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we would have to leave the city that we love, championship, I had to talk about public
we’d pretty much, practically have no insur- speaking at first. That was a big mistake.
ance to speak of, and have zero dollars to I wasn’t happy about that but that was the
our name, what you say?” And Chelsea said, business side of things. Because I was the
“Yeah, let’s do it.” So we moved to Texas and world champion, people wanted to know
got on our feet. About six months later, we about public speaking.
did that 50-city tour, and that really helped So the biggest thing that I’ve learned was
us get started professionally. you’ve got to speak about what you want.
That transitional period was very hard to
How did winning the championship break because people saw me as training on
change your life? public speaking.
Its been a journey, and it’s not over yet. Well that’s not what I do anymore.
It’s starting in so many ways. So when I won, In getting there and learning that, and
I remember looking at Chelsea and hugging
her. I remember the crowd going wild. But
I also remember the silence of looking at
Chelsea, and I remember hearing my mom I remember my
scream. I remember my dad coming up to
me and the first thing he said was, “that was dad coming up to
the best $60 I’ve ever spent.”
I think the biggest change was being me and, the first
entrepreneurial. So I was working for
Nike—I was working for Special Olympics—I thing he said was,
was working for all these people, and then
all of a sudden (and pretty fast), I went “that was the best
from working, to nonprofit, to speaking
professionally and being entrepreneurial. $60 I’ve ever spent.”
Now Chelsea and I speak about one hundred
times a year, on every continent in the world,
and do this professionally.
It’s changed our life immensely, crazily. transitioning through that, was probably
Again, I didn’t know this was a job. So learning the hardest part. I remember when I called
the business side of things, the people I’ve Randy and told him I won. He’d watched it
met, the places that I’ve gone, that I would live. He said, “Get ready for the real work to
have never gone to before. begin.” And I was like, “What! I have literally
Antarctica. You know this time last year been working my a-- off.” Because people
I was in Antarctica. China, Australia. So how didn’t realize how much time and energy that
has it changed my life? The people that Chelsea and I put in to this contest. I mean we
I’ve met that I would have never met. The were up at 5am and training till 8am, eating
places I have gone to that I never would have breakfast, going to work, then training at the
gone to. The lessons that I’ve learned that I Special Olympics warehouse from 5pm to
never would have learned. The pure—what midnight, and then going to give speeches
I get to do for a living! People think I’m a all around the District. It was a lot of work.
workaholic—I haven’t worked in four years!
My friends say, “Ryan is a crazy workaholic.” So just to explore that a little bit further
I can tell you for a fact that I haven’t worked then what are you doing now is it all leader-
in four years. ship training?
My main message is going from A to B—
When you quit your day job and don’t be “a” leader, be “the” leader, and how
launched your business as a professional you transition from that. That is 90% of my
speaking coach, were there times when you business, and the way of how you go from
questioned your decision? A to B is strategic communication. So my
Well I felt, because I’d won the world
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