Gerard Spinks UndagroundMilli

Growing up in Peoria, Illinois, I played quarterback in high school behind New York Yankee skipper Joe Girardi and learned some of life’s greatest business lessons as a kid. I don’t know if it was fate or not but even our names were similar: Joe Girardi and Gerard Spinks.

Both of us went to high school in Peoria, Illinois at The Academy of Our Lady/Spalding Institute, a private catholic high school in downtown Peoria. I grew up in a single mother household, Joe Girardi grew up across the Illinois River in East Peoria, Illinois. I had heard a lot about Joe Girardi in baseball because he excelled in little league and was considered one of the best catchers in the little league circuit in the Peoria area.

I met Joe Girardi my freshman year of high school when being a quarterback was nothing but a dream and a wish. I had already watched him play his freshman football year and watched him play baseball at Bradley Park which I would walk to with my big brother, Jeronimo Spinx. What struck me about this kid was that he was very smart and extremely nice. He was strong as an ox, open minded, and willing to help me learn everything about sports. I met him during summer conditioning down at the high school where our coaches ran us and got us into top football condition to prepare for the upcoming football season.

Playing quarterback was awkward at my high school where 98% of the student body was white. My family and I were some of a handful of black kids that went to the school and even the coaches were really against having a black quarterback. Joe Girardi was different. He was hard working. He was meticulous in his approach. His parents instilled both academics as the focal point and sports as the secondary mission in his life. He put God first and exemplified that in his young life. The summer leading into my sophomore year, Joe asked me what my goals were. I said that I wanted to become a starter on the sophomore team and play varsity football as a sophomore and one day beat him out as a starter.

As a black kid, seeing a leader work extremely hard, play hard, and strive for the top colleges thoroughly changed my life and let me into the secret of business. Joe Girardi taught me to throw the football 500 times per day with no excuses. The secret was in the work. Work hard and confidence would naturally come. Refine your craft every single day without fail. When discouragement comes and people talk about you, keep your head down and keep working hard. Most importantly, he never focused on money. He focused on being the best he could be.

Joe Girardi taught me balance and excellence even at a young age before anyone knew what he would become. He taught me leadership is in what you do not what you say. He taught me business excellence lies in doing something everyday until you become an expert at it and block everyone else out. He taught me that business success lies in your ability to play ball literally and metaphorically.

This article is a repost of my original work at the Atlanta Examiner. All writings copywritten by Gerard Spinks Publishing.