Caution: Sports Analogy

We’ve talked before in this blog about a subsistence existence, pertaining to a common financial mindset at many stations in public radio. I’m pretty convinced that there also exists a similar mindset when it comes to excellence and excelling.

Around the system, we’re beginning to talk big about being competitive in a rapidly evolving media environment (look ma, we have our own cell phone app!) but I don’t really think competing is natural for us, let alone winning.

I closely follow one professional sports team led by a billionaire, spoiled brat of an owner, who pays big bucks in free agency every year to win now. That’s the cut-throat world of pro sports. Big splash, high stakes. So far, in 11 seasons and hundreds of millions squandered, his dream of winning it all hasn’t materialized. Many would say, he’s ignored the heart of the team, even the spirit of the game itself, while paying to win, throwing obscene amounts of money at ego maniacal, over the hill players. Win now at all costs. It doesn’t have to be that way, but it is, mirroring the owner’s personality: impatient and impetuous. The glory days for my team are way back in the 80’s when the sense of team was palpable and fan loyalty was at an all-time high. There was a blue-collar work ethic amongst the players. Three Super Bowls followed.

On the other hand, look at this year’s Cinderella story in NCAA basketball. Here’s a team, Butler University in Indianapolis, that hasn’t won a national championship since Calvin Coolidge was in the White House. Their coach is just 33 years old. Like all college programs, Brad Stevens has had to make a national contender out of a constant churn of young, inspired amateurs, many of whom will never make it to the rarefied level of professional sports. His teams are known for being “exceptionally well prepared and quietly confident”.

How does he do it? He loves the game and employs what is known by fans and players as a “calm, focused coaching style”. With meticulous attention to detail and inspired leadership, he works on team first, achieves cohesiveness and consistency, and the wins follow. With no money, fame, glamor, or product endorsements to throw at his athletes, he inspires rather through discipline, vision, and example.

Tomorrow evening, he will play a perennial power house in the Duke Blue Devils on national television. Win or lose on the court, he has already won in terms of the character he has built in his team.

What is it then that we can do in public radio, often staffed with students and volunteers, institutionally minded office workers, and bereft of incentives like cash, fame, or product endorsements?

Think like a college basketball coach.

Here are 10 things I think we can do to compete:

1. Convert our staff, all of them, to radio people. Get the radio people among us talking about the magic.

2. Work on team-building, avoiding all the cliches and goofiness. Be real, be honest, be clear.

3. Define excellence in every area of our organizations. Reach for it.

4. Set realistic goals, near-term and long-term.

5. Celebrate success, even the small stuff.

6. Hire hungry, young, media-savvy, early adapters of new technology.

7. Align skill-sets of staff accurately with station activities.

8. Identify the rock stars in our midst and allow them to do their thing.

9. Find innovative ways to reward effort and excellence.

10. Take calculated risks.

Our managers are the coaches in terms of implementing these principles. We must make the tough calls when it’s time to bench someone or let them go. We must lead by example. We’re the ones that must burn the midnight oil to give our teams the best chance to win. We also need to re-establish the importance of job one, refocusing our staffs, if necessary on how critical what comes out of the speakers is, helping our team and our listeners understand what winning looks and sounds like.

Do you have the right coach? Is there fire in the belly…hers and yours?

Onward!

Go Bulldogs!