Rising Stars: Meet Steven Cutter

Today, we’d like to introduce you to Steven Cutter.

Hi Steven, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today.
I started as a small business owner coaching Little League Baseball. One day, I found that I was spending more time on my practice plans than on my business plans. That day, I made a paradigm shift and followed my passion for serving others through coaching. I had no idea where it would take me, and I was unaware of the struggles and sacrifices along the way.

In six years, I worked my way up in coaching, from Little League to college head coach, finding that the joy was in the journey and not the destination and enjoying all the precious moments along the way. I initially thought success in coaching would be based on wins and losses. I soon found out the actual currency was in relationships, elevating people to work hard to find their best version.

In my first two seasons as a college head coach (2022 & 2023), I led our team to back-to-back College World Series appearances. This is primarily due to surrounding myself with great people and pushing the limits of the status quo.

Alright, let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
I have taken the road less traveled regarding the standard path of college coaches. Many start right out of college and work their way up. I didn’t find my true passion until I was thirty-five, living what many people consider to be the dream.

As a business owner, I was home every night and always available to make family events and my children’s school events. We had plenty of toys and hobbies. That all changed when I started following my calling. Back then, I had a quote in my office from Nelson Mandela and he said, “There is no passion to be found playing small and settling for a life that’s less than you are capable of living now.”

In general, you do not do this for the money; if you do, you will be in a lot of trouble as it is not there at the lower levels of coaching. My family has had to make many sacrifices along the way. Some financially and many with just time together. Last week, my wife and kids went on “spring break” while I was back in Lansing because we were in baseball season. The hours are full, and rewards are high; few understand this completely unless they do this or have a family member doing it.

Family dinners are no longer taken for granted, and time spent together tends to be more intentional these days. There is something to be said for doing what you love. Everything has a cost, and knowing what that cost is before you start something helps a lot as you go along in your journey. The impact coaches have can be immense if done right and makes the roller coaster of seasons so worth it.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar with what you do, what can you tell them about what you do?
When I realized I wanted to do this for a living, I became intentional about what made a great coach and what made great programs. I traveled and read everything I could find about winning and success. Something I still do today: life is beautiful with a growth mindset, which is something I did not always have.

One area I found to be the most impactful on a person’s individual success is Mental performance. This belief system applies to everyone and not just athletes. I became a mental performance coach and incorporated that into the teams I coach daily.

I fully understand how important it is not only in your life but also in the sports world. The body is exceptionally loyal to the mind, and connecting them through proper processes helps people perform at higher levels in stressful situations when it is needed most.

We’d love to hear what you think about risk-taking.
Five years into the journey, a practical decision back in the summer of 2021 would have been to move on from the game and the dream. Debts were high, and I was working some tough jobs to help leverage the dream. It was incredibly humbling. The amount of “new” had my wife and I scrambling for some ground that wasn’t moving. Her all-encompassing support has been the difference in this journey.

The most significant risks for me were financial ones. In reality, Fear of failure is usually at the top of most people’s lists when doing something outside their comfort zone. Still, I knew that even if I failed at this, I would spend a lot of hours doing what I loved and experiencing growth daily, so failure in anything but financially was not a concern at that time. And we all know you can’t take the money with you anyway.

Risks can be somewhat calculated risks if you are willing to invest everything into what you do because working your tail off is the only thing that works 100% of the time for 100% of the things worth achieving. Work works. This single idea has shaped my entire life.

Contact Info:

• Website: coachcutter.com
• Instagram: @coach_cutter
• Twitter: @coachcutter5
• Youtube: @coachcut
• Other: https://www.lcc.edu/connect/shows/coach-cuts-corner.html

Image Credits
Kevin Fowler and Val Sherman