HOW WE WON

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Shanette Buford-Brazzell's charitable work was built on a network of supportive mentors in the game

๐™’๐™๐™š๐™ฃ ๐™„ ๐™‚๐™ง๐™ค๐™ฌ ๐™๐™ฅ: ๐™Ž๐™ฅ๐™ค๐™ง๐™ฉ๐™จ ๐™„๐™ฃ๐™™๐™ช๐™จ๐™ฉ๐™ง๐™ฎ ๐™€๐™™๐™ž๐™ฉ๐™ž๐™ค๐™ฃ ๐—ถ๐˜€ ๐—ฎ ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ฒ๐—ฐ๐—ถ๐—ฎ๐—น ๐˜€๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ฒ๐˜€ ๐—ณ๐—ผ๐—ฟ ๐˜€๐˜๐˜‚๐—ฑ๐—ฒ๐—ป๐˜๐˜€ ๐—ฎ๐—ป๐—ฑ ๐—ฝ๐—ถ๐˜ƒ๐—ผ๐˜๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜€ ๐—ฒ๐˜…๐—ฝ๐—น๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ด ๐—ฐ๐—ฎ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐˜€ ๐—ถ๐—ป ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐˜€๐—ฝ๐—ผ๐—ฟ๐˜๐˜€ ๐—ถ๐—ป๐—ฑ๐˜‚๐˜€๐˜๐—ฟ๐˜†. ๐—๐—ผ๐—ถ๐—ป ๐˜๐—ต๐—ฒ ๐—ด๐—ฟ๐—ผ๐˜‚๐—ฝ ๐—ต๐—ฒ๐—ฟ๐—ฒ!

Sports has always been Shanette Buford-Brazzellโ€™s passion.

Growing up in Cleveland, sports were her social glue.

They taught her resilience.

Teamwork.

And the impact of community.

But breaking into the sports industry wasnโ€™t easy.

Her journey started with internships.

And side gigs.

Doing everything from event management to fundraising.

Without even knowing thatโ€™s what it was.

She worked under incredible mentors.

Ones who took her under their wing.

Showing her the ropes in ways she couldnโ€™t have imagined.

Those early lessons?

They became the foundation for everything sheโ€™s done since.

Now sheโ€™s built an impactful career in philanthropy.

And continues to work closely with athletes.

Donors.

And community organizations.

Sheโ€™s found her greatest purpose in supporting underrepresented communities.

Helping them see sports as a path toward growth and opportunity.

Along the way, these are four things sheโ€™s learned and wants to pass on to you:

1. Lean on mentors.

They can open doors you didnโ€™t know existed.

2. Reflect on your โ€œwhyโ€ regularly.

Itโ€™ll keep you grounded when things get tough.

3. Build your personal brand early.

Even if youโ€™re just starting out.

4. Stay connected to your roots.

And remember who youโ€™re doing it for.

Even now, the sports industry is evolving.

And it needs people like you who believe in its power to do good.

So Shanetteโ€™s final reminder for you:

Extend a hand to others as youโ€™re climbing the ladder.

***

Know a college student interested in a career in sports?

This post could spark the chance to work in this amazing field.

Thatโ€™s why sharing it with them is one of the best things you can do.

And thank you Shanette for participating in this series.

Your leadership, experience and ability to connect is so inspiring to us!

Follow her: LinkedIn