Athlete CEO #003: Aaron Klusman, Talks Career, Investing, And Upcoming Market Trends

In this episode, my good friend and former teammate, Aaron Klusman, talks career, investing, and upcoming market trends.

After becoming an All-American as a Freshmen at ASU, Aaron Klusman went on to play for the Los Angeles Dodgers organization.

Following a successful career as an athlete, Aaron has turned his attention to investing in sectors like food and beverage, retail, private education, real estate, and most recently – film.

Aaron has a sharp eye for current and upcoming trends that will shape the way our society functions and performs over the coming years.

Aaron is a Dad, investor, and pursuer of things he loves.

A couple things to listen for in this episode:

• Aaron’s love for business and branding (and experiences that have shaped his career)

• How one of Aaron’s first businesses sparked while in college

• The hurdles in the retail business that Aaron overcame (and his advice from experience in his clothing line)

• What Aaron’s transition from minor league baseball player to entrepreneur taught him about life

• A simple mindset that you can apply to business that help you live your dream lifestyle

• What to do if you’re invested in the real estate market and it crashes

• Aaron’s no-nonsense advice to athletes who haven’t invested (and how to get started)

• Why being second-to-market can be a wise strategy if you’re investing in new companies

• The strategy Aaron learned from Warren Buffet for finding companies to confidently invest in

• What Starbucks, Instagram, and other big-name companies are trying to figure out (that you should too)

• How Aaron would treat his career while he’s playing a sport, so that he’s seen as an attractive investor

• How to stay true to yourself while growing your career and creating your legacy

• What “big loss” Aaron experienced in his investment career (that you can learn from so that you don’t bleed cash)

• What you can learn from the Starbucks business model when it comes to investing

• What Aaron see’s happening in the education space in the coming years (and how it affects the workforce for coming generations)

• The questions you should ask yourself daily if you want to be a successful athlete, business person, or family man/woman

• How Aaron continues his self-development

• Why validation can lead you astray in your business, family, and career

Quotes

• “The environment is worth more than the paycheck” – Aaron Klusman

• “The things that are the sexiest tend to be things you want to invest in that you shouldn’t” – Aaron Klusman

• “The creation of content is the new frontier.” – Aaron Klusman

• “Starting to look at yourself as a brand is a key step.” – Aaron Klusman

• “Each thing that you put your name into further defines your brand.” – Aaron Klusman

• “Fail cheap. Fail fast. Fail often.” – Aaron Klusman

• “Don’t go all in and burn through a career’s worth of cash.” – Aaron Klusman

• “Sometimes you just can’t learn it enough until you invest in it.” – Aaron Klusman

• “Everyone is in a real-time narrative. No one is a one-time failure.” – Aaron Klusman

• “Failure is not final.” – Aaron Klusman

• “You have to put yourself in positions to make small bets and miss a little bit…” – Aaron Klusman

• “If you don’t invest in yourself, you’re a depreciating asset” – Aaron Klusman

• “You can be the best in your space and the World forgets about you.” – Aaron Klusman

• “The best investment is in yourself.” – Warren Buffett “Think of failures as investments of learning.” – Aaron Klusman

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