Out of Pocket: Kirk Herbstreit

Why this Book?

I actually had the opportunity to listen to Kirk talk live before the Ohio State vs Notre Dame game at The O on Lane in Columbus in 2022. I was working at the restaurant and had hear that somebody had booked a private gig at the restaurant with Kirk as a speaker. I had always been a fan of Kirk. He played for Ohio State, but I knew him more as the guy on College Gameday. Kirk is noticeably always the most prepared during that show. So was very interested to hear him speak. When he got there he had his book lying a table to giveaway. They were all signed. That is where I got the book.

It sat on my shelf for a while, but read it on vacation in 2022. Super glad I did. I was a Kirk fan before. Now I will always been a Kirk fan. His book was written with a lot of honesty. His story is very respectful. It was an amazing read for myself. Truly enjoyed it.

Under the Neon

Key Takeaways for my life

This was such an amazing book for me. Kirk having a similar upbringing as myself, very sports centric, his headspace is so similar to mine. The biggest takeaway that I was able to collect was that Kirk went through struggles. Just like myself. He went through struggles playing football. There were days/times that he wanted to quit, where his attitude was not right, or that he felt he was wronged and just outraged with frustration. To hear that was important for myself. I feel like that sometimes. Its scary. I think the lesson is that there are ups and downs to life. For Kirk and myself, its to follow passion and to consistently practice and bring a professional attitude much like you would during your athletic days. Prepare. Find a mentor to look up to teach you. Let the rest figure itself out. Be committed to the process. I forget these things sometimes.