By Aoife Barry
The world of sports boasts many successful stars who have transitioned into the business world, such as Venus and Serena Williams, Magic Johnson, and George Foreman.
These individuals recognized the need to have a career plan in place due to the fact that elite sports careers can end at a young age.
What links all of them is the idea that the skills honed as athletes are immensely beneficial in a professional setting.
There are numerous women in leadership positions at major sports and athletic companies such as Whoop, Burton, Puma, and Patagonia, as reported on Ispo.
Additonally, a study by EY and espnW shows that between 2013 and 2016, 94 per cent of women executives had a background in sports, and 61 per cent believe that playing sports positively contributed to their career success and advancement, as per EY and espnW.
Moreover, Deloitte’s new study reveals that women who played competitive sports in their youth are more likely to be in leadership or management roles.
The skills learned through sports have proved to be crucial for success in professional careers, backed by 85 percent of surveyed women who played sports reporting that the skills they developed were essential, according to Deloitte’s study.
Skills learned from the sports field are diverse and benefit the workplace in a variety of ways.
Competition and communication
Skills learned while participating in sports, whether as part of a team or individually, include navigating personalities, effective communication, and understanding that participation is not solely about personal achievement, but rather about contributing to the team as a whole.
Sports also teach about resilience and the confidence to persevere, even through losses, which can translate directly to the workplace.
Sports field to boardroom
Women’s visibility in sports has seen significant improvement globally in the past decade, inspiring young girls and women to get involved themselves, according to Nielsen’s findings.
For women who have participated in sports, this has a direct impact on achieving gender balance within the sports industry.
In fact, showcasing sports experience on a CV can demonstrate essential skills and qualities such as communication, goal-setting, teamwork, and resilience to potential employers.
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