Today we’d like to introduce you to Tim Martin.
Thanks for sharing your story with us Tim. So, let’s start at the beginning and we can move on from there.
Had a rough childhood, I attended 11 schools in 12 years growing up. Lived all throughout the Southwest of the United States. I dropped out of college in 2007 and was homeless in my mid 20’s for three years while being a single father. I got into coaching at a young age and really enjoyed helping others become successful. Throughout that process, I was able to surround myself with a lot of great people that helped me change my mindset and get me on the right track. In the process of getting back on my feet, I started my business called “The Beautiful Struggle” I began to film director and captured years of my hardships on film while I was training some of my clients. In 2013 our first documentary aired entitled “The Beautiful Struggle part 1”. That set the tone for the brand and really help promote my business. From 2010-2017 I developed relationships throughout the NBA and worked with the Texas Legends G-League team along with working with numerous NBA players. In 2016 I became the youngest head coach in the NIKE EYBL summer circuit and developed over 8 McDonalds All-Americans in a three year span, which all went on to the NBA. From 2017-present, I’ve hosted camps in Africa, France, China, South Korea and a few other countries. In 2016 I was offered a position to be the USA consultant director for Dwyane Wade shoe/apparel company “Way of Wade” (Affiliate of China Shoe company Li Ning) I’ve been blessed in my life to have amazing people around me that I look up to daily and motivate me to be the best dad, developer and friend I can be.
Has it been a smooth road?
My life has never been easy. I didn’t really have many friends growing up because we were moving so much. I dealt with a lot of bullying in my childhood, I would get teased a lot because of my skin color. I live with my mom, who is white and she had my two half brothers while marrying my stepdad, who was also white. I never knew my biological father until I turned 18. There were a lot of issues I experience early on growing up in the south and not being of the same “race”, so it was tough to fit in anywhere. Basketball gave me that safe haven, though. That was the one consistent thing I always could rely on growing up. I was a bit of a loner early on, but as I got older, I met some good people through the game of basketball. It helped me deal with a lot and ended up getting a Division 1 scholarship to Pepperdine University. I didn’t pass my ACT score, though and had to settle for Junior College In New Mexico. After a season, I dropped out of school and moved home to Dallas, TX and went to barber college to try something new. I bounced around from job to job the next few years until I could figure out what I wanted to do with my life. At 24 yrs old, I had my son Christian and soon after losing my job. At the time, I wasn’t with my son’s mom and ended up being homeless for three years. I stayed in the back seat of my car for six months and took showers in the early morning at Farmers Branch rec center. In the afternoons, I would train a couple of kids to make ends meet. I stuck with it and stayed the course to which I got my first gig training Dallas Mavs players, Josh Howard and Devin Harris. I started working there basketball camps in DFW and pretty much the rest is history. I built my clientele through word of mouth and started my own business.
Please tell us about the company.
My company is called “The Beautiful Struggle” essentially it is about player development and training ball players and getting them to the next level. I’m huge on teaching the mental part of the game of basketball. Developing awareness and the players IQ has been what I’m most known for. I translate the players habits off the court and help teach them healthy ways to expand their perspective on how they work out to how they create good habits off the court as well. It really comes down to self improvement overall. Human development is fascinating to me and I really enjoy watching others set their goals and achieve them. It gives me a purpose behind what I do for a living and I’m able to really connect with so many kids and adults from all walks of life. I’m most proud to represent hope. I’ve always tried to find the good in the bad in any circumstance. Life is really about perspective. Being able to find the beauty in your struggle is a choice. It’s never a reason to try and understand the lesson behind your hardships, but as a company finding solutions to help get people on the right track is rewarding. It also doesn’t limit our company to just basketball. We can step out in any industry and promote positivity and unity.
How do you think the industry will change over the next decade?
The Beautiful Struggle will be a global movement in the next five years. I’ve been working on my book and hosting a podcast/docu series over the last two years. I expect the brand to provide a stable platform for other likeminded people to share their stories and inspire the next generation.
Pricing:
- Beautiful Struggle hoodie’s $40 (thebeautifulstruggle.tv)
Contact Info:
- Website: timmartinbball.com
- Email: timmartinbball@gmail.com
- Instagram: timmartinbball
- Twitter: timmartin_tx
Image Credit:
Thomas Biggars, Rick Ross, Dwyane Wade, Li Ning
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