Munzer “Munzy” Kabbarra became a believer in Podium X when it helped him land an NIL deal with Adidas. He had sent his recently created Podium (an online profile designed to highlight athletes’ accomplishments to attract businesses) to the Adidas rep. He was offered an influencer assignment the next day.
That led to another NIL deal: Podium X’s first Brand Ambassador. And with this role, he hopes to encourage other athletes like himself to take advantage of how efficiently and effectively Podium X showcases the experiences and qualities of athletes to assist in their pursuit of jobs, internships, and NIL opportunities.
Munzer “Munzy” Kabbarra is a sophomore on a swimming and diving scholarship at Texas A&M University. He’s a Texas native and one of the first generation of collegiate athletes who have signed NIL agreements (Name, Image, Likeness) to supplement their income by promoting their sport and sponsors. His exposure to Podium X came from the partnership Texas A&M has with Podium X to provide the career development profile/resume creator to all Aggie student-athletes.
Munzy created a Podium X profile to highlight his character and athletic accomplishments. He chose to include phrases to describe his approach to competition and work. One of them is, “My ability to win is based largely on my ability to outwork everyone around me. I am dedicated and focused on getting better all the time.” Munzy believes that hard work differentiates champions from the rest of the field; it takes plenty of determination to hit the ice-cold pool at 5:00 AM to start practice. He plans to bring that work ethic forward into a sales or marketing role in business after he hangs up his goggles for good.
Munzy is pursuing an undergraduate degree in International Studies of Commerce with a plan to pursue a master’s degree. His swimming accomplishments include winning the Texas 6A State Championships in the 200 Individual Medley and breaking the state record in the 200 Freestyle Relay. He represented Lebanon in the 2021 Olympic Games (Munzy has dual citizenship through his father), where he swam the 200 Individual Medley and was ranked in the top 100 in the world while being the youngest swimmer in the event. While at A&M, he’s placed in the top 10 at the SEC Championships and competed at the NCAA Championships as a freshman.
Munzy came to swimming after trying several other sports, including soccer, cross country, baseball, and basketball. He wasn’t successful at or enthusiastic about any of them, but he says, “the moment I hit the water, I knew I’d found my calling.” He fell in love with the sport and was thrilled when he achieved his dreams of swimming for a Division 1 team and the chance to become an Olympian. He plans to try out for the 2024 Paris games, again swimming for the Lebanese national team.
Through his social media, he promotes the sport of swimming, events, Adidas gear, and Podium X to his audience of 8,770 followers on Instagram. The amount he earns per post allows him to supplement his income on a flexible schedule he controls, unlike most campus office jobs.
When asked about the reported millions collegiate athletes in other sports are making for NIL agreements, Munzy says he’s glad his income is more modest. He credits his parents for helping him understand the value of money and living on a budget, and he’s building practical spending habits and a healthy relationship with money.
Munzy lived for several years in Dubai and speaks fluent Arabic; he feels that his background will help him in his future career in a company with an international footprint. He enjoys his online work for now but is more interested in meeting with customers face-to-face, building trust and long-standing relationships. He’s not sure how long he’ll be able to swim at the highest level, but he knows that when it’s time to transition to a business career, he’ll continue to apply his work ethic and determination to succeed.
Munzy is proud of the strong values his family taught him. He believes national brands are looking for influencers whom they can trust to create content that reflects well on their brand and to keep their public personas scandal-free. Modesty, hard work, and perseverance are part of Munzy’s personal brand. It will also be what he brings to the next phase of his life, no matter how long it takes to achieve success. He’s playing the long game.
He draws inspiration from a quote by Steve Jobs: “If you really look closely, most overnight successes took a long time.”
You can create a podium today and see what’s in store for you.