Career Clarity with Athletes: A 2ndwind Podcast with Ryan Gonsalves
Former professional footballer Ryan Gonsalves dives deep into the unique challenges and triumphs of transitioning from elite sports to fulfilling careers. Through candid conversations with athletes, the Career Clarity Podcast explores their inspiring journeys, uncovering lessons on identity, resilience, and reinvention. Whether you're an athlete or simply seeking inspiration for your next chapter, this podcast will empower you to unleash your second wind.
Ryan Gonsalves transitioned from professional football with Huddersfield Town in the English Footbaal League, to a career in financial services by leveraging his adaptability, transferable skills, and willingness to embrace new opportunities.
While playing semi-professional football, he pursued education and began working at GE Money Capital Bank, where he gained global experience and developed expertise in Lean Six Sigma and process improvement. His sports background often helped him stand out during interviews, creating memorable connections with hiring managers.
Later, Ryan joined HSBC in Hong Kong, where he worked for nearly a decade in consumer banking, focusing on global projects such as researching homeownership behaviors. His ability to understand consumer insights and behavior became a cornerstone of his success in the financial sector. After over 20 years in banking (including back in Australia at AMP, Westpac, COmmenwealth Bank and NSW Treasury, Ryan transitioned into career coaching, inspired by helping fellow athletes navigate their post-sports careers.
Ready to take the next step? Connect with Ryan at letschat@2ndwind.io.
Episodes
172 episodes
171 - Laura Sidall Gave Up a Corporate Career to Chase Sport at 34, and Built a 10-Year Career in Triathlon
Laura Sidall didn’t grow up dreaming of world championship podiums. In fact, by the time she started triathlon, she was already deep into a corporate career as an engineer. But something inside her kept whispering, what if you gave sport yo...
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Episode 171
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1:07:46
170: Jamie Soward - From NRL Premierships to Ego and Finding Purpose in Government (and $6,000 toilets)
Jamie Soward opens up about chasing the footy dream without a clear pathway, losing it all twice, and what it really took to reinvent himself. From writing résumés at 16 to training while on the dole, to playing in front of 60,000 fans and then...
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Episode 170
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46:25
169: Rach Taylor - From Chasing Olympic Gold to Building a Life Beyond the Boat
Rach Taylor knows what it means to sacrifice everything for one goal. She was Rach the Rower, a girl from rural Australia who made it all the way to the Olympic podium. But after winning silver at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, she found he...
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Episode 169
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1:06:59
168: Dr Lamia Zafrani - What No One Tells Women in Sport About Pregnancy, Performance, and Recovery
Dr. Lamia Zafrani saw firsthand what the system lacked and built a new way forward. A powerlifter, an OB-GYN, and a passionate advocate for female athletes, Lamia sits at the intersection of performance and pregnancy, challenging outdated norms...
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51:56
167: Abiola Wabara - GloBall Life: Building Bridges for Athletes' Second Wind
When the final whistle blew on her decade-long professional basketball career, Abiola Wabara wasn’t just facing retirement. She was starting over, from scratch.In this raw and candid episode, Abi sits down with host Ryan to share the unt...
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48:10
166: Theo Brown - From Footballer to 10 Jobs in 5 Years
Theo Brown opens up about the messy, uncertain path from elite academy footballer to non-league player, to juggling ten different jobs in five years, before finally stepping into his purpose as a social entrepreneur.He was once chasing f...
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1:05:18
165: Gerrit-Jan van Velze - Life Beyond the Final Whistle: Sheep, Shoes and Secondwind
Gerrit-Jan van Velze spent nearly two decades in professional rugby, captaining clubs like Northampton Saints and Worcester Warriors. But in this conversation, it's not just the matches or medals that stand out — it's what came after, and every...
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Episode 165
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49:37
164: Emmanuel Smith - From Superbowl LIV winner to Sales winner - You are more than your jersey number
Emmanuel spent years chasing a dream that so many young athletes grow up holding: making it in the NFL. But behind the highlight reels and ambition was a quieter story. One of internal pressure, identity struggle, and eventually, the courage to...
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Episode 164
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1:11:37
163: Kayla Byrne - The Art of Pivot: Basketball Dreams to Giving Back to her Alma Mater
Kayla spent years chasing the dream of playing basketball overseas. She trained, sacrificed, and pushed through setbacks with the goal of turning pro. But after college, that dream didn’t happen.What followed was a quiet but difficult sh...
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Episode 163
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59:06
162: Dr Chris Platts - A Better Way to Navigate Your Career After Sport
Chris Platts spent over a decade tracking the careers of 303 young footballers. The result? A raw, honest look at what actually happens in the world of professional sport. Some players made it to the Premier League. Others left with nothing. Ma...
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Episode 162
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1:16:11
161: The Truth About Life After Sport That No One Tells You, with Stewart McCully
Stewart McCully has spent his life around high performers, from elite athletes to engineers, from corporate execs to sheep shearers.In this episode, he joins Ryan to talk about what it means to guide people through high-pressure environm...
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Episode 161
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59:22
160: Tara Arthur on Letting Go of the Athlete Identity
Tara was known for one thing: martial arts. It shaped how she moved through the world. It gave her discipline, confidence, community, and a sense of direction. But somewhere along the way, the structure that once supported her started to feel l...
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44:14
159: Sophia Parvizi-Wayne: Finding Balance When You Want to Be the Best at Everything
What do you do when the one thing you thought you were meant to do doesn’t work out?In this episode, we meet Sophia, a former academy footballer who faced the heartbreak of being released before ever turning pro. But instead of letting i...
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57:21
158: Sandile's Journey from Football to Software
In this episode, we sit down with Sandile, a former football academy player whose journey took an unexpected turn when the pandemic paused everything. What started as a pursuit of pro football has now evolved into a career in tech, mentorship, ...
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44:50
157: Ed Jones II - The Big 5 Mentorship Structures & Solving Real Problems
What happens when a former athlete takes his love for sports and turns it into a movement?In this episode, Ryan sits down with Ed Jones II, founder of Beyond the Field, to unpack how a childhood filled with competition, communit...
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52:13
156: John Tarnoff - How to embrace the beginner’s mindset, mid-career navigation tips for career strategy
What if your career isn’t over, it just needs a reset?In this episode, we’re joined by John Tarnoff, career coach and author of Boomer Reinvention, who shares how he completely pivoted after being laid off at 50. From Hollywood ...
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Episode 156
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43:29
155: Jeff "The Hornet" Horn - WBO Welterweight Champion to Teaching Respect through Bullyproof
When Jeff Horn stepped into the ring against Manny Pacquiao in 2017, few believed the former schoolteacher could defeat a boxing legend. His stunning victory to become world champion capped an unlikely journey that began when he was a bullied t...
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Episode 155
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39:52
154: Freddie Woodword - The Quiet Identity Crisis of an Olympian
What do you do when your biggest career milestone happens at 23 and you're not even sure how you got there? For Freddie Woodword, representing Team GB in diving at the Olympics was both the dream and the beginning of a much deeper journey.<...
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Episode 154
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1:12:08
153: Kate Bailey PLY - From Paralympic Medals to the Classroom
Kate takes us back to her early swimming days, competing in the Sydney and Athens Paralympics, and what it felt like to walk away from the pool after years of intense training. She opens up about facing subtle (and not-so-subtle) discrimination...
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55:27
152: Tom Morton: A Tweet That Ended It All, Redefining Success After Pro Rugby
What happens when your pro sports career ends with a tweet?Tom Morton found out the hard way. While playing rugby in New Zealand, he saw on social media that his contract with Sale Sharks wasn’t being renewed. No phone call. No meeting. ...
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Episode 152
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1:04:51
151: Josh Katz on Finding Balance: An Olympian’s Quest for Purpose Beyond Sport
Josh Katz shares his journey as an Olympic judo athlete and the challenges of transitioning between career phases while balancing training, education, and business ventures. He discusses how early family influence and prioritizing education alo...
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1:04:17
150: Matthew Lloyd - From Olympic Cyclist to Recovery Mentor
Matthew Lloyd, former Australian Olympic cyclist and King of Mountains winner at the Giro d'Italia, shares his powerful journey of transition after career-ending injuries led to addiction and ultimately transformation.In this ...
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Episode 150
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1:25:10
149: Danielle Jordan-Taft - The Power of Proving Yourself and Success Redefined
From hiding handwritten goals under her mattress at age 12 to representing England in netball and later Jamaica in rugby, Danielle shares the defining moments that shaped her unique approach to achievement. She vividly recounts the emotional jo...
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1:17:50
148: Jimmy Gavin - When the Ball Stops Bouncing: Navigating Life After Seven Years in European Basketball
Jimmy Gavin’s path took him from crushing self-doubt and a life-changing health diagnosis in high school to seven seasons of pro basketball across Europe, through a humbling tech-sales gig, and now into a leadership role directing sports initia...
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Episode 148
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54:06
147: Lexi Chambers - Defying Limits: From Amputee to World Record Holder
In this episode Ryan sits down with Lexi Chambers, an adaptive athlete who has shattered expectations and set multiple world records—all while using a standard NHS wheelchair. After a below-the-knee amputation due to Complex Regional Pain Syndr...
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45:31