Coaches who left Coaching - What do you do now?

I’ve enjoyed all the replies so far.

I was very successful at a low level D1 making 32k a year. We had multiple Olympic trials qualifiers, one individual 1st team all-american, and my event group was competitive in the conference.

Now I teach and coach at a high school in the Chicago area making 98k a year and the only recruiting I have to do is in the hallways. Best decision I ever made

Now a roasted chesnut street vendor in nyc. Still coach privately right from my office.

I loved college coaching, but quit after the track season in 2019 because the school I was at was incredibly toxic, mostly because the head coach was an incredibly abusive narcissist. I got sick of having to move to random locations by myself to coach, so I ended up leaving coaching, so I could be in the same city as my significant other (who was in a PhD program at the time and could not relocate because of that.) I worked some promotions gigs in the summer between jobs and made twice the money working half the hours. Then landed a full time gig as a corporate recruiter. Instantly doubled salary and never had to work after 5 pm or on weekends. Got laid off due to budget cuts after a few months there and by chance landed a job working in investor relations at another company. Still work fewer hours and make more money than coaching and never have to think about job after work. Schedule is super flexible to get time off whenever I want. This job still doesn't pay the best and I'm sure I could get a better one, but I enjoy the people I work with and low stress and ease of getting time off approved whenever I want.

Exactly true, but a slight adjustment. Not necessarily mo money, mo problem, but rather mo image concerned, no problems!!

Lots of you are thinking D1 or nothing at all. Don't be upset at your own miserable choices, why in good God would you accept 20-30k as an assistant or head xc coach at a D1 , just to say you're D1? Find a place that pays well and gives good life balance! I make over 70k at a junior college. Have had lots of calls offering me a job, but the pay, and the life balance doesnt even come close. But hey, you're D1 making 30k, I'm junior college over 70k, my coaching career sucks because I'm not D1 LOL.

Stripping at Foxy Ladies in providence

Left about dozen years back. I was an assistant in D2. I didn’t like the odd hours of early mornings then afternoons into evenings. Plus the constant van travel weekends. I went back to school and now work as a physical therapist. Job has the same core rewarding aspects as coaching and the skills transfer nicely. I did avoid sports therapy because I felt living running all day soured my own personal passion for the sport.

You mean you didn't want to be 35 living the same life as a 20 year old student athlete? How could you possibly find THAT unappealing!

I often wonder if teachers and coaches feel "left behind" or like they are living in suspended animation. While their students/athletes move on into the real world, with a normal schedule, vacations, bonuses, stock options, and the chance to make real money and career success that actually matters they are still there, at the track (classroom) holding a stopwatch reading splits, doing the same ol thing...

Compared to someone who works for 40 years as an accountant or an engineer or a dentist? You don't think those jobs are monotonous?

Every year is different as a coach, with a different team and different personalities. Sometimes you have a young team that you need to develop, or an old team that's ready to win championships. Or 1 year you have an stud in the 800, and the next year you have a superstar in the 10k.

Why do you say other careers actually matter and coaching doesn't? You don't think Ben Thomas' career matters to Cole Hocker who he developed into an OLYMPIC CHAMPION?

Hocker is always going to have so much gratitude and respect for Ben Thomas. How much gratitude and respect do you have for the person that you pay to do your taxes that you could do just as easily on your own with various websites?

I wonder what Steve Magness is doing right now.

I became a teacher. Better feeling at the end of the day all in all.

I "retired" from coaching in 2021 after 20 years at my alma mater. XC only. The first 12 years I also coached the XC Ski team. I came into coaching after a 13 year career in accounting. Had left accounting in late 2000, just needed a break and sort if fell into coaching. At the time coaching was very part time at that school as were most of the head coach jobs - in addition to coaching I started working for a race production company plus I did subcontract work for the company I had been doing accounting for. Over the years the school converted more coaching positions into full time but not XC or XC Skiing until a few years before I left. Over the years the race production company got busier, created new races, went from 1 big race to 3-4 medium/big races and a bunch of smaller races. In around 2012 I went FT with them, stopped coaching skiers but it worked out ok to keep coaching XC.

2020-2021 was of course a really weird year for college athletics (and the rest of the world). I worked hard to put together a meaningful XC program for the team members and I think we did ok, all things considered. Going into fall 2021 I was psyched to get back to real XC, but that summer a few things happened at the school I was at that I felt were incredibly disrespectful to the PT staff and I decided that was enough. Had 7 seniors that year, a really mature group, which was one of the reasons why I felt like it was an alright time to retire. Those guys didn't need a coach as much as they needed a van driver coming out of covid because of the tools we had worked on during 2020-2021.

A couple months later the director at the race production company retired and I was lucky enough to move into his job summer 2022. We're now producing about 15 races a year plus a kids program. I miss coaching every day, especially those perfect fall days for XC, but there's no way I could be doing this job and still coaching too.

Happily, the college's running and ski programs are in great hands. When I had my exit meeting with our AD, who is a friend of mine going back to our undergrad days 40 years ago, I strongly recommended they offer my job to our Women's XC coach, who had also moved into the XC Ski head coach role when I left that job in 2012. They did, and she's doing great and the programs are really doing well.

Lots of good options in these comments but I’ll add that if you actually love coaching, like building an athlete up to be their best, and not dealing with the constant garbage thrown at you by college administrators, or any of the other myriad of pitfalls mentioned here; there is very real money to be me made in clubs. Especially in field events. Or speed camps for ALL athletes is a great pitch if you’re a sprints coach. Distance can be tougher. You have to be fairly ambitious. You have to have a solid payment structure that you stick to. Give yourself some credit, you’re a professional. No freebies. And you have to truly enjoy actually coaching and being with the young athletes

look at where the college landscape is headed. And look at the price of literally everything parents need to buy. If you can build a chance at a scholarship with an elite kid, or even just offer a parent a few hours of freedom every week while their marginal athlete kid is with someone trustworthy - they will pay. They will pay a lot. Just 10 kids a month can easily fetch you 2500-4000 in cash for like 16 hours of work.

Took a job at a plumbing company for the summer after D3 school I was at closed. Increased my salary by 5x. Still got offered a D1 job and before I started the whole staff got fired because the head coach was sleeping with an athlete. I now run said plumbing company and coach part time at a large private high school, we’ve finished top 3 at state the last 3 year. I have more time, make way more money, and still get to coach kids in a rewarding position. I don’t foresee a scenario where I would take a collegiate coaching position again at this point.

You’ll also have a good pension that’s not taxed at the state level. I used to worked for an Illinois government job.

Former D2 coach, I left a month after Covid hit. There was already whispers of how NIL and the evolving paying of SAs would affect T&F/XC and Covid killed my bonuses for AAs, All-Conferece, etc. and that is what I needed to supplement the dismal salary.

Got lucky and now 4 years later, I'm a VP in a big 4 bank working on a trade desk. Never had any type of finance or math backgrounds but if you study well and pass your licenses, you can work you way into a solid role.

My best year coaching made $45k, this year will be $150k on the conservative end. Coaching is a tremendously rewarding profession, but just like teachers, you won't find the respect you deserve. Athletic departments continue to chase $$$ instead of student-athlete experience/growth and Football isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

Once private equity gets its grip on athletic departments, non-revenue generating sports could be relegated to club level unless governing bodies step in. NCAA is wheezing its death rattle breath, so I wish all the current (especially young) coaches the best and hope my cynic viewpoints are proven wrong.

I don't technically fit the parameters, but I coached 8 years of high school while teaching. Job was downsized back in 2010 so I went on to accounting and then medicine. I loved the engagement of high school coaching, but always thought of it as a young man's game that I would leave for investing in my own family. Happy for the time I had doing it, but love what I do now also.

After my daughter was born, I soon learned that I didnt have the time to continue coaching and do a good job. The coaching stipend was not enough to make ends meet. (In the late 60s and early seventies it wasnt even a double-digit teacher salary and coaching was about a buck an hour. Bailed on it do some work in music and journalism. Four years of coaching at high schools was challenging and a blast, but I couldnt justify the pecuniary sacrifice and maintain a family.

I coached 15 years successfully in DI. I now work in the running industry. As a coach, I maxed out at $43K despite winning multiple conference team championships. I received three raises in 15 years as a coach.

In my current role I make almost $125K with bonuses and annual raises being the norm. My first running industry job post-coaching paid $45K.

In both of my careers I work/worked a lot. Aside from pay, the key lifestyle differences now are I have better evenings with my family, and I travel much much less. But I still have pressure, stress, and deadlines that have to be met regardless of what the routine work schedule is supposed to be. I think I am busier while working now than I was in coaching, but my day has a true start and end. I now also feel much more in control of my success and future. Coaching was an incredible first career that I will always value. But there is a big industry in running that allows you to still be fulfilled, make reasonable pay, and have a appropriate work life balance.