Today we’d like to introduce you to Bill Schuffenhauer, Oly, Cpc
Bill, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I grew up here in Utah with a beginning that most will never experience or know anything about, a drug-addicted mother and stepfather who led a life of a street person to the fullest, 17 foster homes, gangs, drugs, and alcohol from a very young age with my parents. I was told at a young age I was the Black sheep of the family and more than likely would not make it to the age of 16 or end up in jail or prison for life.
In my 7th grade year, I moved from Salt Lake to Roy Utah as my parents once again got in trouble with the law, and my grandmother was given the opportunity to take me in. This was my first opportunity to step out of the chaotic architecture I was used to. This is when I had my first taste of a world I did not know existed and from there got an idea that I could be more than what I was expecting and knew I didn’t want to grow up in the same world as what my parents were providing. I knew I could change my stars and set out with the support of teachers, coaches and my Grandmother to change the trajectory of the cards I was dealt.
My education and sports became the lifeline I needed to create a path by design. Over time, I became a student of life, education, and sports and when I had the first taste of success, I didn’t let go. Over the next many years, I graduated from high school, received scholarship offers from every school in the country, competed with Team USA in the Track and field, and Bobsled and played semi-pro football. After a great career in track and field and time at Weber State University, I had an opportunity after a failed attempt to make the 2000 Sydney Olympic team, to make a switch and pursue an opportunity to try out for the 2002 Olympic team in the sport of bobsled. Within a time period of 1 year and 3 months, I made the switch, made Team USA compete in Salt Lake City, and won the first Olympic Medal in over 46 years. After that, I pursued 3 more Olympics and eventually retired in 2010.
Post my athletic career, I wanted to be an entrepreneur, but I had a significant loss of identity transitioning from a globally successful athlete to the “Real World”! This led me down a very dark road for over 8 years full of alcoholism, addiction, trouble with the law, severe depression, suicidal, and failed relationship after failed relationship. eventually, in 2018, I was at my end and ready to trully give up! This is when I discovered the world of life and business coaching and connected with two of my top mentors Jack Canfield (Chicken Soup for the Soul) and Chad Lefevre (TMICGlobal.com). From here, I realized I had one more opportunity to create a life by design and stop living a life by default and in a victim mentality thought process. As I learned to take 100% accountability for my life and became a student of life, I began on a path that has taken me to the stars and back. I continued to consistently practice the things I was learning and eventually was able to get back to the sought-after entrepreneurship life.
In 2019, I started coaching and consulting other people and organizations here locally in Utah and eventually spread to organizations worldwide that including many in the Fortune 100 space and more. From here, I started to have some of the organizations I worked with if I would be interested in coming on as a partner in their companies. From there, I was consistently addressing the chaos I had created from 2010-2018 and eventually found that I created an architecture of life 100% by design.
Today, I am a partner in 14 companies for profit and in the non-profit space along with being elected to the President of the Utah Olympic and Paralympic Alumni Association and as of recently elected to the United States Olympic and Paralympic Committee for the Alumni. I continue to grow and continue to educate myself even to the degree of receiving education from the prestigious Dartmouth Tuck School of Business in Executive Management. I am living a life that many would think is unattainable, but I am here to show the world we can achieve anything we want in life as long as we Dream, dream big, take accountability, and surround ourselves with the right people and organizations.
See the documentary created by the International Olympic Committee on my life named “Against All Odds”
https://olympics.com/en/original-series/episode/the-bill-schuffenhauer-story-extended-version
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The road has never been smooth, it has always been a challenge, but it is these challenges that I have learned and grown from to create more success and be of service to humanity. Failed education, sports, business, relationships, etc. But, I knew I could overcome all this. And today, I have.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Here is a list of the organizations I serve at the highest level in a leadership position
For Profit
1) TheOlympianSpeaks.com -Speaking, coaching, education, and consulting
2) TMICGlobal.com-Executive leadership coaching, Training, and corporate retreats
3) Executive Athletes International Firm (https://eaifirm.com/) – Global branding for athletes and high-level executives.
4) OvationVOS.com-The first of its kind all-in-one operational software solutions for professional stadiums and venues
5) CertaintySystems.com- Total relationship software for large-scale enterprise organizations
6) Nextamericansportspro.com- A new reality show for professional sports similar to the “American Idol”
Non-profit
1) Utah Olympic and Paralympic Alumni Association
2) United States Olympic and Paralympic Alumni Association-Executive Committee
3) Royal Family Kids Camp Utah-https://www.utahroyalkids.org/
4) To the Next Generation Foundation- BeNextGen.com
5) Sports Philanthropy Network- https://sportsphilanthropynetwork.org/
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
That may be a question I cannot answer! I have found that by sharing my life story globally and being a man of vulnerability, I do not keep much hidden if anything at all. This may be a great question to shoot out on social media!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://theolympianspeaks.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Billschuffenhauer/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bill.schuffenhauer.5
- Other: https://linktr.ee/billschuffenhauer
