Compete Every Day with Jake Thompson | A Show for Driven Leaders

Everyone has excuses - but Competitors bury theirs and refuse to let them impact their pursuits. You can listen to your excuses, or you can bury them. What will you decide?

Life is never a straight path. It’s full of twists and turns, and challenges and opportunities that arise when we least expect them. This week we hear from Johnny Quinn, who transitioned to Olympic bobsledding after an injury and the loss of a pro football contract. Quinn has faced adversity in his own life time and time again and says the way he’s made it through is by learning the importance of...

This session is all about consistency - and why that is one of the biggest keys to eventually succeeding. How to be more consistent, why being consistent matters, and what separates the greats.

No matter how difficult things have been in the past, there’s always a way to turn it around. That’s something this week’s guest knows all too well. Kristi Huizenga is the head women’s soccer coach at the University of Vermont. When she came on board as the youngest coach to ever lead the team, she managed to take a group of underdogs and turn them into a competitive force to be reckoned with. Thi...

No one has time for anything these days, including success. We want it all and we want it now.  Too often we focus on the tip of the iceberg above water (glory) instead of the gigantic block of ice underneath the water (grind). But still you want to know the secret to overnight success? How can you crush your goals, build your business, and win your sport  today ? The magic formula...

It’s not about them, it’s about you. At the end of the day, competition boils down to an internal drive to do your best. This week, we hear from LeRoy Gardner III, head coach of the University of the Ozarks wrestling team. He shares tips on staying focused and accountability, keeping yourself prepared for competition, and finding the strength within you to do your best. It can be easy to get caugh...

Does it even matter if you're a Competitor? It does. Every single day you make that choice. In this Speed Work mini-episode, Jake explores why he and his team are so passionate about competition - and the impact it makes not only on our lives, but on those around us. Learn what it means to be a Competitor - and why it matters that you make the choice to compete every day.

Sometimes, your best might not be good enough to win, so it’s important to learn from failures and try again. Akeem Leviston is a football coach at Whitehouse High School in Whitehouse, Texas. This week, we hear from him about the foundations of youth sports, what it takes to retain young players as a coach, and the process of achieving success through competition over time.

What do you see? Do you look at that boulder before you as an adversity which has you beat? Or is it an opportunity to inspire others? Jake challenges your perspective in this week's mini-episode. Competitors don't see challenges like everyone else, and Jake dives into why. And how you can make sure you refocus your perspective. Finish your week stronger than you started with SPEED WORK!

Everyone has faced challenges and rejections and disappointments to get where they are today. Failure is just as much a component of success as hard work. Matthew Del Negro is an actor (“The Sopranos,” “Scandal,” “Wind River”) and host of the 10,000 “No”s Podcast. This week, he shares tips on overcoming adversity, finding strength in failure, and picking yourself up again if you fall. 

Our brand new mini-episode series starts today - with a focus on what you need to QUIT in order to be a Competitor. What holds most people back Why a better time isn't always that Why feelings don't dictate being ready Quick fire Friday session to fire you UP!

Everyone deserves an opportunity to try, regardless of gender, socioeconomic background or any other factor. That’s a lesson for both sports and life from former NFL quarterback and MLB pitcher and current coach of coaches, Richard Bartel. This week, we Bartel shares ideas for improving youth access to sports and building better coaches for young players.

Texas Rangers MLB Strength & Conditioning Coach Jose Vazquez teaches the importance of partnership and support in building healthy, cohesive, and competitive teams through stories from his time working in major league baseball. Vazquez shares tips for how to better yourself while keeping other people’s needs in mind. Competition is vital for teams, but learning to compete in a way that doesn’t...

Martin J. Reader is a former Olympic beach volleyball player turned entrepreneur and motivational trainer. This week, we hear from him about transitioning off the sand and building a personal philosophy in order to create authenticity in his everyday life. He shares tips about learning to love the process and staying focused on the big picture, rather than getting bogged down by the bumps along th...

Why do you think you can’t do something? Is it because you really can’t do it? Because someone said you couldn’t? Or is it because you’re afraid of failure, so you just haven’t tried to do it? Hunter Clark is the director of operations and programs for the Adaptive Training Foundation , a non-profit that provides training to people with physical disabilities to transform their lives. This week, he...

The mental side of competition is just as tough—if not tougher—than the physical side. Dr. Lindsey Mitchell is a sports performance psychologist and clinical therapist who has worked with everyone from athletes to veterans to middle school students. This week, she shares tips on how to help build up healthy and successful kids, define personal goals, and overcome adversity to be a better competito...

If you want to learn how to harness the power of competition to reveal your greatest self, you’ve come to the right place! Every week, we’ll hear from athletes, psychologists, entrepreneurs, and everyday competitors about the power of competition both on and off the field. Jake Thompson, the Chief Encouragement Officer at Compete Every Day, is back in full force, bringing you exciting interviews e...

A Goal Getter is identified by their actions. Competitors are Goal Getters because they do more than talk about what they want to do - they compete every day to get it. Want to be a Goal Getter too? You're in the right place. This episode dives into what it means to be a competing GOAL Getter and how you can apply four easy steps - every day - in your life for your goal.

In this episode, our founder Jake Thompson explores the formula for success - and why our greatest accomplishments aren't achieved overnight. We wouldn't want them to anyway. Learn the  Grit  formula for success and what factor (hint: you 100% control it) matters more than talent. Learn why __________ is your greatest key factor to success.

An athlete never wants to walk off the playing field at the end of a game - much less a career - knowing they still have more in the tank. Each wants to leave spent - having given everything they have in pursuit of everything they want. Head held high, they know they've done everything. Full effort. Full victory. And no matter what the scoreboard reads, they know they went out swinging hard. Compe...

Often we feed so much negativity into an adversity, that we blow it entirely out of proportion. This is looking at the big picture, which keeps you honest and focused on the path ahead. Marcus Aurelius Anderson truly believes that adversity is a gift, because it gives you that extra insight to reach those depths of strength that we all possess.

Priscilla Tallman is a former All-America volleyball player from the University of Georgia, and played on the US National team for two tours. She has coached at the club and collegiate level. She is also a freelance sports writer, a contributor to Volleyball Magazine, a speaker, and motivator. In this episode, Jake dives into Priscilla’s athletic journey, her passion about coaching, and...

Aaron Keith Hawkins is the host of Unbreakable Success podcast, a personal performance, and relationship coach who works empathetically and strategically to guide his clients toward transformational changes in their personal lives, careers, and marriages.   Aaron has spent over 2 decades as a public servant. Currently a Police Captain, he's still serving his New Jersey community as...

Megan Benzik is CrossFit Games Regional Athlete and CrossFit trainer. Meg's story is of the true power of perseverance. After being diagnosed with lupus at the age of 12, she has continued to fight the autoimmune disease to achieve her athletic goals. Living her fitness passion, Meg is using her diagnosis as a way to inspire her clients to reach for more. Meg is inspiring, driven and is a testimon...

In this episode, I’m here to motivate you to fight. Fight for the life of your dreams. Fight for your goals. Fight for your future. Realize three things: your story matters, you are in charge of writing it and that some of our greatest blessings can be packaged in unappealing boxes. I encourage you to read A Million Miles In A Thousand Years by Donald Miller, a book that inspired me to grab the pe...