Daily Inspiration: Meet Michael Leonard

Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Leonard.

Hi Michael, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
In 2016, I started a blog as a New Year’s goal to help millennials understand personal finance. Little did I know that one small website would change my future and eventually quit my job.

After writing in 2016 and working full-time at Yelp.com, I eventually went all in on my business in May of the following year. Despite my blog hardly making any money, I had always wanted to become an entrepreneur and knew this was my time (I refer to this as my quarter-life crisis). My other reason for leaving corporate America was to pursue a dream I’d previously given up on – professional golf.

For the next few years, all I focused on was becoming a world-class writer and improving my game as much as possible. I branched out into freelance writing, self-published several books, and published millions of words online. While I never turned professional, I did go to Q-School in 2019 (the first step in becoming a professional golfer on Tour). I gave it my all but came up a few shots short of making the cut and moving on to the next stage.

Since then, I’ve continued to play in highly competitive amateur golf events (200+ days of tournaments) and grow my digital marketing business. With the unique experience of being a professional writer, digital marketer, and skilled golfer, I’ve worked with tons of golf clients. This led to writing two golf books and even starting my own golf brand, Wicked Smart Golf in early 2022.

Now, my time is spent playing golf, podcasting, creating content for social media/YouTube, and writing for golf clients. While it’s been far from a linear journey, it’s amazing to create my own schedule and share my passion with the world. I’m committed to helping players enjoy the game more by learning how to master their minds and have more fun on the golf course.

Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Not at all but that’s okay… I’ve learned tons of lessons along the way and wouldn’t have it any other way. One of the biggest struggles has been learning to write professionally as I had no experience, only a passion for helping others.

But I invested in myself with online courses, coaches, and masterminds to understand the art of digital entrepreneurship and copywriting.

Other struggles have been time management of the golf dream vs. growing a business, failed side hustles, navigating a pandemic, working with clients around the world, and creating an online coaching business.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I specialize in golf content and copywriting. If you search on Google for “golf writer” my website pops up at #1 and has helped get me tons of leads and clients. The funny thing is that when I quit my job in 2017 I never planned to be a golf writer, it just happened after landing a small gig on Upwork. This gig led to giving me confidence that I could actually make a great income writing about golf (from home) and start pitching to other clients.

I’m most proud of not quitting and making it more than five years on my own. Like every entrepreneur, there have been a lot of ups and downs along the journey but I persevered. Quitting and going back to a career that I wasn’t passionate about has never been an option.

What sets me apart from other writers is that statistically, I’m in the top 1% of amateur golfers. Not to mention still playing at high levels in amateur and mini-tour events. This gives me a unique perspective on the game that most writers or content creators don’t have. I love sharing my golf wins/losses with my readers and audience to help them speed up their success.

Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Knowing that my books, freelance writing projects, podcasts, and YouTube videos have helped millions of people. I know what it’s like to struggle in golf, life, and business but mentors and people ahead of me have always given me the motivation to keep going.

Plus, being able to create my own schedule and do what I’m wildly passionate about each day. Don’t get me wrong, that doesn’t mean each day is perfect but I love knowing that I’m in control. If a business project flops, then it’s on me but if it’s a huge success, that’s on me too.

Running an online business and playing golf is really the same. There are a lot of ups, a lot of downs, and a lot of personal development along the way. At the end of the day, it’s all on me.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.wickedsmartgolf.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wickedsmartgolf/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wickedsmartgolf
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/wickedsmartgolf
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@wickedsmartgolf
• SoundCloud: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/wicked-smart-golf/id1608818683?ign-itscg=30200&ign-itsct=podcast_box_link
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@wickedsmartgolf

Image Credits
AGA Golf