People often say: ”You must have the best job in the world.” And I do! Travel, train, eat and sleep – I’m not complaining! However, I don’t think that people are aware of the “business” behind the results. Lately, I have been talking quite a lot about this topic in speaking engagements because, besides being a professional athlete, I also have a business to run.

I have started the company Michelle Vesterby ApS. In this company, I wear a lot of different hats – an accountant, a SoMe manager, an agent, a top-performing athlete, an author and a speaker to name a few. That’s a lot of stuff to manage, but fortunately it’s something that I love to do. (Maybe not the accountant part, though.)

The challenge is to find the right balance. Sponsors want you to deliver good results, but I do believe that social media skills are playing an increasingly larger role. As an athlete you need to be visible – you need to give something back. A logo on a jersey is simply not enough anymore.

So, besides training on a full-time basis, you also have a full-time job building up a strong personal brand and keeping your business running. I have tried to delegate some of the tasks, but it’s very difficult, at least for me, because I like to be a part of every aspect.

So back to finding the right balance – it can be very difficult. I love what I do and I want to develop as an athlete, but at the same time, I also want to grow my business. So it’s all about timing – when to do what. Training first – then business – or is that even possible?