Q&A with James Brown

Source: AARP.org

James Brown is an award-winning broadcaster who hosts “The NFL Today” on CBS and “Inside the NFL” on Showtime.  He is also a founding partner of the Washington Nationals baseball team. A standout basketball player, he received All-Ivy League honors at Harvard University and captained the team in his senior year before being drafted by the NBA’s Atlanta Hawks.  His achievements extend far beyond sports, however.  He is particularly proud of his ongoing commitments to numerous charitable, community and national causes.  He is co-founder and principal of the Brown Technology Group, a certified minority-owned information technology company.  “JB” and his wife, Dorothy, reside in Maryland.

1. What's something about you that would surprise people if they knew it?

I'm not a particularly good handyman. I'm good at pressing shirts. I never played football.

2. What have you found about your 50s to be the most surprising? The most enjoyable? The most challenging?

• Surprising: When I was young, I thought 50 years of age was, Oh my gosh, over the hill! Now in my 50s, I feel absolutely great and am enjoying myself.
• Challenging: Thinning hair. Seriously, with the life experiences I've had, I now recognize so much of what my parents said: 'Wait 'til you get older." The understanding and appreciation of everyday occurrences is so much more meaningful as we get older. I wish I could bottle up the advice and truly have younger people understand and embrace it!
• Enjoyable: I always heard people talk about the joy of being a grandparent. Now I get it, and right on! It's the best!

3. With a weak economy and millions of layoffs, times are tough for regular Americans right now. If you lost everything and suddenly had to start your life completely over, what would you do?

That is a sobering thought, when I think of everyone impacted by the economic situation and how far and wide it affects so many. As tough as things are right now, first and foremost, I stand believing in my foundation of faith. I know with God's help, I can any overcome any challenge, and I would be about the business of doing everything possible, knowing with God's help that I would be able to overcome, standing on faith as a Christian.

4. What challenges, if any, did being a person of color present as you began your career? 

Only two to three times in the course of my career have I experienced blatant instances of where my skin color was a factor. Once, when a boss presented me with a couple of promotion opportunities, asking me how I would approach those jobs knowing that I would have been the first African-American to hold either of the positions. It puzzled me, because my thought was, if I've shown the excellence necessary to be seriously considered for either position, why would skin color matter? I have from that point forward, with the help and encouragement of my family and faith, recognized that as long as I continue to do my job excellently, that there is no barrier/ceiling relative to what I pursue. And I don't concern myself with the myopic thinking of others, thinking that will limit what I feel I'm capable of doing.

5. You were a standout athlete in your college days. How have sports contributed to your success later in life? 

There are abundant lessons that I have learned through sports that correlate to the game of life. Certainly foremost is that just because you are behind in the first quarter doesn't mean that you can't overcome and be a winner by the end of the fourth quarter. For me, as I shared in my book, "Role of a Lifetime," it was a failure on my part not to realize my dream of playing professional basketball that helped me to develop the work ethic I have today. While it would have been easy to point the finger of blame at others, critical self-examination revealed I didn't work as hard to capitalize on that opportunity as I should have, and I vowed to never let that happen again.

6. Who do you think will win the Super Bowl?

I love it! People are asking for what really amounts to maybe educated guesses, when there are so many unexpected occurrences during the course of a season, particularly in a league designed for parity. By now, I sound like a politician to say I have absolutely no idea! To hazard a guess, I would say between the defending champion Pittsburgh Steelers, Indianapolis Colts, and the surprising Denver Broncos on the AFC side of the house. And on the NFC side, the New York Giants or the New Orleans Saints, at this point in the season.

7. You collect classic cars: Which one is your favorite? What would be your dream car to own?

My favorite has to be my first, my 1969 Camaro, affectionately named by my niece "Black Silk," as she's black on black exterior and interior. My dream car? My wife would say, if I haven't found it in the ones I currently own, then I'm not going to find it! It would be an all-original, 1969 Camaro Z-28.

8. Outside of your family, who has had the most influence on your life?

In my earlier years, my high school basketball coach, Morgan Wootten. In my adult years, my pastor.

9. A case of "cold feet" nearly caused you to miss marrying your wife, Dorothy. Luckily, you came to your senses. What is the biggest mistake you've ever made?

That was it, and I'm glad it wasn't a permanent mistake in which I missed out on the woman God had for me to marry.