Career Guidance

Mike Tyson

Career guidance is important to entertainers and athletes. Many are thrust into the spotlight and given large sums of money that often lead to their ruination, as they simply do not know how to handle it and are exploited by the wrong people as well.

I sometimes think if trainer Cus D'Amato had not died, boxer Mike Tyson's life and career would not have hit the troubled times it did, due to the unscrupulous people who had surrounded and exploited him. D'Amato used to chase after Tyson when he went back to his old neighborhood, as the trainer was concerned he would get into trouble. Prior to D'Amato adopting Tyson, the boxer would rob crack houses and get into street fights with dangerous people.

D'Amato introduced structure and discipline to his life and gave him a sense of belonging .When D'Amato died, Tyson was on his own again and things went wrong. His talent brought him to the heights of fame, but Tyson was robbed by lawyers, a manager/promoter, ripped off by women, then ended up in jail on suspect charges and struggled with substance abuse.

Tupac

The late rapper Tupac could very well be alive today had he not fallen in with Suge Knight and Death Row. It was the worst thing that ever happened to him. The manner in which the now defunct Death Row Records was being run put Tupac squarely in line to be killed.

Before Tupac's death, he was accused of sexual assault in a dubious case, where an entire club saw a woman voluntarily perform a sex act on him out in the open. Tupac was also robbed by Death Row to the tune of $20,000,000 that led to a lawsuit by his mother after his death to recoup the stolen royalties. Tupac did not have the proper personal or career guidance and it led to him being in unsafe and reckless situations that bred nothing but trouble, pain and loss in his life.

Any entertainer or athlete needs the right people to grow their brand, earn income and preserve that wealth. The manager must think big, be personable, have good ideas and people skills. You also need an honest manager, who can provide good career guidance. Entertainers and athletes need to hear the truth about ideas and behaviors they seek to engage in that could ultimately destroy everything they've worked for. A manager who is a yes man or yes woman will unintentionally set their clients up for a fall and financial ruin.