True story. It was 2001. I had just wrestled a show about 3 hours from home. I gave everything I had in that ring. Left it all out there. The crowd was into it. The boys in the back said I did good work. Then I got my payoff. Twenty bucks. I hadn't eaten all day. I was running on fumes. Literally. My gas tank was almost empty and I still had a 3 hour drive home. I pulled into a gas station somewhere in the middle of nowhere Ohio and I had to make a choice. Do I eat or do I put gas in the car. I couldn't do both. I put the gas in. Drove home hungry. Got home after midnight. My wife Terrie was already asleep. I sat in the driveway for a minute and thought about quitting. Not because I didn't love wrestling. I loved it more than anything. But love doesn't pay bills. Love doesn't fill your gas tank. Love doesn't put food on the table for your family. A year later I walked away. My body was breaking down. We were broke. We had a family to raise. I chose survival. But here's the thing nobody tells you. It didn't have to be that way. I wasn't broke because I was a bad wrestler. I was broke because nobody taught me the business side. Nobody taught me how to build a brand. Nobody taught me how to create income outside of match payoffs. Nobody taught me that I was a business and not just a performer. I had to learn all of that on my own. Years later. The hard way. Through trial and error and a whole lot of expensive mistakes. When I came back to wrestling in 2015 and started New Ohio Wrestling, I promised myself I would never let another wrestler go through what I went through without at least knowing there was a better way. I spent years figuring this out the hard way. Now I'm putting it all in one place. More soon.

Every powerful brand has tension. You vs the system. You vs fake fans. You vs comfort. You vs the gatekeepers. No tension means no emotion. No emotion means no connection. No connection means no money. Find your conflict.

Let’s talk about something that most wrestlers get backwards. Selling yourself is like dating. The one who needs it more is the one chasing. And the one chasing… loses power. If you’re blowing up a promoter’s inbox… If you’re double texting about bookings… If you’re sending your highlight reel every week… You’re signaling desperation. And desperation repels. Here’s the flip. Attraction beats chasing. When a promoter feels like: “I need this talent on my show” That’s when you win. So how do you stop chasing? You build value. You create buzz. You get reactions. You sell merch. You bring fans. You cut promos people remember. You make the building louder when you walk through the curtain. Now the promoter isn’t doing you a favor. They’re solving a problem. This doesn’t mean sit at home and hope. It means position yourself from strength. Instead of: “Please book me.” It becomes: “Here’s what I bring to your event.” Big difference. The wrestler who brings heat, ticket sales, and attention doesn’t beg. They get invited.

Those three words will change your wrestling career. If you miss a booking… If you don’t get over… If the crowd doesn’t react… If your merch doesn’t sell… The easy move is blame. Blame the promoter. Blame the booker. Blame the politics. Blame the crowd. Blame “the business.” Blame feels good for five minutes. But blame makes you weak. When you say, “It’s my fault,” something powerful happens. Now you’re in control. If it’s your fault, you can fix it. If it’s your fault, you can improve. If it’s your fault, you can train harder, promo better, build smarter, market stronger. That’s leadership. The best wrestlers I’ve seen don’t complain. They adjust. They ask, “What could I have done better?” They review their matches. They study their reactions. They improve their look, their conditioning, their mindset. Taking responsibility doesn’t mean beating yourself up. It means taking your power back. You want freedom in this business? Own your results. Drop one excuse today. What’s one thing in your wrestling career that you’re ready to take full responsibility for?

Your look is the first thing people see before you even open your mouth. If your look doesn't match your character, you're confusing people. And confused people don't care. Why This Matters Think about it. If you're a badass heel but you show up looking like a nice guy, nobody's buying it. If you're a babyface underdog but you walk in looking like a bodybuilder, the story doesn't work. Your look has to support the story you're trying to tell. The ring is visual. Wrestling is visual. Social media is visual. Everything about this business is visual first. You have seconds to make someone understand who you are. Your look does that job before you ever hit a move. What "Look" Means Your look is: Your ring gear. Your street clothes. Your hair. Your facial hair. Your tattoos. Your physique. Your accessories. Your colors. Your entrance outfit. Everything people see when they look at you. Does It Match? Ask yourself: If someone saw me with the sound off, would they know what kind of wrestler I am? If the answer is no, you need to fix it. Examples: - A monster heel should look intimidating. Big. Mean. Dark colors. Rough edges. - A flashy babyface should look bright. Colorful. Approachable. Clean. - A technical wrestler should look serious. Professional. No crazy distractions. - A comedy character should have something visually funny or weird. Your look tells the story. Make sure it's the right story. The Test Go look at your Instagram right now. Look at your last 5 photos. Do they all support the same character? Or are you all over the place? If you're a monster on one post and a gym bro on the next and a family guy on the third, people don't know who you are. Pick one. Commit to it. Build everything around it. What To Do Right Now Look in the mirror. Look at your social media. Look at your last match video. Ask: Does this look support my character? If yes, double down on it. Make it even clearer. If no, change it. Today. Your look is part of your brand. And your brand is how you get Reach, build Reputation, and create Revenue.