ISSUE 016: D.C. United's Steve Birnbaum opens up

What in the world is a reverse mentorship?

Author

Nolan from Pathway ⚽️
February 21, 2024

IN THIS ISSUE

  • 📣 Introduction: An 11-year MLS vet

  • 👨‍🎓 Soccer Thought Leaders: D.C. United’s Steve Birnbaum opens up

  •  Pathway Mentorship: A special roundtable discussion

  • ⚽️ Soccer Jobs: New + interesting jobs

  • 🩷 Featured Job: Inter Miami is hiring

  • 🫵 Do This Now: Institute a ‘reverse mentorship’

INTRODUCTION

Hello, Pathwayers! 👋

As Major League Soccer kicks off its new season tonight (Lionel Messi and Inter Miami take on Real Salt Lake at 8 PM ET), we’re sharing our first-ever conversation with an active pro player.

For today’s newsletter, we spoke to longtime D.C. United defensive stalwart and team captain, Steve Birnbaum.

The California native is entering his 11th MLS season - all of which have been played in the Nation’s Capital. At 33-years old, Steve understands he’s closer to the end of his career than the beginning and has begun thinking about what comes after his time on the field has come to an end.

In many ways, he’s looking at a career pivot - like many of you are. We hope you’ll find value in the intentionality with which Steve is considering his next step.

Let us know what you think of today’s issue - drop us a line to share your feedback at [email protected]. We reply to every email!

-Nolan Sheldon, Co-Founder & Chief Experience Officer

SOCCER THOUGHT LEADER: D.C. UNITED CAPTAIN STEVE BIRNBAUM

During my time as an assistant coach at D.C. United, I was fortunate to work closely with one of the true professionals in MLS - Steve Birnbaum. When I first started in the role, I was immediately struck by Steve’s commitment to his craft and the positive impact that he had on those around him - both MLS veterans and young homegrowns. His training habits, preparation, and sheer competitiveness drove him, his teammates, and our staff on a daily basis.

Steve is absolutely one of the good ones. His reputation is true to who he is - humble, open, honest, and truly passionate about his profession.

As you’ll see in our interview, we cover different periods throughout Steve’s career arch, but my favorite portion is what he has to say about how he is laying the groundwork for his second career - his post-playing career - in his pursuit to become a sporting director within MLS.

Unquestionably, Steve will be successful in whatever he takes on next - and our sport will be better off with him staying in it and continuing to lead.

-Nolan Sheldon, Co-Founder & Chief Experience Officer

Questions and answers have been lightly edited for length and clarity (and any emphasis below is ours).

PATHWAY: Share your soccer origin story - what part did sports play in your childhood and when did you decide to pursue a career as a pro soccer player?

STEVE: I grew up in Orange County, California and played every sport imaginable growing up. I'm big believer in playing as many sports as possible just so that you become well-rounded and can figure out what you want to do. I really took to soccer because I could contribute on both sides of the ball and could run around for long periods of time – I felt like I could have a say in the game. Then in high school, I started really getting into it. During my freshman year at Cal I got called into a U-18 youth national team camp, made the U-20s and realized so many of the players in the camp were already professional players - and from that moment I realized I could hang with these guys. I can play. I'm going to commit to soccer. That was my only sport from then on out.

I’m a big believer in the benefits of going to college - I was a late bloomer. I was 6’ 2’’ and a 140 pounds – I needed time to develop physically. I started as a defensive midfielder, but my college coach [Kevin Grimes] moved me to center back because of my frame, my ability to win balls in the air, and I had tackling capabilities. He is a center back specialist and that's what he prides himself on. So I learned 1-v-1 defending techniques, I learned the joy of defending, and tackling the ball away from attackers. I was more of a leader from the back, so it suited me.

PATHWAY: You’ve captained D.C. United for the better part of the past five seasons. In your experience, what does authentic and effective leadership look like?

STEVE: In my experience, authentic leadership is not asking someone on the team to do something that you're not willing to do yourself. And I feel like that's my biggest thing is leading by example. It doesn't matter what it is - I'm not the most vocal, I'm not the best with my words, but it’s about my play. I'm going to be one of the hardest workers out there and that's where I really gain respect from my teammates. The biggest thing is that they can rely on me.

PATHWAY: At what age did you develop leadership qualities and this recognition that you had to lead by example?

STEVE: Early. I've been a captain on every team I've ever played on. Since I was 10 until now, I've been a captain - whether it be basketball, lacrosse, volleyball, or soccer. I'm confident in my abilities. I believe I’ve instilled a habit of hard work and I think that's what gains respect from most people. I'm going to outwork you. I'm going to prepare and then on the game day you can just let it fly.

PATHWAY: What is the most important quality to sustain a high-performance career?

STEVE: I think preparation - preparation is huge. As a player, knowing and studying your opponent and preparing all week. And then it is the fundamentals. That's huge for me. I think practicing your strengths and knowing your weaknesses is extremely important. I know I'm not the fastest, so my positioning and my angles must be on point so that I can defend the right way - I know I'm one of the best in the air, so I practice that. But that's my fundamentals. I'll work on five yard passes every day before a game. It doesn't matter. I've done it since I was in college, so for 15 years, the day before a game, I'm going to work on the simple passes that I must make every game because as a center back you have to, you're passing completion percentage should almost always be 100%.

PATHWAY: You’ve played for and worked alongside high level coaches throughout your career. What qualities do the very best of them possess?

STEVE: A coach that instills confidence in you. I think any coach that can instill confidence will allow you to play your best no matter what and your best brings the best out of everyone else. When I'm playing my best, not only am I in a flow of playing, but I'm also at the same time able to lead and organize around me and that in essence will make everyone play better.

I also think it's coaches that have a defined role for each player and everyone knowing their role and doing their job. It’s about the basics. Everyone knowing their role, being able to perform their job at a high level and then from there you can take on more.

PATHWAY: One of the most challenging periods of a player’s career is what happens after retirement. As you enter the final chapters of your on-field career, what do you start to put in place now to prepare for that time?

STEVE: I've given this a lot of thought. First is knowing the path you want to take. I have a path. I want to become a sporting director. That’s a clear path for me. I also want to fully understand and be involved in the business side of soccer. I'm competitive by nature and I believe that the next great thing for me to do would be to build a team – competing at that level gets my competitive juices flowing and brings the best out of me. I'm currently working on getting my MBA at Indiana University and I hope to apply that knowledge as a sporting director where I can build a team and have a say in the competitive outcome on the field. 

PATHWAY: When one makes a big jump in their career or does a career pivot, there's very likely going to be a skill, knowledge, and/or experience gap. How do you approach filling that gap?

STEVE: The challenge for me now is to figure out how I get where I want to be. So, I'm using this time now to build those connections, learn from people who've already done it, and made that transition themselves. I need to fully understand the industry. Now, it’s speaking with general managers and sporting directors around the league - I've made those calls and I'm willing to learn.

It’s about getting mentors so I can find my niche, start to see where I can best fit into the equation and define what value I can bring to a team. I think of it as identifying a pool of mentors - learning from people that I respect and who’ve done the job at a high level. I can learn from all different paths - those that started as scouts, or as coaches, or as attorneys, or former players that are now sporting directors or general managers. 

For example, I went over to Swansea and shadowed their sporting director, Paul Watson. It was awesome – unbelievable to learn from his experience - he brought Luton Town up from three tiers down and into the Premier League and now he is applying that approach at Swansea. It’s unbelievable what he does. It's experiences like that. My goal is to keep learning the fundamentals of the business and then just keep ticking off boxes thereafter. 

PATHWAY: Last question, what's your favorite thing about working in soccer?

STEVE: Competitiveness. I love competing. I think my favorite thing about soccer, and this sounds crazy, is practice. I love going out there and practicing, competing against my teammates, pushing my teammates. Competing is the biggest thing for me. I love it.

Ed. note: You can connect with Steve on LinkedIn or follow him on Instagram.

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MENTORSHIP OPPORTUNITY: A ROUNDTABLE DISCUSSION WITH STEVE BIRNBAUM

We’re going to try something a little bit different with our friend Steve Birnbaum.

We will select up to four (4) participants to join us for an exclusive 45-minute session with Steve on Monday, February 26th at 4pm EST (via Zoom).

If you apply to participate, be sure to include a creative question in your application - we will select what we believe to be the top questions and those individuals will receive an invitation to join us for what is sure to be an enjoyable conversation.

SOCCER JOBS: THE MOST INTERESTING NEW JOBS IN SOCCER

We’ve got you covered, job seekers. Here are a few of the more interesting roles that have recently been posted. Go get ‘em!

Want more? Sign up for our weekly “Pathway Jobs Newsletter” where we aggregate as many as 100 new soccer jobs all in one place - and drop it into your inbox every Friday.

FEATURED JOB: DIRECTOR, PARTNERSHIP ACTIVATION - INTER MIAMI CF

Want to work with the greatest footballer of all time? Here’s your chance.

Fresh off a stadium naming rights deal with JPMorgan Chase, Inter Miami CF is looking to add a Director of Partnership Activation. The person in this role will work across numerous commercial partners, but will also be responsible for leading the collaboration with one of the club’s primary (read: biggest!) partners.

You can read the full job description and apply here.

[If you want to have your job featured in a future issue, you can book it now]

DO THIS NOW: PURSUE A 'REVERSE MENTORSHIP [PART 1]

A lot of what we’ve written about over the last few months has been focused on helping pre-career and early-career professionals - providing those who are trying to find their path in soccer with advice and actionable tips to find their breakthrough role.

Today’s ‘Do This Now’ will absolutely help achieve that goal but it’s a bit of a twist on the advice we typically provide - and may have more long-term benefits.

  • DO THIS NOW: Pursue a ‘reverse mentorship’ by finding someone who could benefit from your experience and expertise

In short, for those that are still at an early stage in their career - or even if you’re still in school - consider seeking out someone else to mentor.

This idea is a bit counterintuitive if you’re someone who wants a mentor for themselves (and, by the way, you should absolutely seek one out!) but setting up a reverse mentorship can be rewarding on multiple levels:

  • Requires you to think outside of yourself and your immediate needs

  • Forces you to reflect on your work experiences and identify helpful advice

  • Sharpens your understanding of the importance of preparation and asking good questions

  • Provides warm fuzzies because you’re helping another human 🤗

And it doesn’t need to be complicated to get started. Here are a few ideas for finding someone who would benefit from mentorship:

  • Contact your high school or college soccer coaches

  • Contact your college’s career development or placement departments

  • Contact your club/academy soccer team

  • Contact your local pro/semi-pro soccer team

  • If all else fails, post on LinkedIn that you’re open to mentoring and see what comes back

When you connect with someone, simply ask for recommendations for those individuals that are showcasing ambition and a desire to learn. Chances are, they’ll have a couple of names to share almost immediately and you’ll be on your way.

Next week, we’ll tackle the ways in which you can approach starting and structure a new mentorship if you haven’t done it before.

Tune in next time! 📺

-Kyle Sheldon, Co-Founder and CEO

WHEN YOU’RE READY, HERE ARE A FEW WAYS WE CAN HELP:

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  3. And, if you’re a club or brand looking to hire the most ambitious talent in soccer, drop us a line and we can tell you about our process, our growing talent pool, and the services we offer.

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Thanks for continuing to follow along, Pathwayers. For whatever stage you’re at in your career journey, we’re grateful to have you.

See you next week.