Crystal D. Gifford - The Money Shot: The Professional Athletes Financial Playbook to Make the Big Time Last a Lifetime

THE MONEY SHOT

In The Money Shot, author, Crystal Gifford empowers professional athletes with great financial decision-making tools, which are fostered through her wise counsel and perspectives often broader than your own. Dr. Gifford builds a strong foundation of awareness as she offers simple steps to avoid the missteps that frequently derail pro-athletes in being empowered in financial matters. Her contribution to pro-sport financial literacy is a great tool for any player coming into unique or unexpected levels of wealth. Gifford is gifted with the education, experience, vision and dedication for blessing many people. In a confusing world, one truth can be worth thousands of dollars; she shares the truth about true financial prosperity available to young pro-athletes who need the support and guidance necessary to make the best, long-term decisions about how to manage and grow a unique opportunity of amassing great wealth.

Loren Fogelman, Expert Sports Performance https://expertsportsperformance.com

The Money Shot is just what the sub-title says it is: The Professional Athletes Financial Playbook to Make the Big Time Last a Lifetime. It is a uniquely detailed guide for athletes that covers many layers of the life you will lead once you claim that Pro status. Dr. Gifford talks straight talk. She is sometimes sassy, sometimes funny, sometimes challenging, but always honest about difficult topics you will encounter in the process of managing your uniquely acquired extensive wealth. Things like the very business of your life, frightening topics such as taxes and insurance and estates. And at the core of it all lies the wisdom and direction to save your money and manage it for your future self. Although written for professional athletes, this book would benefit anyone highly focused on a sound financial future

A big question I had was why a book such as Crystals was necessary in our lives. The answer lies within as she introduces the book with a story of two dissimilar professional football players and how different their lives were after retirement from the game. Chronicles of every nature are rife with the stories of pro-players who find their rock-star lives in turmoil because too much money too soon was not within their ability to effectively manage. There are also myriad stories about other sports stars who made choices that best benefited their future, and allowed them to continue to live the luxury lifestyles they earned.

Gifford is visible, vulnerable and richly honest in a conversation with pro-players that will set her wisdom on fire in their hearts. Within the pages of The Money Shot, readers will come face to face with biggest challenge you will experience once claiming the Pro status. Finances. She is clear that now is the time to learn how to manage your money in a way that prepares you for the eventual transition from your game into the next chapter of life. She boldly awakens readers to the reality that making it to the big leagues takes a lot of discipline and brings financial responsibility as well. Dont put it off one more day! Read this book and discover how to make the most of the unique wealth your career can provide.

T. R. Stearns, EdS, Retired Superintendent of Schools

THE

MONEY

SHOT

The Professional Athletes Financial Playbook to Make the Big Time Last a Lifetime

DR. CRYSTAL D. GIFFORD, CFP

New York

THE MONEY SHOT

The Professional Athletes Financial Playbook to Make the Big Time Last a Lifetime

2016 DR. CRYSTAL D. GIFFORD , CFP.

All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any meanselectronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, scanning, or otherexcept for brief quotations in critical reviews or articles, without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Published in New York, New York, by Morgan James Publishing. Morgan James and The Entrepreneurial Publisher are trademarks of Morgan James, LLC. www.MorganJamesPublishing.com

The Morgan James Speakers Group can bring authors to your live event. For more information or to book an event visit The Morgan James Speakers Group at www.TheMorganJamesSpeakersGroup.com.

In an effort to support local communities and raise awareness and funds, Morgan James Publishing donates a percentage of all book sales for the life of each book to Habitat for Humanity Peninsula and Greater Williamsburg.

DEDICATION

THIS BOOK IS dedicated to all of my Finance and Economics students at Central State University. You taught me how much my work is needed and set the foundation for me to serve athletes in the way I do today. I grew up with you. I will never forget you.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

FOREWORD

BELIEVE IN THE beauty and power of your dream, but make sure to have a back-up planyes, a Plan B! This is a cornerstone of my career, and one which I believe is noted throughout Crystals message to you in The Money Shot. Before landing my dream job, kicking for the Kansas City Chiefs, I was cut eleven times by eight teams. I never knew for sure I would ever break through as an NFL kicker, so I decided my back up plan was to focus on my education, attending Dartmouth, working as a legislative aide for Senator John Chafee of Rhode Island on environmental issues, and Senator Bob Packwood on Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation CommitteeAviation Safety. My Plan B was working hard and also listening to my gut. Crystal writes in her book about taking the time to do trial runs of the other things in life you think you would enjoy: the great lesson is that learning what is NOT right for you is just as important, and you only can find that out by taking risks and committing with all your heart, because the lesson of whether its right or wrong is clear only when you throw all of your best into something.

Crystal also encourages readers to find others whom you can trust to pave the way to make the best financial decisions in your life. Find your mentors. Surround yourself with people that bring out your best, and for whom you do the same. Although he was not my own source for financial decisions, I found a mentor in my next-door neighbor, who just happened to be Supreme Court Justice, Byron Whizzer White. Justice White had led the NFL in rushing twice, and had a remarkable perspective on balance in life. He influenced many decisions I madeby his example as much as his words. He was a man of few words, but everything was about focus, passion, and serving a higher purpose. I was disconcerted by being cut so many times, and remember asking his advice. He said,