In a candid conversation, Jeff Byers, co-founder and CEO of supplement company Momentous, reveals how his journey from NFL offensive lineman to entrepreneur was shaped by career-threatening injuries, influential mentors, and a commitment to doing things differently in an industry plagued by trust issues.
From the Field to the Boardroom
Byers’ path wasn’t linear from football to founding a supplement company. His father, a food industry executive, provided an early glimpse of corporate leadership. But it was his mother who Byers credits most for much of his character development: “My mom was incredibly influential in me becoming the person that I am.”
Growing up, Byers absorbed two fundamental principles from his father that would later guide his leadership style. “My dad talked a lot about two things growing up and they were attitude and effort,” Byers recalls. “There are very few things that you can control that are important to drive a big impact – and those are your attitude and effort.”
The Pete Carroll Effect
Perhaps the most influential figure in Byers’ development was legendary football coach Pete Carroll, under whom he played for six years at USC and one in the NFL. “Pete is one of the greatest leaders,” Byers says with admiration. “He chose to do things his way.”
What struck Byers most about Carroll was his consistent demeanor and infectious energy. “I never remember Pete showing up with low energy. I knew what I was going to get on Monday, on Tuesday, on Wednesday, on game day. And I think that’s a really valuable leadership trait,” says Byers. “When your people don’t know who’s going to show up, it’s really hard for them.”
Carroll’s approach went against conventional coaching wisdom. Rather than running a militaristic program focused solely on discipline, Carroll created an environment of joy and enthusiasm. “He always had fun. He was never cursing people out. He was always trying to figure out: how can you do it better than it’s been done before,” Byers explains.
This unconventional style manifested in Carroll’s hands-on approach to practice. “He would run around like he was a 22-year-old kid,” Byers recalls. “He would run down on the kickoff team trying to make people laugh with joy and he’d play pranks.” Unlike many head coaches who observe from afar, Carroll was in the trenches. “
What impressed Byers was Carroll’s willingness to physically engage with the team. “What head coach is putting on cleats to run around practice with the players? And bringing energy and passion and joy,” he marvels. This level of involvement and enthusiasm created a magnetic culture that attracted top players.
Beyond his energy, Carroll’s coaching philosophy created space for individuality within a team framework. “He treated everybody fair,” Byers notes. “ He let people play within four walls and they were wide four walls. As long as you bought into the team and you weren’t being selfish, you always had a place with Pete.”
This leadership style prioritized human development over tactical perfection.” He also believed he had an obligation to make the world a better place,” Byers explains. “He developed and touched so many young men’s lives for the better… where he could have been a complete hard ass and he could have ridden people.” Byers speculates that a stricter approach might have won more games, but at a significant cost: “If Pete ran a tighter ship, could he have won maybe three more games? Probably. But he would have had an immensely lower impact in the world.”
One of Carroll’s mantras that resonated deeply with Byers has become a guiding principle at Momentous: “Do it better than it’s ever been done before.” This philosophy of reinvention rather than imitation continues to drive Byers’ approach to business. “I don’t want to be like everybody else. This business that we’re building is not to be like it’s been done over the last 30 years. Let’s do it better. Let’s do it different.”
Turning Point Through Injury
Career-threatening hip injuries in college forced Byers to confront his identity beyond football. “It really makes you think about your why and your purpose,” he reflects. “When things you love get taken away… it forces you to center yourself on things you truly care about.”
These moments of crisis taught Byers a powerful lesson about identity: “Football doesn’t define me. It’s a part of me. I define me,” he says.” Momentous doesn’t define me. I define me. It’s a part of me. Many successful people let their job define them and I think that’s a very dangerous situation.”
The injuries that nearly ended his athletic career unexpectedly launched his entrepreneurial one. “The injuries that I had are still the biggest defining things in my life that have gotten me to where I am,” Byers acknowledges. “Everything happens for a reason and I sit here today only because of those things.”
Building Momentous Differently
After brief stints in finance that “did not fill my void that football left,” Byers found his calling in the performance nutrition space. But he was initially reluctant to enter the supplement industry.
“We never started this business to be a supplement company,” Byers explains. “My co-founder and I actually really pushed back against becoming a supplement company.” The industry’s reputation for prioritizing marketing over quality ingredients didn’t align with their vision.
Despite having “a million dollars of nutrition supplement products spent on me over the course of my career,” Byers couldn’t fully get behind any existing brands. “There’s a huge trust and transparency issue in the industry.”
Making the Hard Call
Byers’ commitment to quality over profit was tested when the company had to pull a successful product from their lineup. “Fadogia was a hormone support product… about $500,000 a month SKU for us, with high product margin,” Byers explains. But during their quarterly review, they found “the body of research did not continue to progress to warrant it in our highly curated portfolio.”
Despite the financial impact, Byers made the difficult decision to discontinue the product. “It wasn’t a hard decision. It was the right decision. But it was really hard to rally the team around it because it was going to hurt in the short term. But doing it differently is what makes us special,” he says.
This decision embodied Byers’ philosophy: “If we start making decisions based upon just profit and loss in the short term, it doesn’t build our brand on being a leader in the category and doing it the right way.”
The Simplicity of Excellence
When asked about which supplements most people should take, Byers avoids complexity. “I kind of follow the 80/20 rule. I think it applies to most things in life. Like 20 percent of what you do drives 80 percent of the value,” he explains.
According to Byers, three supplements form the foundation: protein (for muscle maintenance and satiety), omega-3s (for brain health), and creatine (for muscular and cognitive function). “That’s the foundation, and I would challenge people if you’re doing other things that aren’t specifically tied to blood work or medical or something, you probably should start there.”
This commitment to simplicity extends to his observations about elite athletes: “What you see in pro sports when people are at the absolute peak, they aren’t playing on the fringe, they’re buying the core essentials. They’re not looking at the crazy things on the edges.”
Leadership Lessons
Reflecting on career advice, Byers emphasizes authenticity and purpose: “Fight for what you believe is right. I didn’t become a founder and CEO to follow a cookie-cutter approach. And I didn’t do it just to make a [expeltive] ton of money. I did it because I love building and leading teams and doing hard things and making an impact in the world.”
For those early in their careers, Byers offers three pieces of advice: “Know your why. It takes a lot of work to be great at anything, and don’t be afraid to reinvent yourself. We evolve every six to twelve months, we’re gaining more knowledge and becoming different people. Just embrace that.”
His final insight captures his philosophy on excellence: “To be a great leader is really simple. It’s really hard. It’s not complicated… and to build a great business is actually not complicated, but it’s really hard. It’s simple, not easy.”
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