Insiders Knowledge: Taking control of his destiny One-On-One with former NFL player Marques Ogden
Area of Expertise: Keynote Speaker, Executive Coach, Consultant, Brand Ambassador, Best Selling Author
Business: Ogden Ventures LLC
POC Mag: It’s a pleasure to have the opportunity to do this Q&A with you. Please introduce yourself to some who may not be familiar with you: My name is Marques Ogden, I am a current national/international keynote speaker, executive coach, and corporate trainer. I am also a former NFL athlete, I played in the NFL for almost 6 years. I played for the Jacksonville Jaguars, Baltimore Ravens, Buffalo Bills, and Tennessee Titans.
POC Mag: At what age did you develop a love for football? I developed the love to play football at the age of 13, my freshman year in high school.
POC Mag: You were drafted to the NFL in 2003, how was that experience and how did you feel when your name was called? Being drafted into the NFL was an amazing feeling, and hearing my name called on ESPN was truly a dream come true experience.
POC Mag: Who in your life has been your greatest motivator? The greatest motivator in my life has been without a doubt my father, Shirrel Phillip Ogden.
POC Mag: What lessons from football did you learn that transition into your everyday life? The lessons I learned from football that have helped me in my everyday life are leadership, teamwork, and accountability.
POC Mag: A while back you did an interview with Forbes, and you discussed that you were frugal with your money while in the NFL. However, you made one bad business decision that cost you nearly everything and left you with on about $4,100 in your bank account. You feel into a start of depression that almost cost you your life, but you had one last card to play that changed your life and got you back on track, tell us what it was that changed you and gave you a reason for living? The change that gave me the reason for living when I got down to $400 in my bank account was, I wanted to create a legacy that my father (who had passed away) would be proud of. That with my desire to help NFL athletes and everyone else not go bankrupt as I did, was the catalyst that helped me get my life back on track.
POC Mag: You wrote your first book Sleepless Nights: THE NFL: A BUSINESS AND FAMILY, what made you want to tell your story? We wanted to write a book to praise the NFL player care foundation, for helping me through a difficult time. I also wanted to write a book to help give me a “platform” to stand on, as I had begun my quest to be a national/international keynote speaker.
POC Mag: Now you just released a new book called The Success Cycle: 3 Keys for Achieving Your Goals in Business and Life, what was your motivation behind this one? We wanted to write a book to show people that if they used Ambition, Drive, Hard Work in anything they do in life, they can achieve optimal success. This cycle has helped me achieve success in sports, construction, and now speaking. So, I wanted to share that with the world.
POC Mag: You’re also a motivational speaker, how did that come about? That came about after my pivotal moment in life, where someone’s trash got on my bearskin when I was a custodian in 2013. That was the moment I woke up and said, I need to get my life back on track today!
POC Mag: What was your mission at the outset? The mission at the outset of my speaking career was to help others succeed where I failed.
POC Mag: What was your key driving force to become an entrepreneur and just not settling for a corporate job? The reason I chose to become an entrepreneur was so I could set my own schedule, manage my time, and be around to spend quality time with my family!
POC Mag: How do you market your business, and which tactics have been most successful? We market my business through email marketing, social media marketing, and face to face networking. Those have been super effective, along with SEO marketing through our website as well.
POC Mag: Can you describe/outline your typical day? My typical day is:
Going to the gym early in the am
Taking my oldest daughter to school
Then coming home and working (coaching calls, sales calls, virtual speaking events, consulting, and more)
Then picking up my youngest from school
Then quality time with my family when we are home
*if I’m at a live speaking job then, of course, I’m there doing that, then come home after I’m done.
POC Mag: How has been an entrepreneur affected your family life? Being an entrepreneur has made my family life wonderful. It was hard in the beginning to get it started and growing (95-hour work weeks), but now I absolutely love the freedom I have to spend time with my loved ones and provide a great life for them.
POC Mag: What motivates you? What motivates me is that my family (especially my wife) is proud of me.
POC Mag: What is your greatest fear, and how do you manage fear? My greatest fear is not trying something new. So, I try to step out of my comfort zone daily, so I am always trying new things.
POC Mag: How do you define success? Success is in the eye of the beholder. To me it’s quality time with my family, making enough to provide the lifestyle we want, and working hard to create a legacy that people can be proud of.
POC Mag: Where is one of your favorite places to dine at in the triangle and why? I love to dine at Angus Barn. I love a great steak restaurant.
POC Mag: Name (3) things you believe it takes to get to that next level of success?
Three things that I believe it takes to get you to a higher level of success are
Ambition
Drive
Hard Work
POC Mag: What has been your most satisfying moment in business? My most satisfying moment in business was getting my first paid speaking job in April of 2016.
POC Mag: What advice would give someone looking to step out on faint and start a business? I would tell anyone who is looking to start a business to build a power team around you. Even if they are contractors or people you hire on a per-job basis. You can’t do everything alone; you need help to build a successful empire.
POC Mag: I would like to thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule and speaking with us: Thanks for having us in your magazine...
ABOUT MARQUES OGDEN:
Growing up in a single-parent home with a father that inspired perseverance and fairness, Marques Ogden learned how to define his values and set goals. Ogden attended Howard University from 1998-2002 where he played Division I football. He then followed his dream and his brother Jonathan’s footsteps, eventually getting drafted into the NFL in 2003. Overall, he played for 5 years as an offensive lineman with the Titans, Bills, Ravens, and Jaguars. Even during the off-season, Ogden helped train football players in Europe, both physically and mentally.
Checkout Marques’s best-selling book “Sleepless Nights — The NFL: A Business and Family” chronicles significant lessons he learned growing up in Washington, as an NFL athlete and a business owner. This autobiography tells his story from birth to his NFL career, to the ups and downs of corporate America. Also, he currently has a new book out called The Success Cycle this book talks about the importance of Ambition, Drive, and Hard Work.
For more information, be sure to check out Marques’s website: www.marquesogden.com
Photographers Courtesy of Marques Ogden
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