This is a story
about SALES. In everyday life … you and I are so much a like even though thousands
of people someday will watch you perform your job and only one person typically
will see mine.
No matter the number
of eyeballs watching, we both have to bring the total package to work everyday.
Why I hit on this topic, gang, is that the power of social media now has the
ability to move the needle and sway sports franchises on how they conduct
themselves and or choose whom they want to invest in.
Not to relate my job
totally to a professional athlete but if my voice and mannerisms on the phone
do not uplift the possible business partner I am trying to sell within seconds
or if my appearance and ability to converse in person doesn’t connect with the
individual sitting across the desk, I will have a hard time getting the client
to invest in my product (which as you know is putting people in the seats to
cheer you on!)
Same for you as one
of today’s athletes. I was reading Sports Illustrated over the weekend which
had a piece on the Boston Red Sox and their disastrous season. Some of the
focus was put on All-Star Adrian Gonzalez, a high priced free agent just two
years ago, and his quiet demeanor on the field and in the clubhouse. Was he a
bad fit for the media-and-fan-crazed New England
sports market? Same for Carl Crawford?
One of my concerns,
fellas, is that in this era of pro sports, where you can be invested into the
hundreds of millions, you are selling yourself as a “brand” and that image of
you can pay off like a lottery ticket someday! In this SI story, the writer
actually indicates that the Boston New York
In some of my
writings to you in the past, I’ve stressed that you have to learn how to SMILE
and translate that “boyhood enthusiasm for the game” to the everyday sports fan
and the national media that will be watching you every step of the way. The
likeability factor – as we head into a much more dominant social media world –
is going to be the difference maker in who gets paid top dollar and who gets
pushed back to a secondary role on the salary scale if your game cannot relate
to the fans.
Every job in this
world is about SELLING YOU! It happens when you are dating someone; selling your
own coach; your parents; teacher, etc. Heck, I tuned into the Dallas
Cowboys Cheerleaders Show to watch one of the girls tryout that I help
mentor. They had 300-400 girls on hand competing for maybe 20-30
positions. What got you past GO on the
very first day of training camp was not necessarily your dancing skill or
beauty; rather the squad’s director was simply looking at each
person's SMILE! They were looking for the girl that had personality and then
the ability to transform excitement, fun and enjoyment from their performance
to the fan sitting in the stadium seats or to the fan at home watching on
television.
Fellas – be aware
that Major League Baseball teams are all going to be taking a much more serious
approach to the human elements of the individual when they determine who will
get top dollar and not. It won’t all be based on statistics such as batting average,
strikeouts or home runs like in years past but factors like personality,
enthusiasm and zest for the game will now start to weigh in when owners sign
off on their investments.
MY BEST FOR YOU!
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Colorado Rockies club philosophy on signing
top tier players: “Before signing a player to a long-term deal, we have to be
satisfied not with just the player’s skills but also with the content of his
character. We found that talent that isn’t also accompanied by other qualities,
such as humility, accountability and integrity, really doesn’t work for us” –
stated by Dan O’Dowd, General Manager
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“You are
the person who has to decide. Whether you'll do it or toss it aside; You are
the person who makes up your mind. Whether you'll lead or will linger behind.
Whether you'll try for the goal that's afar. Or just be contented to stay where
you are” – stated by Edgar A. Guest,
early 1900s American Poet
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“If we are to better
the future we must disturb the present” – stated by Catherine Booth, wife of
the founder of The Salvation Army, 1800s
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"Will you look back on life and say, ‘I wish I
had,’ or ‘I'm glad I did?’” – stated by Zig Ziglar,
American Author and Motivational Speaker
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“Always
remember that the shell in you must break before the bird can fly” - stated by
Alfred Tennyson, British Poet, 1800s
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Jim Loria
E-Mail: loria@sfstampede.com
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