A detailed description of the Speech can be found under the heading Speaking Topics
Mental Coach - Motivational Speaker
Babak Rafati teaches describes his practical experiences and teaches strategies as a mental coach. He accompanies public figures and VIPs, such as professional footballers or top managers, who suffer from stress, pressure and exhaustion, in order to help them regain their balance and prior levels of performance. The handling of media and superiors at the management level is also taught on the basis of each individual’s own experiences. An interesting and exciting transaction analysis (TA) from a practical point of view that sheds light on the behaviour and background of supervisors in order to develop an understanding of them. Knowledge creates understanding, which creates a willingness to change.
Babak Rafati was a banker in senior management and a Professional Referee for 25 years. He has 15 years of experience in professional football, having played in the elite German Football Association with over 200 games under his belt in the first and second levels of Bundesliga. He also played in the DFB Cup and, from 2008 – 2011, he was an active FIFA referee at the international level. Overall, he has refereed teams from over 50 countries. That’s more than a quarter of all the countries on Earth! In his professional career, he has accompanied superstars and world-class players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, David Beckham, Mesut Özil, Lukas Podolski, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Diego Maradona, Neymar, and Manuel Neuer. Today, Rafati referees special events such as farewell games for professional footballers.
Following the tragic suicide of the German national goalkeeper Robert Enke in 2009, Babak Rafati attempted to take his own life on the 19 thof November 2011 in a hotel room before the beginning of the first Bundesliga match. This shook the entire footballing world. This desperate act was the result of burnout/depression, triggered by bullying, pressure and stress. In 2012, he retired and put an end to his impressive career. After his recovery, his best-selling book, I Whistle on Death, was released in March 2013. The book was a sensation, mainly because of the explosiveness of the taboo subjects in combination with top-class sport, which is something that nobody expected.
A documentary by the German Bavarian Broadcasting BR in the Lifelinesseries titled, After the Game, was broadcasted and detailed Babak Rafati’s life story. He is regarded as a figurehead and ambassador for society with respect to topics such as stress, the pressure to perform and job-related burnout. You can see the film in the media library of the Bayerischer Rundfunk and the ARD (German public broadcaster).
Additinally in 2018, along with many other professional footballers, politicans and public figures, he has received the German recognized ‘My Role Model’ Award.
Babak Rafati and his wife (alongside the managing director of this agency, Rouja Rafati, who played a crucial role in the process of Babak’s crisis and comeback), were awarded the Ambassador Corporate Health Award in 2018 by several associations, including Handelsblatt (major German newspaper), the German Association for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses (BVMW), EuPD Research Sustainable Management and the IAS Group, for their exemplary commitment to helping others. With their expertise and familiarity, they will act as the face of German companies with respect to the topic of business health management. Babak Rafati and his wife are predestined for healthy and sustainable personnel management in the world of work. They are often invited by companies to give out special awards and honours.