
Travels From: MN
No One Can Stop You But YOU is one belief that Walter Bond has embraced
and built both his personal and professional life around. Understanding that
no one can stop him has challenged Walter to work hard and maintain the
winning attitude needed to achieve greatness for himself and his family and
impart this belief using real life examples to the thousands of lives he
touches each year.
When did Walter realize that no one can stop him? That he alone possesses
the ability to move from the comfort zone of mediocrity to the success zone
of peak performance? This realization came - slowly at first - when he was a
young man growing up in a loving, upper-middle class family in Chicago. An
avid sports enthusiast and the son of a high school principal and teacher,
Walter learned from both parents that he would have to work hard in the
classroom and on the basketball court if he wanted to achieve his dream of
playing basketball at a professional level. Throughout grade school and high
school, Walter never let adversity stop him from being the best
student-athlete he could be. He studied hard and practiced day in and day
out on the basketball court in his backyard. Under the tutelage of his
father and his high school coach, Walter attained a coveted spot as an
All-State player in Illinois his senior year. This recognition reinforced
Walter's commitment to excellence and helped him earn a basketball
scholarship to the University of Minnesota.
Walter's strong will, his ability to motivate his teammates (while keeping
them laughing) and his "can-do" attitude helped him become a
nationally recognized college player. By the beginning of his senior year
Walter was known as the top sixth man in the NCAA. Unfortunately, Walter
suffered a broken foot not once but twice during his senior year - at a time
when many top division one players were being courted by the NBA. Walter's
"No one can stop you but YOU" belief and his confidence in himself
were put to the test. However, Walter knew then, as he knows now, that there
was no way he would ever give up on his dreams.
After graduating from the University of Minnesota with a BA in
Communications, Walter worked tirelessly at his game and landed a position
on the Wichita Falls Texans, a team in the Continental Basketball
Association (CBA), the developmental league for the NBA. He made a
remarkable comeback finishing the year stronger, quicker and more determined
than ever. His ability to overcome what could have been career-ending
adversity and his desire to succeed made Walter work harder than he ever
had. That year he made the all-rookie team and was spotted by the son of
Richie Adabato, then coach of the Dallas Mavericks. Walter's reputation as
an exceptional guard began to spread like wildfire. He was invited to a
number of free agent camps at the end of his first CBA season and Adabato
was so impressed that he signed Walter to play with the Mavericks. That
fall, he became the first ever rookie free agent to start opening night.
Walter, the young man who never, ever gave up on his dreams, went on to have
an eight-year professional basketball career, playing along side such NBA
greats as Karl Malone and John Stockton as a guard for the Utah Jazz and the
Detroit Pistons.
Toward the end of his basketball career, Walter developed the ability to
apply on-the-court success and teamwork to the business world when he and
his wife became owners of a national franchise. Walter changed his
profession but never changed his winning attitude.
Today, Walter is a highly sought after professional speaker, motivator, life
coach, humorist, son, husband, and father of three beautiful children.
Walter takes the life lessons he has learned about teamwork, leadership and
maintaining that winning edge, and incorporates these lessons into the
professional philosophies that inform each tailor-made keynote. Walter
influences, inspires and empowers-both personally and professionally-the
thousands of men and women he addresses each year throughout the United
States.