Mission

Search

The World is a Boxing Ring with Mike Steadman

Play episode

Mike Steadman always wanted to make an impact, and today he’s found a way in Newark, New Jersey. But how he’s doing it — through his company IRONBOUND Boxing — was definitely not the way he had envisioned.

Mike discovered his love of boxing when he joined the boxing team at the Naval Academy. He was enamored with the sport immediately, and he was willing to do anything to become a national champion. That included going to local inner-city boxing gyms in Baltimore and interacting with some of the toughest fighters he’d ever met.

“What I realized, the young men and women that I trained alongside at these inner-city gyms in Baltimore, D.C, Brooklyn, their life aspirations were a lot different than my teammates,” Mike says. “Inside the inner-city boxing gym, kids are in the gym or they’re in the streets, you know, they’re either going to go pro or they’re going back to the streets. And I’m like, this model is broken”

These street fighters made an indelible impression, and it was because of them that Mike decided to become an entrepreneur when he left the Marines.

IRONBOUND Boxing teaches the fundamentals of boxing while improving confidence, health, and morale. Mike has ultimately made a difference for kids of all ages by creating a nonprofit boxing gym that provides free recreation to Newark youth & young adults.

“IRONBOUNDS is like that haven,” Mike says “When you’re at your lowest of lows, you can come to this boxing gym, and you’re surrounded by people who support and care about you.”

On this episode of Find Your Mission, Mike tells his story about how he transformed a passion into a business that has made a lasting imprint on his community. 

Learn more about Mike and IRONBOUND Boxing here.

Find Your Mission is presented by WeWork in partnership with Dell. 

Thank you again to WeWork! Veterans in Residence, a partnership of WeWork and Bunker Labs, is a six-month startup incubator and leadership program that provides veteran and military family members the community, business support, and workspace to help launch and grow their businesses. 

To learn more about WeWork and the Veterans in Residence program, visit we.co/veterans

Also, thank you to our friends at Dell. Dell offers small business advisors to help any small business owner manage and understand all the ins and outs of technology in their small business. To speak with an Advisor today, Call 877-BUY-DELL or click here. 

This podcast was created by the team at Mission. If you want to hear more from Mission, be sure to check out Mission.org.

Menu

Episode 3