HPU.
Students attending the life skills sessions at High Point University in North Carolina might not have expected any similarities between the lessons shared by an NBA executive with power in business operations and a Morgan Stanley financial advisor managing billions of dollars. However, through the HPU Access to Innovators program, two global leaders have shared leadership lessons that look almost identical, past their specific industry jargon.
Through this program, students have gained access to mentorship programs and lectures by Charlie Freeman, president of business operations for the NBA's Orlando Magic, and Mark Bradburn, founder and co-managing financial advisor of The Bradburn Group at Morgan Stanley. Freeman serves as the university's Sport Business Executive in Residence, while Bradburn serves as its Wealth Management Expert in Residence. In recent sessions with the two leaders, students at HPU have gained valuable insight into the leadership qualities valued in high-stakes industries like theirs. Below are some of the tips shared by Charlie and Mark in 2026.
Mark Bradburn's most memorable session with High Point University students focused on emotional regulation skills, which he argued were among the most important for leaders. During his Questions and Answers session at HPU's Hayworth Fine Arts Center, he told students that managing your reaction to positive and negative news is the foundation for long-term credibility in any career.
He shared with students, "When you're dealing with billions of dollars, which is what I manage, you can't panic. People are trusting you to make sound financial decisions, so staying calm and being thoughtful with your responses and their reputations is super critical." He pointed to his own turning point during the infamous internet crash of 2000, when he shifted his focus from the market or the weather, which he couldn't control, to what he could grasp.
Alex Muravski, a sophomore business analytics major from Tulsa, Oklahoma, summed up Bradburn's message to peers: "Realize the bad times are going to pass, but the good times are also going to pass, so don't celebrate every minor victory like it's the World Cup." By keeping your emotions at a six or seven on a ten-point scale, you can avoid letting setbacks ruin your day and keep yourself from emotional burnout by reacting too quickly to good news.
Charlie Freeman's Life Skills and Leadership Series session titled "Crush Your First Review" was focused on leadership from the other side of the coin. Having spent more than two decades with the Orlando Magic before being named president of business operations, Freeman explained how nobody is alone on their climb to the top. Instead, leadership is a collaborative job that involves, but is not limited to, the following skills:
Instead of seeing negotiation as a conversation to dominate or persuade, Freeman recommends approaching them with a win-win mindset. In prior sessions, he stated, "To reach a fair resolution, understand what is important to both sides, set boundaries of what is fair, and know who's the ultimate decision maker." He urged students, families, and listeners to manage their emotions during negotiations, practice patience, listen carefully, and remain humble and confident without being arrogant. Although in different industries, this advice holds strong next to Bradburn's advice on coping with financial crises and becoming a business leader.
Both executives agree that young professionals must be able to take feedback well to succeed in their career paths. For example, Freeman stressed the importance of following up with supervisors and mentors throughout the learning process. He recommended always asking for specific guidance, demonstrating your competence, and following up afterward. He encouraged students to accept every job review, especially the poor reviews, as a chance to grow rather than a label on their worth or knowledge.
Bradburn's version of the same advice was similar, as he told students he set himself apart from competitors through small habits that built up over time. For example, he made sure to return calls, prepare meticulously for every meeting, and manage his own emotional state to build trust with his clients and higher-ups. Both men returned again and again to the idea that leadership is built slowly over hundreds of smaller moments instead of in larger triumphs.
Although Freeman and Bradburn have both offered advice in multiple settings, their residence in the Access to Innovators Program at HPU sets these conversations apart from other lectures. For example, Freeman's recent campus visit included teaching a professional development class for first- and second-year sport management students, sharing lunch with HPU's Business Fellows, and running small-group exercises in which students presented responses to job-review scenarios for him to critique in real time. By contrast, Bradburn brought his daughter, Blythe Marshall, an HPU psychology major, onto the stage alongside Tomiwa Bello, a senior finance major who had completed a summer internship at Morgan Stanley and had been offered a full-time role.
Hands-on contact is the defining feature of High Point University's program to teach life skills to undergraduates. Dozens of global executives, including Freeman and Bradburn, serve in residence at HPU. During their residency, these CEOs, business owners, founders, engineers, and creative visionaries visit the campus multiple times to deliver classroom sessions, mentoring sessions, and structured Q&As. Students who attend four designated Access to Innovators sessions can earn a tuition-free Life Skills certification, a credential HPU has designed to pair its academic degrees with professional coaching. This program sets the school apart from other high-ranking universities.
HPU students may also develop more realistic expectations for their first jobs. Those who work with these executives can see that Freeman's path to the NBA front office took decades of consistent effort and that Bradburn did not just walk into Morgan Stanley. Instead, he interviewed in the only suit he owned, was turned away the first day, and came back the next. Honesty from such respected business owners and professionals cannot be found in textbooks or in a classic classroom, allowing HPU students to reshape how they think about their own mistakes.
The above advice from an NBA executive and a Wall Street wealth manager teaches current students about the current state of leadership hiring initiatives in the US. Although technical expertise is still important, it is not the only skill leadership teams look for when hiring new graduates. According to the executives who are mentoring High Point University students, it is the ability to stay composed, collaborate well, and derive real learning from feedback. By doing so, you can build a reputation that gets you more opportunities in the future, instead of jobs based purely on skill.
HPU business, finance, and sport management students graduating into one of the most uncertain job markets may be worried about how AI and fewer automated job openings will impact their ability to get hired when they graduate. The combined wisdom of Freeman and Bradburn offers a practical starting point. These professionals recommend keeping your emotions steady, taking feedback from your teammates and leadership, following up with everyone, and playing the long game. As both executives emphasized, the people who lead successful organizations rarely do so on the strength of one heroic decision but through several small, meaningful choices in their daily jobs and personal lives.
