Steve Johnson – Hopscotching Through the Age of Bots

He discovered his passion, not once, not twice, but many times over the course of his 62  years. What fascinates me is how Steve Johnson, former NBA All-Star, grabbed on to his dreams and turned enthusiasm into paying ventures.  

Being the third of six children in a family headed by a disabled vet on disability and a school bus driving Mom was not easy. Poverty led them to a cinderblock  apartment house in Watts, California, with bars on the windows and the sound of gunshots outside the front door. Fortunately, they moved to San Bernardino one year before the Watts riots. 

Mom was a Seventh Day Adventist who insisted the children attend private Adventist schools and attend prayer meetings several evenings a week. Dad buried himself in their garage practicing for hours in his music studio though, according to Steve, he never managed to play one song all the way through.  He insisted the children play an instrument and though Steve could play several horned instruments by ear, unlike his brother, he never took to it. He had other things on his mind, especially after discovering his first passion.

At the age of fourteen, his father took him to watch his cousin in a practice basketball game in L.A.  At the end of the session he was introduced to the man who later become his coach. That evening his cousin joined the family for dinner. The boys went to a playground afterwards to shoot baskets. His cousin showed him a few moves and advised him to learn the hook shot, advice that made him unstoppable on the court. By the end of that eventful day, Steve knew what his future would be. 

Academically he was an underachiever. School didn’t interest him so he struggled. But, he was a thinker and a planner capable of developing goals in his early teens. They were;

1. Get to a public school
2. Get noticed in high school and receive a scholarship to college
3. Become an All American
4. Be a first round NBA draft pick
5. Become an All Star.

His first goal was the most difficult to achieve. Since Adventists didn’t play team sports, he had to battle his parents over leaving school for an out of district public education. He ran away several times hoping to establish residency but failed repeatedly. He wasn’t successful until the summer before his senior year when the high school coach introduced him to a man who let him stay in a condemned house he owned.  Steve used a coat hanger to enter. To eat, he pilfered food and other items he could sell for cash. He avoided prostitutes and the gambling room at the back of his house, and convinced the board of education to let him transfer in despite a ruling that kept seniors from doing so.

That fall, without ever having played on a team, the coach took a risk and let the 6’10” athlete join. Half way through the season, the starting center was hurt. Steve played in his place, made 25 points, and earned a permanent spot in the game. During the rest of the season he stacked up enough points for six colleges were interested in giving him a scholarship. He chose Oregon State University and played basketball for four years under Naismith Hall of Fame coach, Ralph Miller. There, as a record breaking athlete, he became All-American and PAC-10 Player of the Year in 1981, eventually being inducted into the Oregon Sports Hall of Fame.

Upon graduation, Steve was the seventh pick in the first draft of the NBA. Over the course of his career he played for Kansas City Kings, The Chicago Bulls, San Antonio Spurs, Seattle Supersonics and The Portland Trail Blazers. Ten years later Steve was ready to retire after living with the pain caused by years of wear and tear on his feet.

In retirement he undertook several entrepreneurial ventures, that flourished and sputtered in the recession of 2008. He remained self-confident and driven and stayed focused on the idea of being successful-this time, as a businessman. His present undertaking fascinates me for it shows what a person can do who is willing to take a calculated risk and embrace change. His passion started with a computer came he played for fun. He became as absorbed in this new hobby as he did playing basketball.

Not a strong reader, Steve relies on YouTube Videos to teach him what he wants to know. He sees himself as a self-taught natural problem solver who knows how to mine and analyze social media for data. He is a planner and a goal setter who doesn’t give up.

The Sims is a computer game that allows players to explore a digital world where they buy property, design and build houses, and furnish them to their taste. When the game became internet connected, players could communicate and share information but The Sims had drawbacks. Steve’s son introduced him to Second Life, a more sophisticated game offering better tools and a marketplace for players to sell their designs. One day, with the help of his Avatar, Steve took a world tour and discovered a man building virtual boats. Rather than pay $40 to purchase the design, Steve started building his own yacht. When the president of Christensen Yachts discovered similarities to their boats, Steve was given permission to use their name. His virtual yachts sold for $175.

Millions of dollars are spent and made on  simulation games. Some players move on to well paying jobs in the real world. Virtual players become racers, drone and robot operators, marketers and fashion designers. Many tech companies are attracted to entry-level job candidates who cite playing or developing video games as a hobby. According to Ashley Deese of the Smithsonian Institution’s science education center in D.C., “They (gamers) tend to be problem solvers, organized, and adaptable.”  Law student Aylmer Wang, said gaming taught him “leadership, entrepreneurialism, dedication and organization.” Gamers are motivated and determined says Christopher McKenna, head of a student recruiting for the law firm Bennett Jones LLP.

During the 2008 recession Steve realized that when the economy returned, yachting would not be the same. New customers with money would come from high tech, yet they were unaware of yachting. Rather than purchase boats, Steve imagined them more willing to charter them. The going rate to charter a 100 to 160 foot yacht is between $100,000 and 300,000 a week, plus expenses. There was money to be made and he wondered how to turn his hobby into a lucrative business in the real world.

Under the name of Monaco Yachts, Steve created virtual experiences for potential customers by placing them on yachts and take them to places they might visit on a chartered boat. Final contracts are often signed at yachting conventions taking place around the world. His web site, yachtinglifestyle365 is basically a marketing brochure–a very successful one that writes about the yachting lifestyle.

Steve’s story is an example of why our current system of education needs to be improved to help students survive in the age of bots. Workers of the future will need to be flexible, team oriented, determined and confident of their ability to learn on their own. They will skills that enable them to adapt to change and hopscotch across occupations.

A goal of the education system should be to help students find their passion. To do so, vocational options, exercise, crafts, the arts, and computer games need to be blended with academics to insure graduates develop meaningful leisure time activities. High school students should leave with enough self-esteem to enable them to shift confidently as the economy changes. Letting students pursue activities they passionately embrace, teaches them what is involved in setting goals, acquiring skills, and achieving a modicum of success.

Resources:

Needleman S. (2019) When a Passion for Videogames Helps Lad a Job. Wall Street Journal. retrieved from https://www.wsj.com/articles/when-a-passion-for-videogames-helps-land-that-job-11551888001

Molloy,D.(2019) How playing video games could get you a better job. BBC News. retrieved from https://www.bbc.com/news/business-49317440