Meet Reilly Wadsworth

Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Reilly Wadsworth. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Reilly, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.
My family has constantly pressed the important of purpose in one’s life from a very young age. I was always encouraged to find what that means to me and how to translate that into leaving the world better than I found it.

I have found my purpose through every moment I have gone through. It has translated into storytelling and attempting to give the lessons I’ve learned back or share my gifts for the benefit of others.

Storytelling is often tricky because there’s really no mastery to it. You have to know your audience and be deeply empathetic. I have a tattoo on my leg that really gets to the crux of this. “There can be no knowledge without emotion. We may be aware of a truth, yet until we have felt its force, it is not ours. To the cognition of the brain must be added the experience of the soul.” -Arnold Bennett. This is on my leg vertically because you have to sit down to read it horizontally. I wanted it this way to illustrate the need to sit down and meet someone where they are. Listen to someone, not just hear them.

I have gone through many amazing times but the difficult ones were the ones that shaped me the most. I have suffered great loss, intense situations, and adversity. These moments only made me a better storyteller and person because I chose that for myself.

In life, I see it as you have good problems and bad problems. It’s about perspective and how you accept it into your life. This shapes your approach to something which ultimately adds to your understanding of your purpose. At least it did for myself.

I know that my mission in life is to tell stories in a way that positively affects lives and nurtures empathy. I want to leave the world better than I found it (yes, this is a shoutout to my PNW friends and the campfire rule). My purpose has been built off of patience, persistence and passion.

So to answer this question in short; I don’t really believe I found my purpose. I think it was always just in me and a part of the fabric of my being.

Thanks for sharing that. So, before we get any further into our conversation, can you tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you’re working on?
I am the Content Manager for the Kansas City Current NWSL team.

My job consists of heavy production: photo, video, graphics, copywriting. In addition to this, I also do creative and social strategy and help maintain/run social channels for the club.

The most exciting and special part of my job is being able to make world history. We are currently building the first women’s professional sports stadium in the world. And I get to be a part of it.

This opportunity is extremely humbling and I am constantly grateful to have the privilege to be a part of this movement and honor not only women’s athletics but athletics as a whole. It truly is groundbreaking and a major difference maker in sports and to be able to move to KC from Portland for this mission was incredible.

I have had the honor of watching this stadium develop from ground up and we are only raising the bar from here. Being able to tell the story of this stadium and our incredible team is a dream.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
The three qualities that have been most impactful in my journey have likely been my empathy, storytelling and love for sports.

Those things combined together have built my foundation, my mentality and my perspective on life which are crucial to who I am and what I do.

My advice to people who are early in their journey is to be patient, practice kindness and gratitude and have grit. Be resilient. Question yourself and your thoughts or beliefs. Find what you believe in. Do your research. Push yourself. Teach yourself new things and try to make excuses as little as possible. I would say no excuses ever, but let’s be realistic. That being said, be a realistic optimist. Find the good but also get your shit done. This just means you can acknowledge something is hard but you can tackle it at the same time. You are capable. Find your edge. Talk less and listen more. Observe. Fall in love with learning. Find what you like to do and then see how far you can take it. Surround yourself with the right people. Be competitive but know how to lose. You will lose a lot. Do it with grace. Learn what forgiveness means for yourself and others. Do good. Fear no one. Tell the truth. Unless you’re doing comedy then stretch it for comedic effect. Take care of your people. Lean into your emotions and allow yourself to feel them. Be the hardest worker in the room. Be the kindest as well. Do more. Take care of the world around you. Be the difference. Be grateful.

To close, maybe we can chat about your parents and what they did that was particularly impactful for you?
While my parents gave me every ounce of support and opportunity, I think the most impactful thing they did for me was letting me fail.

They weren’t afraid to and that made me not afraid.

Through loss, both in sports and in life, I embraced it. I didn’t shy away from pain and I never really have. Even when I’m scared, I have a tendency to hop right in like the first time. I know I can handle it. And when I have a hard time doing so, I have learned how to ask for help or find how to best take care of myself. That has been the hardest part: learning how to help myself. But when I need it, my parents are there for me.

My parents truly are my everything. They’re the reason I am who I am. I am the best of them both and have always intended to be. They have pushed me and instilled great values in me from a young age. It’s hard to pinpoint exactly the most impactful thing but I say letting me fail because I think it’s one of life’s necessary lessons. It’s so hard to let people you love feel pain and go through it but they learned how to and it was necessary for my development in life. It taught me resilience and grit and competitiveness. And on the opposite side, it taught me forgiveness, patience and to be gentle.

Many people don’t learn to fail. And many people don’t understand it. How you react to loss though is incredibly important. This doesn’t mean you don’t give your all. It’s just understanding that failure is inevitable at times and you have to make the most of it. Loss is lessons. And lessons are wisdom. I am very competitive and have high standards for myself but sometimes I come up short. The point is to overcome the obstacles, take your lessons with you and find a way to accomplish whatever it is you intend to.

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Reilly Wadsworth

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