the company goesbankrupt and now you're out of a
(17:38):
job.
It's like you did everythingthat you're supposed to do, but
somebody else didn't hold theirend of the bargain up and it's
like there's really nothing thatyou can do in your power To
change it, because it's out ofyour control.
So I do think that there's alot of life lessons in Football,
a lot when it comes to, like,injuries, when it comes to
losses, when it comes totraining.
Like it's just I, I, just I canrelate a lot of stuff to to
(18:03):
football.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
I see a book in the making, because now you know,
coming from the my sort ofleadership lens, I see it as
well that there's a lot ofsimilarities in terms of
leadership, and I'll just I tooka few minutes before our
Meeting today to just scan theinternet for Jaden Woodbay and I
think what was reallyinteresting is I just picked out
(18:26):
a few things in articles thatdescribe you strong work, ethic,
discipline, instinctual, greatpersonality, change of direction
skills, good balance, good zoneinstincts, active and unity,
solid family background, verywilling to stick his nose in it.
(18:46):
So now as I'm reading that justso the listeners know I was
referring to football skills,but I'm reading it from the
leadership lens and I'm thinkingto myself Now there's some
leadership qualities that Idon't think we always really
talk about, but they are soapplicable.
(19:09):
I mean I could just pull outGood zone instincts Wow, there's
one for leadership.
I mean you, you've got to havethat ability.
You know, active and communityChange of direction skills.
I mean those, those just screamStrategic leader to me, and so
that's that's where I was comingup with that question that I
asked earlier.
Speaker 1 (19:29):
Yeah, yeah, for sure, yeah, no, I I can Definitely
say that those go hand in hand.
They go hand in hand and inlife and in football.
And, like, I feel like one ofthe bit, one of the best things
about being a leader is, inorder for you to lead, you have
(19:50):
to be able to serve.
So, in order for me to get agroup of people to actually
believe in what I'm saying anddo as I do, I have to be able to
show that I'm willing to learnfrom them and willing to help
them and willing to be eye toeye with them.
And that's one thing that Idefinitely did in football and I
(20:14):
think that's part of the reasonwhy I was a two-year captain at
Boston College was because ofthat I was able to actually
connect with my teammates andhelp them out and be there for
them, not only on the field butoff the field.
I was always trying to do stuffto bring people together,
(20:35):
because I always know that ifyou have a good chemistry like
no matter what you'll be able toget through whatever situation.
Like even I have a perfectexample.
This is football terms.
I don't know if you'll be ableto get it, but I'm gonna try and
put it in layman's terms.
(20:55):
Oh, you're good.
One of my old teammates.
Me and him were pretty muchlike brothers.
We argued like brothers, wemade up like brothers, we did
everything.
We even lived across the streetfrom each other, but we were
playing.
I think we were playingVirginia Tech, and it was a
(21:16):
certain play that me and himboth knew were coming, and he
already knew what I was gonna do, which prompted him to do
something else.
And we ended up making a goodplay.
And I ended up making a goodplay because I knew like all
right, I know that he knows I'mgonna do this, so he's gonna
(21:36):
have my back just in casesomething bad happens.
And I ended up making a play.
But you saw that he was thereto make sure that I was good and
it's like that's chemistry.
We never talked about it.
We never did anything.
All we did was look at eachother and shook our head and did
what we had to do.
So I feel like that can tieinto something work related as
(21:59):
well.
If you have a team and you guyshave a strategy and you might
not be there, they might be likeall right, I know exactly what
Jayden wants.
I know he's not here, but Ithink that he would like this.
And then it's like once I seethe project, I'm like oh yeah,
it's perfect.
It's like things of that nature.
That's why I feel like itdefinitely connects.
That's fantastic.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
I absolutely agree with you and I see a book that
we can co-author in the future.
So anyone listening know youcannot take our idea.
So I saw you on TikTok.
I mean I enjoy my TikTok andI'm scrolling through and there
you pop up and you're in yourcar and you're having some
(22:44):
different food.
Tell me this is.
I absolutely caught myattention, but tell me about
what's going on there.
Speaker 1 (22:53):
Oh man, I just I mean , I love the cooking is
definitely something that I do,you know, like my pastime and I
love food as well.
So I follow a lot of peoplethat do food reviews.
So I was just like, man, youknow I can do a couple and I
(23:14):
pretty much did it.
I did a little bit.
You know I'm training thisstuff right now so I can't go
too crazy on the foods.
So you know I managed to do alittle bit.
But yeah, no, it's pretty fun,it's pretty cool.
I like eating, I like reviewing.
I reviewed to my, you know, tomy girlfriend and to my parents
and to my brother.
So I was like, might as well,you know, reviewed to the world.
Speaker 2 (23:36):
Well, this is the beauty of these sort of things,
right, and I think, quitefrankly, that's TikTok, but it
does connect us.
Tell us about what's next forChayton, what is next for you in
life?
Speaker 1 (23:52):
So I mean right now, you know, I'm pursuing my
football career.
Still, I'm selling lifeinsurance as well, so I've
managed to be able to do both ofthose things and that's pretty
much it.
That's pretty much where myfocus and where my mind and
stuff is at as of right now.
I'll definitely venture intoother things as well once I get
(24:15):
my football stuff back on track,but that's pretty much it as of
right now.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
So be pretty much open, entrepreneurial type
mindset yeah Right, justwhatever comes along, I'll
tackle it.
Speaker 1 (24:29):
Oh, that's another football one.
Speaker 2 (24:31):
I got that in there.
This is like three for me.
I'm totally amazed.
So on our podcast, we like toask this question and that is
what would you tell the sevenyear old who is just starting to
think about life and what I'mgonna do with it?
(24:52):
What would you tell that sevenyear old?
Speaker 1 (24:56):
I would tell that seven year old one to dream for
the stars.
You could really do whateveryou want.
And then they might notunderstand it at the moment, but
I feel like the more that theythink on it they will.
But don't let somebody else'slimitations limit you.
Just because somebody elsecan't do it doesn't mean that
(25:17):
you can't.
And that would be like thebiggest thing of advice, the
biggest advice I can giveanybody, because it's like, at
the end of the day, those areother people's thoughts and
limitations and beliefs andthey're not yours.
You don't have to adopt them.
And that would be.
Those would be the two things.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
That's fantastic.
Do you think in your earlyyears you sort of knew that you
adopted it, or is it somethingthat you had to kind of
ultimately work your way and getto?
Speaker 1 (25:52):
I feel like I definitely knew that.
However, the higher up you tryto go, the more people you have
to actually try to bring youdown.
You know, and it sounds cliche,but if you actually have people
that tell you like, oh, thatmight be a little too much, or I
don't know if that's possible,or you know you just got to
(26:17):
relax, like that's too much,you're gonna drive yourself
crazy.
You know like things, thingsthat those things of that nature
you know like and you hear thatso much.
You hear that so much.
But if you have, you know, asolid support system and that's
one thing I feel like everybodyshould have and I'm blessed to
have had it it's a strongsupport system to help navigate
(26:38):
you and to help get rid of thatBS.
You know, like when I told myprofessors, or when I told my
academic advisors at FloridaState that I was trying to
graduate in Two and a half years.
I wanted to graduate in two anda half.
I have one more class that Ineeded to take, but I would have
to come out of pocket and Ididn't want to do that.
(27:00):
I wanted to disease myscholarship.
So I did that.
But, um, but when I, when ITold them that I wanted to
graduate in two and a half.
You know they had some Concernand you know they were worried
if I was actually gonna be ableto do it.
And you know my dad pretty muchtold him, like, don't put your
beliefs on him.
(27:21):
He believes that he can do it.
Now give him the opportunity toactually do it, because you
don't know if he can.
And I like, if you don't givehim the opportunity, you'll
never know if you'll be able to.
And they gave me theopportunity and I did it.
Speaker 2 (27:33):
So well, that's amazing.
And three, three degrees infive years yeah, how impressive
a football career.
You know life insurance, realestate.
Look, all I can say is I, Iremember you.
I remember Some other studentathletes, football players in
particular In my classes.
(27:54):
I can't wait to catch up withthem as well, and I just know
that you're gonna continue to doreally inspiring and awesome
things and make a difference.
I mean, there's just you know,there's just no question.
I knew that actually, honestly,the first day I met you in
class.
So it has been an honor, apleasure to catch up with you
(28:16):
today.
Can't wait to hear studentreactions to this podcast, and
so thank you all very much and avery big shout out to Boston
College, northeastern University, swinburne University and, of
course, our audio engineer,jared Samarovski.
Thank you and have a great day.
Speaker 1 (29:04):
You.
Hello and welcome to the Leaderbrew podcast.
I am Dr Rick Arawood and I amyour host for today, and I
always begin my sessions withsaying that I'm so excited to
have our next guest on.
But, truthfully, I am soexcited to have our next guest
on, and that would be JadenWoodbay.
Jaden earned three degrees infive years across two schools,
(00:42):
amid a global pandemic.
And then there was this thingcalled football, which we can
talk a bit more about as well,and I had the pleasure of
teaching Jaden while he waspursuing his master's in sports
administration at BC in theWoods College of Advancing
Studies.
So it is my absolute pleasureto reconnect with you.
(01:03):
The idea of the Leaderbrewpodcast is for faculty to have
some catch-up conversations withformer students and see what
that transition has been likefrom the classroom to the real
world.
So it's just going to be afantastic conversation.
So welcome.
(01:24):
And I see you are in sunnyCalifornia because the sun is
shining and you have shorts on.
Meanwhile, I have sweaters andjackets in New Hampshire, so
welcome.
Speaker 1 (01:37):
Man, appreciate you for having me, Appreciate you
for having me.
For sure you know it's nice andsunny over here.
Speaker 2 (01:45):
Nice and sunny.
So let's go back to theclassroom and tell me about your
experiences in the classroomand what that was like, not only
being a student, but also anathlete.
Speaker 1 (02:00):
So I think that one of the common misconceptions of
student athletes is that youknow like they have a lot of
free time, but it's a veryrigorous schedule.
You know like when our coachour coach used to put up like
all of the hours that we wouldput in every day and it would be
(02:22):
similar to a 14-hour work day.
You know like we would wake uppractice is at six, so we have
to be there around like 5, 25,30 to eat breakfast and to warm
up and stuff and get ready.
You know, if you have treatment, if you have an injury, you got
to get there a little early, sothen you have time to actually
go to.
You know practice and performso from like six to maybe seven,
(02:45):
eight, 30, we're usuallytraining.
After that we'll have some typeof treatment or something that
we have to attend to after andthen usually we'll have a
mandatory lunch that we have toattend and then usually we'll
have classes or studying andthen maybe sometime throughout
the rest of the day we'll haveanother practice and then we'll
(03:09):
have another mandatory snack ora mandatory meal or mandatory
meetings that we have to go to,and then on top of that we still
have more schoolwork andsometimes we have late classes.
So a day can really be from,you know, 5.30 in the morning to
like 6.30, 7.00 at night, justdepending on how your schedule
is.
So it was definitely tough, butit wasn't.
(03:32):
It wasn't, it was doable, let'sput it that way.
It was definitely doable,especially, you know, my first.
My first three years I was atFlorida State.
That's where I got my undergradin international affairs.
I was working like a maniac,had probably 18 to 19 hours of
(03:54):
class or like however the unitswork.
I think it's like 19 units or18 units or hours, whichever one
of them, but you usually do 12max and I did 18 to 19 because I
wanted to graduate early.
So I did that for like my firsttwo and a half three years.
Then I got my degree and then Icame to BC and then I pretty
(04:17):
much did the same thing.
I completed the two-yearmaster's course in one year and
then I pretty much did thattwice to get two degrees.
So it was a lot of work, but itwas also worth it.
I feel like it was definitelyworth it and since I was already
so used to putting so much onmy schedule and doing so much in
(04:38):
a day.
It really wasn't that hard of atransition for me to do it for
my master's classes as well.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
And in terms of student athletes, you may recall
I would always say if I startto tell or make an analogy to
sports, someone should alwaysstop me, because not my world
and I would fumble the ball.
That's a good one, actually.
I should try and use thatexpression because I've heard
that one before.
But what I found veryimpressive about the students
(05:09):
who are on scholarships orwithin teams of various
universities, I admire that workethic, I admire that physical
stamina.
As you would reference, many ofthe Woods College classes are
in the evening hours and it'shard enough just for faculty to
(05:32):
sort of keep themselvesmotivated and going.
It's got to be even morechallenging from the student
perspective.
But my experiences with mystudent athletes was always so
incredibly positive.
Honestly, I don't think I andthis is an interesting that I'm
just now thinking this I don'tthink I have ever had a student
(05:53):
athlete send me an email to sayI'm going to be out because I'm
sick or I can't make it becauseI'm just sort of thinking that
out loud right now.
So one more reason to admirepeople who take on this track.
I mean, here you're talking toa faculty person who doesn't
(06:14):
exercise Right, so I admire youalready just for doing that.
That's fantastic.
So you know, as you werethinking about what's next, talk
to us about what was goingthrough your mind as you were
(06:34):
making that transition from youcould do it from your undergrad
to the masters or from themasters to sort of the real
world.
What was going on in your headBecause I think that's the
essence of this podcast is tohelp people that may have been,
say, student athletes ornon-student athletes.
(06:55):
How do you make that leap?
What can you take with you?
Speaker 1 (07:03):
So my whole college career was definitely it was
interesting.
You know I had a lot of ups anddowns, I went through a lot of
adversity, but the like, thefive years that I was in college
it definitely molded me intothe young man that I am today.
So this is from my perspective,because my perspective is a
(07:23):
little bit different.
So I always, in my mind, knew Iwas going to be a professional
athlete.
So when I went to Florida StateI was under the impression, you
know, I was going to do threeyears and then, you know, go to
the NFL.
But I got injured.
I had like a multi-legged kneeinjury.
(07:43):
That pretty much set me back alittle bit in terms of me
graduate, not graduating, but megoing to the NFL at you know,
such a young age.
But you know, one thing thatwas always stressed to me was,
you know, you always need tohave a backup plan or always
have you know another thinggoing on the side of football.
(08:06):
So I always made sure, you know, that I was doing all of the.
You know the lunches and themeeting, all of the people that
came for, you know, career dayand stuff and you know, grab
their cars, did some interviews,did some, some internships,
things of that nature.
So I always did those thingsand made sure that, you know, I
(08:27):
had something else to hold on to, such as a tray and things of
that nature.
So I did that and then that'swhy I ended up transferring to
BC.
You know, I just had a a prettymuch needed to going to a new
environment.
You know, I've been through somuch at Florida State mentally,
(08:48):
physically, emotionally that Ijust wanted a fresh start, a new
start.
So I ended up going to Bostonand I ended up doing the same
thing.
You know, I stayed another year.
Then I spoke with my coach.
He told me that it was best forme to come back another year.
Things didn't necessarily workout in the football aspect of us
(09:09):
having a good season and ithurt me to my detriment, and I
didn't get drafted.
However, I still am in the NFL,which was the ultimate goal.
So I'm still here.
So that's the blessing end ofit.
But the transitions andeverything that came along with
it you know there's a lot of upsand downs and a lot of things
(09:34):
that I didn't necessarily seecoming.
I didn't necessarily see me notgetting drafted and all that
means is that there's a certainamount of slots that NFL teams
have to call your name and pickyou to go to their team and then
, after those slots are allallotted, they have a free
agency period, which is abouttwo hours after the draft, and
(09:57):
then they can pick people fromthem too.
So then I got picked duringthat time.
But you know, I'm still, Istill, you know, achieve my goal
and everything.
But the transition is one thing,to talk about it and then, when
you're actually in it, it doesa little different, you know,
but I definitely feel like I wasprepared and I definitely feel
(10:21):
like, you know, I had to writemindset and I had to write just
everything in order to handlewhatever was thrown at me.
You know, I was still and likeI mentioned, you know having
those things on the side outsideof football.
You know, I have my lifeinsurance license, I'm licensed
in seven states and I have myreal estate license and I'm
licensed in Massachusetts andI'm gonna get my license out
(10:43):
here in California and thenwhatever NFL team I end up on
this year, I'm more than likelyget my life insurance and real
estate license for that statetoo.
Speaker 2 (10:53):
You know that sounds really fantastic because I think
you hit also at a key pointwhere you know when you're in it
it's a little bit morechallenging.
So, shall we say, you know,uncertainty, anxiety, all of
those things come along messingup motivation.
But you know, when you've had alittle bit of time to reflect
on it, it sounds like you knowyou got into that really good
(11:17):
position where you're at now.
I mean how fantastic you've got.
You know, more options.
I think oftentimes, particularlywith sports, athletes,
celebrities, et cetera, you knowwe only hear about, oh, this is
it, they've made it to the top,but we don't know about those
(11:37):
transition stories so much.
And I think one of the otherthings is, as you were talking
about it, I could hear in yourvoice this, just this immense
comfort with that transition.
You, even as you were talking,you were smiling, and you know
how many of us could reallysmile when we're having those
(11:59):
transitions.
That's usually not the timewe're smiling, but you know,
from a reflective perspective,it seems like that's one of the
things that I get from this, andI also love your strategy of
not putting all your eggs in onebasket, so to speak.
You know, and so where did youget that idea from?
(12:19):
How did you come about thisnotion of?
I mean, it's one thing, I guess, to have a particular goal, a
very specific goal, and this iswhat I'm going to do in life.
But sometimes, as you say, lifehappens, Sometimes we go in
different directions.
So how did you sort of know tohave alternate plans as well?
Speaker 1 (12:42):
So I definitely heard it from both of my parents and
I definitely heard it from allof the people that came and
spoke with us too Like the thingabout football and the thing
about professional sports is oneyou won't be able to play it
forever.
Like your body's going to giveup at some point.
You won't be able to run asfast, jump as high, hit as hard.
At some point you know it'sgoing to start to deteriorate.
(13:03):
So you want to be able to havesomething that's going to
sustain you.
And then also, too, it's likeyou could have a 20 year career.
Like, if I have a, let's say, Ihave a 10 to 15 year NFL career
, I will still be in my 30s.
So it's like you're still goingto be extremely young, but this
area in this thing that youpretty much devoted your life to
(13:26):
, for your whole life, is over,you know.
And then it's like you stillhave all of this life ahead, and
I think one of the things thata lot of people don't understand
, like one of the one of the thethe good examples of this, is
of Tom Brady right, tom Brady,the greatest quarterback of all
time, and he retired at 42 yearsold.
(13:48):
I that's still very young, 42years old, is still young and he
played football.
Speaker 2 (13:56):
He played football right.
Speaker 1 (13:58):
Yeah, Just checking just double checking, yeah, yeah
.
But you play football for aboutlike 23 years.
Sure, you know, he's still inhis 40s, early 40s.
So it was like you still have alot of life ahead after that.
You're still young.
So it's like people, a lot ofpeople, they come back and they
and they tell us about thesethings, and then it's like you
(14:19):
have a lot of influence as anathlete, no matter what sports
are in.
So with that influence, you'reable to, you know, go into rooms
that you might not havenecessarily been able to go in
Because you might not have hadall of the correct credentials.
However you're, you're anathlete.
So it was like if you're ableto use that to your advantage,
then you can be able to propelyourself in whatever area and
(14:41):
aspect that you want to be in.
You know, and that's what a lotof smart athletes I feel like
do you know?
It's like once you're, onceyou're in, you know a certain, a
certain level, you start to youknow like, let's say, you want
to do a business, or you want toget into modeling, or you want
to get into some of these otherthings.
It's like once you start tobranch out into those things,
(15:02):
it's like you're already soimmersed Once you're done
playing the sport, it's like youalready have the knowledge, the
experience and the connectionsand the people in order to, you
know, be able to make thetransition a little bit easier.
But you know, like thetransition is always going to be
the transition, it's alwaysgoing to be hard and it's always
(15:22):
going to be difficult,especially since it's something
that you've done your whole life.
But that's what.
That's pretty much whateverybody has told me.
So definitely it got instilledin me at a young age and I'm
able to implement it.
Speaker 2 (15:37):
That's fantastic.
You know, as I'm just sort ofmaking notes as you're talking,
I have a question I would havejust sort of test out.
I've never asked this questionbefore Again, you know, not your
sports professor here.
Is the art of football likelife and leadership?
The tackling that we've got todo, the, I think, this offense
(15:59):
defense, whatever that means infootball terms Is it?
Is it sort of like football?
Is it like life and leadership?
Speaker 1 (16:10):
Yes, and the.
The best way I can explain itis that and football is a team
sport right, you're as strong asyour weakest link and
Oftentimes that's really out ofyour control.
The best thing that you can doin football is your job.
So one thing that we always sayis do your 111, and all that
(16:32):
means is that there's 11 peopleon your side of the ball and
You're that one person.
So as long as you do your 111,then you're good.
You know, make sure that you doyour 111 first and then you
worry about everybody else.
And I think that that relates tolife as well, because there's
(16:53):
there's a lot of things that areout of your control.
You know you can do all of thethings that you need to do and
you know life is still gonnalife.
You know you still might notwin.
You still, you know you, youmight Catch the ball.
Right, you might catch the ball.
You might score touchdown.
However, the offense alignmenthe got a penalty on the play.
(17:14):
You did your job and scored,but now the touchdown gets
negated because there was apenalty from another player on
your side of the ball.
You know and you can relate thatto life and stuff as well, it's
like you can do all of thethings that you need to do in
order to get this job or inorder to, you know, get this
promotion, but the company goesbankrupt and now you're out of a
(17:38):
job.
It's like you did everythingthat you're supposed to do, but
somebody else didn't hold theirend of the bargain up and it's
like there's really nothing thatyou can do in your power To
change it, because it's out ofyour control.
So I do think that there's alot of life lessons in Football,
a lot when it comes to, like,injuries, when it comes to
losses, when it comes totraining.
Like it's just I, I, just I canrelate a lot of stuff to to
(18:03):
football.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
I see a book in the making, because now you know,
coming from the my sort ofleadership lens, I see it as
well that there's a lot ofsimilarities in terms of
leadership, and I'll just I tooka few minutes before our
Meeting today to just scan theinternet for Jaden Woodbay and I
think what was reallyinteresting is I just picked out
(18:26):
a few things in articles thatdescribe you strong work, ethic,
discipline, instinctual, greatpersonality, change of direction
skills, good balance, good zoneinstincts, active and unity,
solid family background, verywilling to stick his nose in it.
(18:46):
So now as I'm reading that justso the listeners know I was
referring to football skills,but I'm reading it from the
leadership lens and I'm thinkingto myself Now there's some
leadership qualities that Idon't think we always really
talk about, but they are soapplicable.
(19:09):
I mean I could just pull outGood zone instincts Wow, there's
one for leadership.
I mean you, you've got to havethat ability.
You know, active and communityChange of direction skills.
I mean those, those just screamStrategic leader to me, and so
that's that's where I was comingup with that question that I
asked earlier.
Speaker 1 (19:29):
Yeah, yeah, for sure, yeah, no, I I can Definitely
say that those go hand in hand.
They go hand in hand and inlife and in football.
And, like, I feel like one ofthe bit, one of the best things
about being a leader is, inorder for you to lead, you have
(19:50):
to be able to serve.
So, in order for me to get agroup of people to actually
believe in what I'm saying anddo as I do, I have to be able to
show that I'm willing to learnfrom them and willing to help
them and willing to be eye toeye with them.
And that's one thing that Idefinitely did in football and I
(20:14):
think that's part of the reasonwhy I was a two-year captain at
Boston College was because ofthat I was able to actually
connect with my teammates andhelp them out and be there for
them, not only on the field butoff the field.
I was always trying to do stuffto bring people together,
(20:35):
because I always know that ifyou have a good chemistry like
no matter what you'll be able toget through whatever situation.
Like even I have a perfectexample.
This is football terms.
I don't know if you'll be ableto get it, but I'm gonna try and
put it in layman's terms.
(20:55):
Oh, you're good.
One of my old teammates.
Me and him were pretty muchlike brothers.
We argued like brothers, wemade up like brothers, we did
everything.
We even lived across the streetfrom each other, but we were
playing.
I think we were playingVirginia Tech, and it was a
(21:16):
certain play that me and himboth knew were coming, and he
already knew what I was gonna do, which prompted him to do
something else.
And we ended up making a goodplay.
And I ended up making a goodplay because I knew like all
right, I know that he knows I'mgonna do this, so he's gonna
(21:36):
have my back just in casesomething bad happens.
And I ended up making a play.
But you saw that he was thereto make sure that I was good and
it's like that's chemistry.
We never talked about it.
We never did anything.
All we did was look at eachother and shook our head and did
what we had to do.
So I feel like that can tieinto something work related as
(21:59):
well.
If you have a team and you guyshave a strategy and you might
not be there, they might be likeall right, I know exactly what
Jayden wants.
I know he's not here, but Ithink that he would like this.
And then it's like once I seethe project, I'm like oh yeah,
it's perfect.
It's like things of that nature.
That's why I feel like itdefinitely connects.
That's fantastic.
Speaker 2 (22:21):
I absolutely agree with you and I see a book that
we can co-author in the future.
So anyone listening know youcannot take our idea.
So I saw you on TikTok.
I mean I enjoy my TikTok andI'm scrolling through and there
you pop up and you're in yourcar and you're having some
(22:44):
different food.
Tell me this is.
I absolutely caught myattention, but tell me about
what's going on there.
Speaker 1 (22:53):
Oh man, I just I mean , I love the cooking is
definitely something that I do,you know, like my pastime and I
love food as well.
So I follow a lot of peoplethat do food reviews.
So I was just like, man, youknow I can do a couple and I
(23:14):
pretty much did it.
I did a little bit.
You know I'm training thisstuff right now so I can't go
too crazy on the foods.
So you know I managed to do alittle bit.
But yeah, no, it's pretty fun,it's pretty cool.
I like eating, I like reviewing.
I reviewed to my, you know, tomy girlfriend and to my parents
and to my brother.
So I was like, might as well,you know, reviewed to the world.
Speaker 2 (23:36):
Well, this is the beauty of these sort of things,
right, and I think, quitefrankly, that's TikTok, but it
does connect us.
Tell us about what's next forChayton, what is next for you in
life?
Speaker 1 (23:52):
So I mean right now, you know, I'm pursuing my
football career.
Still, I'm selling lifeinsurance as well, so I've
managed to be able to do both ofthose things and that's pretty
much it.
That's pretty much where myfocus and where my mind and
stuff is at as of right now.
I'll definitely venture intoother things as well once I get
(24:15):
my football stuff back on track,but that's pretty much it as of
right now.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
So be pretty much open, entrepreneurial type
mindset yeah Right, justwhatever comes along, I'll
tackle it.
Speaker 1 (24:29):
Oh, that's another football one.
Speaker 2 (24:31):
I got that in there.
This is like three for me.
I'm totally amazed.
So on our podcast, we like toask this question and that is
what would you tell the sevenyear old who is just starting to
think about life and what I'mgonna do with it?
(24:52):
What would you tell that sevenyear old?
Speaker 1 (24:56):
I would tell that seven year old one to dream for
the stars.
You could really do whateveryou want.
And then they might notunderstand it at the moment, but
I feel like the more that theythink on it they will.
But don't let somebody else'slimitations limit you.
Just because somebody elsecan't do it doesn't mean that
(25:17):
you can't.
And that would be like thebiggest thing of advice, the
biggest advice I can giveanybody, because it's like, at
the end of the day, those areother people's thoughts and
limitations and beliefs andthey're not yours.
You don't have to adopt them.
And that would be.
Those would be the two things.
Speaker 2 (25:38):
That's fantastic.
Do you think in your earlyyears you sort of knew that you
adopted it, or is it somethingthat you had to kind of
ultimately work your way and getto?
Speaker 1 (25:52):
I feel like I definitely knew that.
However, the higher up you tryto go, the more people you have
to actually try to bring youdown.
You know, and it sounds cliche,but if you actually have people
that tell you like, oh, thatmight be a little too much, or I
don't know if that's possible,or you know you just got to
(26:17):
relax, like that's too much,you're gonna drive yourself
crazy.
You know like things, thingsthat those things of that nature
you know like and you hear thatso much.
You hear that so much.
But if you have, you know, asolid support system and that's
one thing I feel like everybodyshould have and I'm blessed to
have had it it's a strongsupport system to help navigate
(26:38):
you and to help get rid of thatBS.
You know, like when I told myprofessors, or when I told my
academic advisors at FloridaState that I was trying to
graduate in Two and a half years.
I wanted to graduate in two anda half.
I have one more class that Ineeded to take, but I would have
to come out of pocket and Ididn't want to do that.
(27:00):
I wanted to disease myscholarship.
So I did that.
But, um, but when I, when ITold them that I wanted to
graduate in two and a half.
You know they had some Concernand you know they were worried
if I was actually gonna be ableto do it.
And you know my dad pretty muchtold him, like, don't put your
beliefs on him.
(27:21):
He believes that he can do it.
Now give him the opportunity toactually do it, because you
don't know if he can.
And I like, if you don't givehim the opportunity, you'll
never know if you'll be able to.
And they gave me theopportunity and I did it.
Speaker 2 (27:33):
So well, that's amazing.
And three, three degrees infive years yeah, how impressive
a football career.
You know life insurance, realestate.
Look, all I can say is I, Iremember you.
I remember Some other studentathletes, football players in
particular In my classes.
(27:54):
I can't wait to catch up withthem as well, and I just know
that you're gonna continue to doreally inspiring and awesome
things and make a difference.
I mean, there's just you know,there's just no question.
I knew that actually, honestly,the first day I met you in
class.
So it has been an honor, apleasure to catch up with you
(28:16):
today.
Can't wait to hear studentreactions to this podcast, and
so thank you all very much and avery big shout out to Boston
College, northeastern University, swinburne University and, of
course, our audio engineer,jared Samarovski.
Thank you and have a great day.
Speaker 1 (29:04):
You.
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