Jonathan Ray Scott - The Winning Playbook: Strategies For Life On And Off The Field

To my amazing wife of thirty-two years, Miyuki: Thank you for believing in me and allowing me to pursue my dreams over the years of ups and downs. You are amazing, and I would not be who I am without you.

To my son, Kenny: Since the day you were born, you stole my heart. I am so proud of you and all that youre becoming.

To my mother: Thank you for all the encouragement and belief you have always had in me.

To my father: Dad, I love you and miss you, but I know you are smiling down on us.

Rob

To Ray and Louise Scott: You have given me an infinite amount of love and support by challenging me to make my best better. You have been paramount in forging my insurmountable perseverance during my purposeful journey. For molding and showing me the greatness within myself, I say thank you.

Jonathan

Preface

Why are we writing this book?

IN ROBS WORDS

As a former U.S. Marine and a church minister for some years now, I hate injustice and I love helping people. Over thirteen years ago, I entered the financial industrynot to provide financial services, but to find a solution to widespread issues concerning money. Most people are three flat tires away from bankruptcy.

I met a couple of younger gentlemen who provided a basic financial educationthe kind that isnt taught in schools, but everyone needs. These men helped people understand how money works, and they empowered individuals to take control of their own financial success. With the solutions these men provided, people could stop struggling to make ends meet and quit living from paycheck to paycheck. They didnt have to go broke buying a home, and they didnt have to choose between paying the heating bill or putting food on the table.

Their approach showed me a way to make a difference. I could combine their financial secrets with strategies used by the wealthy and teach that information to the masses.

Over the next few years, the company I worked with grew throughout the U.S. by helping not only ordinary individuals, but also business owners, doctors, and dentistsregardless of whether or not they had much money at their disposal. From there, we created FFC Capital Ventures, a company that provides wealth empowerment , not just wealth management .

So what is wealth empowerment? Everything Ive been talking about. It gives individuals control over their financial decisions by teaching them how money works. Most people dont ask enough questions about money. If they give someone their hard-earned cash without asking questions, they probably wont understand what the recipients are going to do with itor worse, they may not bother checking on it. They could lose everything. Knowing how money works means theyll know the right questions to ask. When they ask the right questions, no one can take advantage of them.

In 2017, I witnessed another financial injustice, this time within the world of professional sports in Texas. Some of the guys who were actively playing in the National Football Leaguethe NFLhad to work in the off-season because their paychecks ran out. They needed money.

Considering the apparently large paychecks they received, how was that even possible?

Unfortunately, its extremely common. Like too many other people, professional athletes dont always understand such things as pay structure and taxes. They dont fully realize that the limited number of paychecks theyll receive over their career will only go so far. They dont know how to keep their money, how to save it, or where to put it. They spend as though theyll continually receive a paycheck, which isnt reality.

The fact of the matter is, most schools dont offer financial education, so most people grow up without understanding money. But when they get out of school, its all about the money. Understanding how financial systems work is key to living your best life because money is the energy or the mode by which the world operates.

On top of money considerations, professional athletes face a decided lack of education about preparing for life outside of sports. That leads to so many post-career issues including loss of identity and purpose. How do you transition from sports to business? Who are you now that you dont play anymore? These and many other concerns are not addressed, but they need to be, and theyre important considerations for anyone else who might face a mid-life career change.

After meeting current and former professional athletes, FFC Capital Ventures developed the Sports Division to bring empowerment to the playing field. Through the course of its development, I met an awesome young gentleman, Jonathan Scott, who had played football on the National Championship Team with the University of Texas. He was a ten-year NFL veteran and a Pro Bowler who had played in several Super Bowls. Unlike some footballers, he quit on his own terms, and he wasnt broke when he stopped playinga fact he credits to the financial insight gained from his father, a former football pro who had played with Joe Namath.

Although Jonathans father had taught him a lot, he realized that the additional information and strategies I shared with him made a big difference. He also realized that he would have put them to even better use if hed known about them much earlier, before hed left college. Jonathan was excited about what we were doing together. He wanted to be part of the movement bringing change and empowerment to future, current, and former professional athletes, so he took an equity ownership role in the company.

Out of our experience working together, we decided to write The Winning Playbook . Although it originally targeted professional athletes, we quickly realized the contents will give an advantage to all players in the game of life. This book isnt just about sports or money. Its about planning ahead and making good decisions for living the kind of life you want to livewhether youre on the field or off. It will help future high school and college graduates, athletes, and their parents navigate life.

We provide education and numerous tools to help you thrive financially, such as strategies to pay lower taxes, make career transitions, select an agent or other career representative, and how to decide who should be on your business team. As stated before, the most important thing we hope to achieve with this book is to offer wealth empowerment, not simply wealth management. You may have more questions when youre finished reading, but youll have a solid enough background to know where to begin looking.

If youre currently playing professional sports, we can help you shift from paying staggering taxes to keeping a greater percentage of your pay, and well show you what to do with your money. Well also show you how to adjust your thinking and behavior so that youre not only making money in the off-season, but also transitioning out of sports and into the business world when your career as a professional athlete draws to a close. Its crucial to apply your skill set to business so that youre not left working for somebody else or spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on business ideas that go nowhere. We offer the tools to make that possible.

IN JONATHANS WORDS

Rob and I live by the Five Fs: faith, family, finance, fitness, and fun. Theyre all fundamental to the reason Im writing this book. I want to empower future and current athletes to live that way. I want them to learn how to control their finances and understand the financial system. I want to show them how to navigate the universe of professional sports.