Update 8: The End

            Today was my last day with Mr. Simms, and I can’t express how much I learned from him.  He taught me about how he signs players to represent, how he markets them, and how he is always working trying to make sure his clients are happy.  Today he shared with me that one of his clients just received a deal from a sports memorabilia store to sign a bunch of jerseys for them that they could then resell.  The players received $12 per signature to sign 1,000 jerseys, meaning that he just made his client an easy $12,000 for about an hour’s worth of work.  This player is going to be a rookie this season and therefore not making that much money compared to the rest of the players in the league, so this money will be very beneficial to this player.  Mr. Simms was going to Chicago later today to meet with a few of his clients who are on the Chicago Bears, just to take them out to dinner and maintain a strong relationship with them.  I guess the most important thing I learned from Mr. Simms is that to be successful, not just as an agent but in all walks of life, you have to be personable.  Because no matter how great of a negotiator you are, no one will sign with you if they don’t like you as a person.  And regardless of whether or not I end up using all the sports agent knowledge I gained from Mr. Simms, that life lesson will always be valuable.