Hangin With The AD Podcast

Back in March of 2021 Josh and I had the pleasure of sitting down with Josh Brooks, the J. Reid Parker Director of Athletics at the University of Georgia. Josh is a leader who understands the comfort in being uncomfortable and the benefits that such experiences can provide a leader as they grow, and you’ll hear that in our conversation today.
Josh has a levelheaded collaborative style about him and it will not take long for you to understand that there is something special about him and what he is putting together in Athens. Let’s settle in and get to know Mr. Josh Brooks.

1:00- Introduction

7:37- Defining & Evaluating Daily Successes

10:23- Processes Complaints & Finding Positives

14:12- Being Confident Enough to say “I Don’t Know”

17:14- Leveraging Social Media as a Positive

22:04- Facilitating Collaboration Among Your Staff

23:47- “Innovation of Strategy”

27:45- Growth Mindset while Respecting Traditions

30:22- Being True to Who You Are

32:34- Properly Preparing for the Biggest Outcome & Making Adjustments

35:55- Being ‘Elite-ly’ Structured

43:41- Importance of Hobbies-Personal Time

47:13- 2-Minute Drill

Book Mentions: Start With Why (Sinek)

Social Media Connections: Twitter: @Brooks_UGA Instagram: joshgbrooks

About Hangin With The AD Podcast....

Hangin with the AD is an interview style podcast where Don Baker, Cobb County School District Director of Athletics, partners with Josh Mathews, Pope High School (GA) Athletic Director, to discuss hot topics and lessons learned with leaders in the world of athletics. These leaders include high school athletic directors at the district and local school levels; college athletic administrators; leaders in spaces that connect to athletics such as nutrition, wellness, recruiting, student-athlete recognition; current and former athletes; and others, who can help athletic administrators develop themselves and their programs for a better daily experience for their athletic communities.

We hope you enjoy the time we spend with these special guests. Please leave us a review or rating to help us know how you were benefited from this podcast or how we can improve it. Thank you for listening. And until next time, thank you for spending your time, Hangin with the AD.
Don Baker, CMAA.... Director of Athletics for the Cobb County School District in Georgia. @CCSD_AD (twitter & instagram)
Josh Mathews, CMAA...Athletics Director at Pope High School in Marietta, GA (East Cobb) @jwmathews14 (twitter & instagram)

Today we celebrate firsts on the podcast as we sit down with our first guest from the great state of Indiana as well as our first Collegiate President in Dr. Michael Lindsay of Taylor University in Upland, Indiana. Dr. Lindsay has won multiple awards both for his teaching and academic research and is the author of two dozen scholarly publications and numerous books, including, Faith in the Halls of Power, which was nominated for the nonfiction Pulitzer Prize in 2007, and his award-winning View from the Top, which has been translated into Chinese and Japanese and his most recent book, Hinge Moments, which was launched globally on the Taylor campus in 2021. Dr. Lindsay believes that leadership is fundamentally about talking to other people, truly listening to them and always being “in process” as we look to increase our capacity to learn and lead. Let’s settle in and get to know probably our first and only guest who holds a degree from Princeton University...Dr. Michael Lindsay.

1:27- Introduction
3:07- The Platinum Study...Studying 550 C-Suite Leaders
5:35- “Your 20s Establish Your 70s”
7:09- Advantages of Being a Generalist
10:23- The Essence of Leadership
11:46- Learning from a Front Row Seat in Leadership
14:46- A Successful Approach to Tough/Crucial/Responsible Conversations
16:48- Defining Education-Based Athletics
19:56- Characteristics Required for ‘Hinge Moments’
23:16- 2-Minute Drill

Book Mentions: Self-Renewal (Gardner) Faith in the Halls of Power (Lindsay) View from the Top (Lindsay) Hinge Moments (Lindsay)

Social Media Connections: Twitter: @DMichaelLindsay

About Hangin With The AD Podcast....

Hangin with the AD is an interview style podcast where Don Baker, Cobb County School District Director of Athletics, partners with Josh Mathews, Pope High School (GA) Athletic Director, to discuss hot topics and lessons learned with leaders in the world of athletics. These leaders include high school athletic directors at the district and local school levels; college athletic administrators; leaders in spaces that connect to athletics such as nutrition, wellness, recruiting, student-athlete recognition; current and former athletes; and others, who can help athletic administrators develop themselves and their programs for a better daily experience for their athletic communities.
We hope you enjoy the time we spend with these special guests. Please leave us a review or rating to help us know how you were benefited from this podcast or how we can improve it. Thank you for listening. And until next time, thank you for spending your time, Hangin with the AD.
Don Baker, CMAA.... Director of Athletics for the Cobb County School District in Georgia. @CCSD_AD (twitter & instagram)
Josh Mathews, CMAA...Athletics Director at Pope High School in Marietta, GA (East Cobb) @jwmathews14 (twitter & instagram)

Episode # 72: Josh Scott, Director of Athletics, Springfield Public Schools, Springfield, MO
We can’t wait to share today’s conversation with one of the best in the business in CMAA Josh Scott who serves as the Director of Athletics and Activities for the Springfield Public School District in Springfield Missouri.
His insights on NIAAA certification, juggling the demands of the job, and executing your vision are second to none. Let’s get right into it and get to know Mr. Josh Scott.

0:48 - Introduction
3:44 - Education-Based Athletics: What does that mean?
8:44 - Supporting All Sports
11:52 - Being a Highly Involved, Active Leader
16:23 - Understanding the Perspective of the Senior Leaders
23:43 - Sharing What We Have Learned
29:24 - Supporting Without Getting in the Way of Your Leaders
33:29 - Balancing the Immediate Needs Versus the Long-Term Objectives
36:15 - Relationships & Networking as an AD
44:44 - Serving the NIAAA
50:49 - 2 Minute Drill
Social Media Connections: Twitter: @JoshScott_AD

About Hangin With The AD Podcast....
Hangin with the AD is an interview style podcast where Don Baker, Cobb County School District Director of Athletics, partners with Josh Mathews, Pope High School (GA) Athletic Director, to discuss hot topics and lessons learned with leaders in the world of athletics. These leaders include high school athletic directors at the district and local school levels; college athletic administrators; leaders in spaces that connect to athletics such as nutrition, wellness, recruiting, student-athlete recognition; current and former athletes; and others, who can help athletic administrators develop themselves and their programs for a better daily experience for their athletic communities.

We hope you enjoy the time we spend with these special guests. Please leave us a review or rating to help us know how you were benefited from this podcast or how we can improve it. Thank you for listening. And until next time, thank you for spending your time, Hangin with the AD.
Don Baker, CMAA.... Director of Athletics for the Cobb County School District in Georgia. @CCSD_AD (twitter & instagram)
Josh Mathews, CMAA...Athletics Director at Pope High School in Marietta, GA (East Cobb) @jwmathews14 (twitter & instagram)

Episode # 67: Mike Ellson, Christ Presbyterian Academy, Athletic Director 9retired), Nashville, TN

Today we make our first stop in the great state of Tennessee and get to know one of the best in the business in Mike Ellson. Mike is the former longtime AD at Christ Presbyterian Academy in Nashville, TN and also serves as the Executive Director of the TIAAA. Mike’s wisdom from a career that touched five decades is priceless and we can’t wait to share today’s conversation with you so let’s not waste anymore time as we get to know and learn from Mr. Mike Ellson.

0:53 - Introduction

5:14 – FOCUS program

7:23 – Alignment within the Athletic Department

11:26 – Self-Reflection by the AD

16:00 – Learning from jason Whitten and jason Garrett

18:38 – Partnering with Parents-LTC716

28:18 – Major Lessons Learned across 5 Decades of Being an AD

35:42 – Definition of Leadership

39:50 – Previewing the 2022 NADC Conference

47:52 - 2 Minute Drill

Social Media Connections: Twitter: @mike_ellson

About Hangin With The AD Podcast....

Hangin with the AD is an interview style podcast where Don Baker, Cobb County School District Director of Athletics, partners with Josh Mathews, Pope High School (GA) Athletic Director, to discuss hot topics and lessons learned with leaders in the world of athletics. These leaders include high school athletic directors at the district and local school levels; college athletic administrators; leaders in spaces that connect to athletics such as nutrition, wellness, recruiting, student-athlete recognition; current and former athletes; and others, who can help athletic administrators develop themselves and their programs for a better daily experience for their athletic communities.

We hope you enjoy the time we spend with these special guests. Please leave us a review or rating to help us know how you were benefited from this podcast or how we can improve it. Thank you for listening. And until next time, thank you for spending your time, Hangin with the AD.
Don Baker, CMAA.... Director of Athletics for the Cobb County School District in Georgia. @CCSD_AD (twitter & instagram)
Josh Mathews, CMAA...Athletics Director at Pope High School in Marietta, GA (East Cobb) @jwmathews14 (twitter & instagram)

Today we sit down with Benj Miller who is an entrepreneur, speaker, author, podcast host, and the Co-Founder and CEO of System and Soul, which is a business leadership development company. We talk about the common principles between the athletic and business worlds, the rewarding of failure amongst those we lead and understanding that success is not a straight line. Let’s settle in and get to know Benj Miller.