060: James Swanwick | How He Got his Dream Job as an ESPN Sports Center Anchor, with Zero Experience, By Being a Giver

James Swanwick hit rock bottom.

It was 2009. The international financial markets were crumbling and thousands of companies around the globe were feeling the pinch.

The resulting crash decimated his media company, Crocmedia America, which he had built from nothing to a major entity with dozens of employees around the U.S.

Growing up in Brisbane, Australia, Swanwick had started his career as a journalist. But by his early 20s, he could see his career playing out before his very eyes.

He had a bigger vision for himself so he decided to take a risk and move to London. That led to jobs working as a journalist and later a celebrity interviewer in Los Angeles, which ultimately led to forming the media company.

After his company went under, Swanwick discovered Keith Ferrazzi?s Never Eat Alone (affiliate link) and was inspired to shift from being a taker to being a giver.

Here?s where it got interesting. One of the people he helped out along the way called him up a few months later and said, hey, SportsCenter is looking for a new anchor. Would you be interested in an introduction?

Swanwick actually had zero television experience but he didn?t let that stop him from trying out.

Long story short: he got the job. He spent a couple of years behind the ESPN anchor desk before moving on to new challenges.

Flash forward to today, and Swanwick has been a coach, an author, an even a Columbian coal trader. One thing I really admire about him is he continues challenging himself and is always trying new things, not afraid to try and perhaps to fail.

In this podcast, we discuss:

  • Why it took hitting rock bottom for James to learn the power of thinking of others first
  • Strategies for increasing your confidence and taking risks with your career
  • How James has grown his income by growing his network
  • How James landed a job as an ESPN SportsCenter anchor even though he had zero television experience
  • How you can get started introducing people in your network to one another and why
  • James also has a 30-day challenge for all Smart Business Revolution podcast listeners that you won?t want to miss.

Enjoy!

Resources from this Episode: