Olympic Gold Medalist’s 3 Keys to Success: Team Culture, Hard Work, and Persistence

This interview with Ryan Millar was conducted by Brock Blake, a Forbes contributor who writes about small business lending, entrepreneurship & being a CEO.

The 2016 Rio Olympics are finished, but that doesn’t mean the hard work put forth by the athletes has stopped.

You can bet that the number of days until the 2020 Tokyo Olympics is on their minds, or even displayed on a board where they train. Sports breeds a culture centered on striving to be the best and even if someone is the best, they never stop working to improve their skillset.

I recently had a chance to talk with a good friend, entrepreneur and former Gold Medalist, Ryan Millar, about his experience in the Olympics and how he has been able to apply it to his career as senior director for Partners In Leadership, where he helps business leaders overcome workforce challenges through the creation of a Culture of Accountability.

“No matter how difficult circumstances may be, the best athletes rise above them,” Millar said. As a former Olympian on the USA men’s volleyball team for almost 15 years, he had his fair share of successes as well as failures. From not winning a single match in the 2000 Sydney Olympics to winning the gold medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, what he learned on his journey had a profound impact on his life and helped shape his business acumen. The lessons he learned also apply to me as an entrepreneur and to all the others seeking to fulfill their American Dream by starting or growing their own small business.

Read the Full Interview on Forbes.com