"The places that orange basketball can really take you." A statement that rings true for Nia Symone as she reflects on her personal journey in the space, and one that continues to inspire her on a daily basis throughout her endeavors in the industry. From starting her journey in basketball at four years old to becoming a ball kid for the Atlanta Dream during her time in middle school going into high school—where she witnessed everyone who was involved in creating the gameday experience including trainers, players, broadcasters, and basketball-ops professionals—to then playing the game herself at the Division I level in college, it was through these experiences that Nia discovered her passion for hosting and storytelling. The rest is history! Her commitment to sharing stories in a creative and captivating manner have led her to work with major brands like Nike, Honda, and HBCU GO; and have also inspired her to create her own company and non-profit organization in "Purpose To Be Heard" and "Athletes With A Purpose Foundation" respectively. As she ponders on what's in store for the near future, Nia is looking forward to embracing more opportunities to share athletes' stories authentically, give back to the youth through community service projects, and continue fostering her personal brand in the realms of sports and media.
Let’s start with your journey playing basketball! What were some key takeaways or lessons that you learned during your time as a student-athlete that you carried with you into the world of sports media and broadcasting?
I think, as athletes, we have such unique experiences because this is something that we've been doing literally since most of us could walk or were just a little older. We oftentimes allow society and people around us to kind of pigeonhole us and put us in a box. I think for a while I put myself in the box (as well) because I thought, “Ok well, my job is to be a basketball player, make good grades, and be a model citizen.” Those are great qualities, but I think for a while—because I was so focused on basketball—I didn't realize other gifts that I had. So I would say one of the biggest things now that I'm still working through is not limiting myself. I think that comes with just having the support behind it. Of course, the positives that came from it is just being an extra hard worker organically. Being an athlete was such a unique experience, so when you come over into the real world, that hard work, that discipline, that dedication, that ‘being in a gym when nobody else is there’ (mentality) to get those extra shots in is there and those are very important; but it's not everything to life. Meaning…I don't have to sit at my desk for 10 hours straight and put in work, you know? I can go out and touch some grass, right? I can go out and go find hobbies and other things that I like to do beyond just my job. For a while, I carried that mindset and struggled with it. You know, that understanding that you just gotta live too. I would also say that some of the qualities that sport has brought me that I will take for the rest of my life is obviously sisterhood and teamwork. I really desire community, and my whole life that came from being around my teammates—all of us coming from different backgrounds and being able to come together for one mission which was to win games and to be a good team. I think that carried over into me being able to work alongside any and everybody. All those different rich experiences show you that there's so much more to life than just your hometown. So much more to life than just going to school and all these different types of things. So I think that the biggest thing that sport has taught me is to think bigger and to know that there's so much more to life.
During that transition from college into the world of sports media, what were some challenges that you faced early on and how did you work to overcome them?
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