Today we’d like to introduce you to David Koné.
Hi David, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstories with our readers.
My story starts with living my dreams of playing professional basketball in France. I was a late bloomer and had worked extremely hard to get this type of opportunity. The relentless pursuit of wanting to be the best and wanting to outwork every single person broke my body down and I ended up fracturing my foot and straining ligaments in my ankle. This brought me back to the US where I was rehabbing and had also become depressed. It’s extremely difficult when you work so hard for something and a major setback like that occurs.
In order to still be around the game I love, I began training people from elementary school to professional basketball players. The focus was for every athlete I work with to not only improve their craft but also help sharpen their mindset and apply a lot of my principles to life. There was a deep passion for helping others discover something about themselves that they didn’t see before. In the midst of traveling and training players, I networked with someone who invited me to a networking event that changed the course of my career.
The networking event I attended was about sports sales and how you can have a career in selling tickets. There were many teams represented there including the Cleveland Cavaliers. They extended an opportunity to be part of their entry-level sales program currently called The Foundation, in January 2016. Since then, I’ve been part of an NBA Championship, NBA All-Star, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony, been in multiple sales positions, grown to be a brand ambassador in the community, and now almost 7 years later, I get to teach incoming reps how to succeed on the business side and do it even better than I did.
It’s amazing how things come full circle because certain players I have trained, I see at NBA games, and they thank me for helping them on their journey. It’s also great to see how my passion to help others shines on the business and the basketball side.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Anyone who says the journey has been a smooth road has not truly worked to accomplish something. Playing basketball in France, there was this imposter syndrome I had because I knew there were so many talented players who were better than me, and having to change that mindset and seize the blessing I was given. The injury was also very tough. I was playing some great basketball and had such big goals and not only did it derail that but mentally, it’s tough to patiently go through the rehab process and not be able to perform for a while.
When I was blessed with the opportunity to be on the business side in sales, it was not a passion of mine. I never dreamed of selling season memberships or cold-calling people to ask for money. I wanted to go back to my true love of playing and that was also a constant battle mentally. The blessing in disguise is that all of the struggles I’ve encountered have really helped push me to be the best I can be in areas I never considered. And it helped formulate new passions that I can now use and become a better mentor to those around me.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Currently, I’m the Senior Manager of The Foundation, Cleveland Cavaliers entry-level sales program. My role is to recruit students into the program, and I teach them how to be true professionals and focus on teaching them how to sell suites, season membership, floor seats, groups, and more! I specialize in driving revenue for our organization and growing the careers of those on my team. Through inclusive leadership, we’ve been able to do some amazing things as a team. We set a record of over $5MM and people were able to exceed their own expectations.
Outside of my business responsibilities, I’ve been fortunate to be part of our CL3, which is an alliance between the Cavs, Browns, & Guardians. We aim to create lasting transformational social change in communities across Northeast Ohio. Under our Law Enforcement pillar, we came up with Conversations for Change which focuses on positively influencing the relationship between law enforcement and the youth through conversations and team-building activities.
Lastly, my business UpNext LLC focuses on combining the power of sports and influencing the younger generation to understand how to make it within sports by giving the blueprint and support to succeed on the business and basketball side. It’s the perfect culmination of combining all my passions and helping others be UpNext.
In terms of what sets me apart, I would say that I’m wired to win. That comes from being an underdog growing up and having to figure out what it takes to be the best. But also most importantly, I care a lot. I care about the people on my team and I care about the journey people go on to discover their greatest potential.
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
There are so many resources out there, like LinkedIn, that make it easier to find mentors. The best advice is to find someone who is currently doing what you want to do and shoot them a message to connect for 15 min just to understand the blueprint to be successful.
Once you connect, it’s all about following up on a consistent basis so you’re top of mind. Also, many people who are top in their field probably have an interview or videos you can find and pick up some knowledge as well. Resources are all around. It’s up to you to put in the extra effort to learn and apply.
Contact Info:
- Email: UpNextLLC@outlook.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/david25kone/
