NFL’s Ty Montgomery Unplugged: A Champion With a Heart of Gold On and Off the Field.
Ty Montgomery II is a wide receiver/running back for the New England Patriots. A native of Dallas, Texas, Montgomery was a five-sport athlete in high school. He played college football at Stanford University before being selected in the third round of the 2015 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. Off the field, Montgomery’s heart for philanthropy has shined. He formed his charity, My 10 Percent, in 2018 to support and empower the forgotten youth in society. His charity work has focused on supporting foster care initiatives and fighting the epidemic of human trafficking. My 10 Percent has partnered with Jockey Being Family, Eye Heart World, You Gotta Believe, and Hope Supply Company to help disadvantaged youth through the years. In 2019, Montgomery and his mother, Lisa, were recognized by the Office of the Governor of the State of Wisconsin for their service to support foster care initiatives.
Thanks for joining me. Let’s start with life before football. Who was your biggest influence early on and what did they teach you?
My mother, Lisa. She is a jack of all trades and seeks to master everything that she does. That’s something I learned from her. No matter what you do try to be the best and put everything that you have into it. That’s the mindset I’ve gone through life with.
Was she hard on you?
Absolutely. She had to be to make sure I could overcome anything I was up against. She taught me that obstacles are not obstacles, they’re just something in the way.
Talk to me about your faith. Does it play a role in your life, in football, and have you always had a solid foundation with it growing up?
Absolutely, and I worked hard to develop it for myself. It’s one thing to know what you’ve been taught, but it’s another thing to actually believe and live it. For me, it has strengthened over time, and that’s been a process and a journey of its own. It’s something that I’ve held on to during tough times, especially in the later years of my career.
How much time do you invest in yourself spiritually?
Not enough. I wish I could spend more. I read the Bible because I want to know it. It helps me when I’m going through something hard and need answers.
Let’s talk about your transition. Not many people can change positions in the NFL. Did you feel like you were completely starting over?
I would say it felt more like I was climbing out of something, When I was in college, my strength coach taught me the idea of “there’s no such thing as tough”. He would say “You’re either trained or untrained. You either know how to get it done or you don’t”. It’s about adopting a mindset, no matter what type of transition you’re going through. You really don’t have to be trained in the area you’re transitioning into. That’s the beauty of a transition. You get to learn. You get to make mistakes and get better as you move forward.
If you could pick, what position would you ultimately want to play?
I think I’m where I’m supposed to be at this point. I try to stay away from where would I rather be. That being said, I do enjoy being a wide receiver and honestly, I just love playing the game, even playing special teams.
In your experience, how does leadership style vary across different teams?
Leadership styles vary across different teams because each team possesses its own distinct culture and methods of operation, which extends to the leadership style. Some teams favor a more authoritative approach, with the coach making all the decisions, while others embrace a more democratic approach, where players have a louder voice. There is no single, perfect leadership approach, and what works for one team may not work for another. However, all of the teams I have played on have been valuable learning experiences for me, and I have grown in different ways in each environment.
There are captains in the NFL. Right? Who has more influence on the team between the players who step up or the coaches?
I would say in the organization where I saw them bringing in veteran leadership, the veterans weren’t stuck in their ways. They weren’t like, ‘This is the only way it’s gonna be done,’ and then become negative about the culture. They were professionals and focused on what needed to be done, and how we were going to do it. It’s so important that everyone is on the same page. I’ve always said that it doesn’t matter if we’re on the wrong page if everybody’s on the same page, then we’re on the right page because we’re all together, and then we can adjust and change pages if necessary.
You’ve faced adversity, including an injury. Can you talk about how you bounced back and the mindset behind it? How can others apply this in their lives?
The injury had a six-month recovery period. What was tough about it was that it was the same injury I had in college, the second surgery on the same shoulder. I’m not sure if it’s a kind of rebellious mindset or just me trying to turn everything into something positive and action-oriented. We always talk about working hard because it instills a mindset to actually do something, not just talk about it. That’s what I felt with this injury. It wasn’t just a minor setback for a major comeback. It was an opportunity to do something else. What I needed to do was rehab, recover, get strong. That’s the mindset I adopted. I also tell myself, I’m not just going through things or overcoming; I’m getting to things. I’m getting to health, to recovery. I’m not just going through it or overcoming it. I’m getting to it
Have you always been a goal-setter, and do you write your goals down?
Yes, I used to write down my goals and even record them on my phone to track and check them off. My approach to goal setting developed in college, thanks to my strength coach. He introduced us to different types of goals: outcome goals, performance goals, and five process goals for each performance goal. The process, which is entirely within our control, influences our performance. Although the outcome is beyond our control, I focus daily on the process, not the outcome. When it’s time to perform, I shift my focus to my performance. Eventually, when I look up, I see the progress I’ve made.
What has been your biggest struggle and how did you handle it?
The most challenging experience I’ve faced was going through a divorce. It was particularly tough not being there for my son. I had to confront the fact that striving for perfection and always trying to do the ‘right’ thing wasn’t always beneficial. It prevented me from learning from my mistakes and maturing. The process of going through the divorce and understanding its impact on my son was incredibly difficult. I had to humble myself, my heart, and my spirit, and seek guidance from G-d. It’s an ongoing learning process, and I’m still growing from that experience
Let’s go off the field now. So you started a nonprofit. It’s called “My 10%”. Tell me about that.
The Bible talks about tithing and giving, 10% of your first fruits. The idea for the nonprofit stemmed from a realization that tithing doesn’t have to be limited to financial contributions and I wanted to extend the concept of giving beyond writing a check. The essence of 10% is about giving a part of oneself — be it resources, time, or effort. It’s a commitment to contribute not just in terms of money but in ways that can have a direct and meaningful impact on the lives of others.
Can you share your experience of venturing into the restaurant business, specifically a vegan restaurant in Texas?
Entering the vegan restaurant business has been a real learning process. I had never done anything like this before, but I had confidence in myself and faith in the direction I was moving. This venture taught me the importance of being trained not just in specific skills but in the process of learning itself, understanding what needs to be done, when, and how, and then applying it in practice. It’s been an ongoing learning experience, but a positively good one.
In transitioning from the world of athletics to business, are you seeing similarities in leadership, or is it different?
There are a lot of similarities between athletics and business leadership. In our business meetings, especially when discussing plans for the restaurant or future actions, I find myself drawing parallels with my experiences on championship teams. Just like in sports, where we had to focus on winning one game at a time to make the playoffs, in business, it’s about taking one step at a time without getting overwhelmed by past setbacks. The key is to stay focused on the immediate goal and not be daunted by the challenges, much like we did in sports to reach the playoffs or nearly make it to the Super Bowl.
Thanks, Ty you truly are first class. I really enjoyed our time together and wish you nothing but success on the field and in business.
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About the Interviewer: Chad Silverstein is a successful entrepreneur with more than two decades of experience as a successful founder and CEO. He started his first company, Choice Recovery, Inc. a third-party collection agency, out of his apartment while going to The Ohio State University. He grew the business nationwide and represented more than 10,000 clients before he sold the company on his 25th anniversary. Chad’s second venture [re]start, a career development platform that helps people find new jobs, launched in 2013 as a division inside his agency. [re]start was a catalyst to Chad’s team becoming an industry outlier after connecting thousands of people sent to collections with new career opportunities so they could afford to pay their bills and get out of debt. His team was nationally recognized for their social impact, while twice being ranked the #1 business to work for in Central Ohio. Chad sold [re]start in 2023 and is now a writer and thought leader for Authority Magazine’s Entrepreneur and Sports Editorials. He also offers an exclusive executive leadership program inside his online community at Authentic Authority
