Very inspirational post by MMA fighter Shane Carwin explaining why he continues to hold his engineering day job despite being the rising champion of the UFC:
No the job is not about the money. I made more at UFC 111 (sponsor, bonus etc) then any of my fights combined. My sponsor dollars alone were bigger then my annual salary at my job.
It is not about the money, Dana offered me an insane amount of money to quit my job last year. When I was coming out of college I had a lot of agents telling me they were going to make my dreams come true. Were talking more money then I may ever make. Then the phones just went silent. Not long after that my first wife left. It was me, a shit degree that kept me on the football field and my son.
My mom had told me this day could come and that all we really own in life are the opportunities and examples we create for those around us. She was a single mom who raised three boys and she never complained. Here I was just having a kid, playing in the Sr. Bowl and wrestling and I was unhappy with my choices.
I decided then that I would get my Engineering degrees and pursue that career and make sure I raised my son with the same set of values my mom had instilled in us. That a real man puts his families needs above his pursuits, that a real member of society holds down a job and contributes.
Millions of dollars or the hopes of that kind of money will never make me take to focus off of setting an example for my kids, an example that they can strive for. Not everyone will play for the NFL or fight for the UFC but everyone can contribute to society and give a little back.
I want my kids to know me as their father who worked hard enough to find time to live his dream instead of a guy who chased a dream while putting his life on hold.
The UFC pays me well, my manager is doing things I could have only dreamed possible, and I have no need to work other then I like that Kamden knows me as his father who works for the water district.
This is the man I want to be champion, I wish the best of luck to him over showmen like Brock.
That's awesome, man. I'll root for this guy if I ever see him on TV.
-TJ
He fights July 3rd, this saturday, again Brock Lesnar, a bully and ex-WWE showman. I'm hoping the right kind of American wins that fight!