The Work in Sports Podcast - Insider Advice for Sports Careers

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Going Beyond the Basics of Sports Internships – Work in Sports podcast e153 Feb 04, 2019

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Hi everybody, I’m Brian Clapp Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast…Apparently I am one of the few people in the world actually quite satisfied with last night’s Super Bowl – yes I am from Boston, life long Patriots fan, and yes I enjoyed last nights game.I don’t feel bad about this – people want me to feel bad – heck my wife was miserable that the Patriots were winning again. But I remember as a kid struggling though 2-14 seasons, going to games only to be cold and miserable for no benefit… but still cheering on the squad.I know no one wants to hear this today, but I was thinking last night when the Yankees have had their dominant runs, and yes I hated that, it was different because they could just outspend people. My hometown Red Sox have done the same… baseball is different, have money can win.In basketball, 12 man rosters – one superstar can change your entire team. Football is different 53 dudes. Injuries. Free agency. Salary caps. Draft position.This run is incredible – developing a team without the benefit of top 10 picks. And there is the most important word – team. Somehow, someway, they work and perform better as a team than I’ve ever seen in my lifetime.Tell me before the game that the Pats get held to 13 points and Brady looks “meh” – I would have said Rams win 30-13. But the team survived, the team performed, the team was more important. There is something very inspiring in that even if you don’t like the Pats.Alright – before we get to today’s question – this Wednesday on our podcast – Tripp Keister – Single A manager of the Potomac Nationals – he’s the winningest manager in Potomac Nationals history, but you know what is really cool – he considers himself in player development.What blew me away from this interview, and I’ll get into this in more detail on Wednesday, was how you assume things work differently in professional team sports. They are managing elite athletes, and that has to be a different approach or process than managing recent college graduates, right?Well, you’d be amazed at how similar they are. As I spoke with Tripp and peppered him with questions, it became clear that the principles of managing people and getting the best out of them and setting them up for success – is very similar whether it’s an inside sales staff or a bunch of baseball prospects.Pretty amazing stuff – make sure to tune in for that on Wednesday.Also, I’ll be back with Facebook Live on Thursday night at 7:30pm EST from the Work in Sports facebook page. I lost my voice and had to cancel last Thursdays event, but I’m back this week. I promise. So if you have questions about your sports career, come on and hang out for our live session and get tons of great advice.Alright – today’s question comes from Linette in Georgia – hello Linette!Hi Brian – I’m a college junior who has been following the advice you share on your podcast religiously. [thank you linette!]I’m in the midst of another internship cycle, and I’ve followed your advice to date. I’ve done an internship with a larger organization, which taught me so much about how things should be done, and I did an internship with a smaller organization, which allowed me to do so much. I feel very confident right now and excited about joining the industry when I graduate.But I still have another year and a half of school – and I want to get even more experience on my resume, what do you suggest?!Linette – this is fun, because when you finish the baseline expectations, the foundational elements of your plan, then you can get creative and look for new ways to enhance yourself. I have 45 ideas I want to share here on how you can push yourself to really pack in your resume before you graduate.1: Self-auditFirst things first – you need to do a self-audit. It is fantastic that you are getting experiences, bulking up your resume and following our internship strategy - but now you need to make sure you have the right skills in your tool belt.

Lee De Leon: The Business of College Sports – Work in Sports Podcast e152 Jan 30, 2019

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Lee De Leon, Purdue University Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director and Assistant Vice President of Development joins the Work in Sports to discuss working in the big business of college sports!For more information on the the Master in Sport Business Leadership program at Seattle University email them to receive more information at MSBL@seattleu.edu or call 206-398-4610 to learn more about how they can help you work in sport and follow your passion. Now on with the show...Hi everybody I’m Brian Clapp, Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast…Big thanks to Seattle University – our first sponsor for the work in sports podcast and a really great program.But let’s jump into today.So who do you want to be?Some of you listening may have that figured out, you have a vision for yourself and can see how your future in the sports industry will develop. Others the picture may be a little foggy you have some rough ideas and are working toward clarity, or maybe you have no clue, you just know your future is connected to sports.And then after all that work figuring our your goal – you still have to figure out how to get there!Sounds daunting right? Well, it doesn’t have to be.You have tools at your disposal, free tools, that you probably aren’t using to their fullest.Let’s run through an example – let’s say I had it in my head that I wanted to be a sports reporter on TV. Awesome, I have my goal – that’s often the hardest part.Now, I can, with ease, go through the LinkedIn profiles of 20 sports anchors. I can see where they went to school, what they studied, where they found their first job, how long they took before their next job, where the went next, what awards they’ve won and how they grew.I can go on YouTube and watch videos of them doing their job, maybe even find their demo reel.I can do a simple google search on their name and read their professional bio and learn even more.From this FREE information, I can create a step by step plan for myself to achieve my goal.And this isn’t just for sports reporters. If you wanted to work in analytics, or player development, or public relations, or become an athletic director – the information is out there, if you are curious and creative in the way you search and discover.This isn’t just theory – this is something highly successful people do every single day.This week’s guest is living proof. Lee De Leon is Purdue University – hold tight this is a long title – Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director and Assistant Vice President of Development.Lee decided long ago that he wanted to be a big 5 athletic director, so he studied the path of those who came before him.He looked right at the career arc of the big 5 athletic directors and identified the steps he needed to take to reach his end goal…and it’s worked. Lee has earned his masters, and worked within the athletic department at LSU, University of Houston, University of Arizona, University of New Mexico, Abilene Christion and now, Purdue. He’s closer now that ever to reaching his goal, and after this conversation I’m convinced we’ll be reading a press release announcing him as a major college AD soon.There is a lot to take away from this interview, so let’s get to it – here’s Lee De Leon, Purdue Universities Executive Senior Associate Athletic Director and Assistant Vice President of Development phew I did it.Questions for Lee De Leon, Purdue University1: Before we get into your roles in major college athletics, let’s go back to your days in college -- you completed your undergrad in business with an emphasis in marketing at Notre Dame and went right into you masters in sports management at Texas A&M. When and why did you figure out you wanted to focus on a career in sports, rather than a straight business role elsewhere?2: What about the decision to get your Masters, it seems like in college athletics it is more of an expectation to have your masters than maybe other fields in sports,

Stuck in a Rut? Not Sure What Career Choices to Make? Listen in. Jan 28, 2019

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Hi everybody I’m Brian Clapp, Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast..I want to say a quick thank you to all of the people who have been coming to our Facebook LIVE sessions every Thursday night at 7:30 EST from the Work in Sports facebook page. The sessions have been so much fun, I start out with a theme something I want to teach, and then open it up for audience questions.Last week the subject was the 5 people you need in your professional network – which sparked a lot of great conversation. If you missed the live you can check out the replay, either on the Work in Sports Facebook page, or on our blog WorkinSports.com/blog. If you have questions about your career, our facebook live sessions are just another way we are trying to help you!At WorkinSports.com we have over 10,000 available sports jobs all across the nation…but we also provide so many free tools to help you be the best you. Our Facebook Live sessions, this podcast, tons of articles and videos… we’re working hard for you.Friendly reminder that if you are a student, we have a pretty incredible deal for you. 6 month membership, full access to all of our sports jobs, for just $30. That’s pretty amazing $5 month for access to thousands of jobs across the country from employers big and small.Visit WorkinSports.com/students to sign up!Now let’s get into today’s fan question…I’m actually stealing this from a classroom session I did last week at Lindenwood University. Thanks to Dr. Daniel Sweeney for inviting me into their classroom for a live QA session.This was the hardest question I got all day. I’m paraphrasing since I didn’t write it down in the moment.“I’m a junior and for the last three years I’ve been trying to find out what interests me and what I want to do. I took this Intro to sports management course hoping this could be it, but I don’t think it is. I feel lost. Do you have any advice for me?”I’d like to add in, I was at my local coffee shop on Saturday morning and since I frequent the place I know most of the staff. One of the women working, said almost the exact same thing to me as the student above. I feel lost, I don’t know what I want to do with my life… and she looked to the heavens as if someone in the attic was going to scream down – “you should be an accountant!”The point of all this is simple – so many people feel lost when trying to define their career and give it a label. Even if you’ve deduced you want to work in sports, which I fully endorse, you might have no clue what you want to do inside of the vast sports industry.Just to set reasonable expectations here, I will not be able to tell you exactly what you should do with your life. BUT, I think in this conversation I can help give you some steps to take, and take some of the pressure off of you. So let’s talk about it, and all this applies to anyone, not just sports people.1: Your career is not a trap.I find the biggest problem facing people in the career decision making process is not excitement or anticipation of making a great choice, but rather fear of making the wrong choice.The people that struggle to commit have it their head that a wrong decision will doom them to an unhappy and unfulfilled life.Take a deep breath people. This pressure you are putting on yourself is NOT helping you.Here are the facts, that person next to you who says they know exactly what they want to do with their life… will likely change careers 5-7 times over their lifetime. That’s the data. People change careers between 5-7 times over their lifetime.This is not a one-time, set it and forget it, decision.You are judging yourself against other people, thinking they have it all figured out, and that mounts the pressure within. The truth is, they don’t have it figured out anymore than you do. They think they do, but they will likely go down one path, and then change to another..and another.Take the pressure off yourself! Your career is not something you start as soon as you f...

Vincent Pierson: Minor League Baseball, Director of Diversity and Inclusion Jan 23, 2019

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It's one of the hottest topics in all of sports; Diversity and Inclusion. In this episode of the Work in Sports podcast host Brian Clapp welcomes Vincent Pierson, Minor League Baseball Director of Diversity and Inclusion for an insightful conversation on equality in our industry. Hi everybody, I’m Brian Clapp Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast…People tune into sports as an escape. Their day to day lives hold stress – bills to pay, meetings to attend, promotions to fight for, sickness, relationships – all stressful endeavors.Sports, either playing or watching, in theory, is a release, a chance to tune out the external stressors and enjoy an art form not on canvas with oils and acrylics, but on turf with muscles and mind power.My career has embodied this to a tee. I thought about working in hard news, but the constant stress of politics and death and fires and traffic and tragedy and peril – was too much for me. Sports was light. A passion play that I could engage my mind into the strategy, but stay loose and separate from the constant constriction of life.But this is a naïve viewpoint, because sports isn’t separate from society, quite the opposite. Sports is a microcosm for society, mirroring the way it operates and often dealing with large-scale issues before they become large scale. Call sports a precursor to global events, almost a trial society where issues are played out int real time, then graduated to the society at large.The sports world is complete with societies conflicts, assets and defects.Our escape world is not bereft of greed, corruption, inequality or entitlement. Our personal utopia isn’t all upside, it’s flawed and broken just like the rest of the world.In sports we deal with real life issues like Ray Rice and Kareem Hunt’s issues with abuse, Tonya Harding conspiring to assaulting a competitor, Pete Rose gambling. We deal with people ruined by drugs or alcohol like Roy Tarpley, Josh Gordon, Mickey Mantle and Lance ArmstrongWe talk about social justice issues in the context of Colin Kaepernick, but the use of sports as a platform for social justice started decades ago.Why does sports act as a microcosm of our world? Because it is the ultimate meritocracy.Elite athletes are put into position to thrive based purely on their skills and ability, not their color or gender. If they stink they get cut, if they thrive and achieve and lead they get signed to massive contracts.When you have a meritocracy it almost forces diversity, because different people in different sports succeed in different ways. There is *some* balance.Alas, not all is rosy. The workplace in sports is just like the workplace in every other business in the world – there are struggles to enforce diversity and inclusion. Teams have had massive problems with these tenets. Google stories on the Dallas Mavericks and Atlanta Hawks and your jaw could drop – they are far from the only two.This issue is hot. It’s important, and it deserves constant conversation and more importantly action. There are leaders in the field of Diversity and Inclusion as it relates to sports, none more impressive that today’s guest – Vincent Pierson, Director of Diversity and Inclusion for all of Minor League Baseball. Let’s get to it – here’s Vincent Pierson.Questions for Vincent Pierson, Minor League Baseball Director of Diversity of Inclusion1: Before we get into the larger and extremely important issue of diversity and inclusion in sports, let’s talk a little about you. For undergrad you attended Virginia State, graduating in 2011 – at this point did you have intention to work in sports or was that something that developed over your college experience?2: You have a Masters from Central Florida – how much did getting that extra layer of education help open doors for you in your career?3: While getting your Masters you were a graduate assistant in the Institute for Diversity and Ethics at UCF – what was that experience lik...

The Research You Should Conduct for Each Job Interview – Work in Sports Podcast e149 Jan 21, 2019

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Wondering what kind of research you should conduct leading up to a job interview? In this Work in Sports podcast episode host Brian Clapp shares seven types of research you should complete for every job interview. Hi everybody, I’m Brian Clapp Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast.Before I get into today’s fan question – and it’s a good one – I want to talk about our expert interview coming up this Wednesday. Please allow me to get on my soapbox for a moment and whet your appetite for what comes later this week.Vincent Pierson is the Director of Diversity and Inclusion for Minor League Baseball and a guest I was really excited to have on the show. Diversity and Inclusion are really important topics in the world, not just sports, and to have on someone with Vincent’s background and passion was really exciting to me.But I was also kind of nervous. I admitted to all of you before that I get a little nervous before each interview and sometimes it ramps up a little depending on the guest. For example, Leigh Steinberg – yep, pretty nervous. You don’t want to sound like a dolt…and you also don’t want to throw out cliché questions and just have a superficial conversation.With Vincent, I was really nervous because of the importance of the conversation. It was less about Vincent per se, and more of a fear my questions wouldn’t take us deep enough. That I’d finish up and think, “damn, that was a missed opportunity, we could have done so much more in this conversation”Well, the good news is. We went there. We had the difficult conversations, we talked about the important things in life, and how our collective sports world allows for social impact on such a grand scale.When we published my interview with Mailynh Vu Cleveland Indians Assistant Director of Talent Acquisition, I told you all how excited I was…because she shared really actionable career advice that I knew you could all put to use.Well, I’m even more excited about this one, but for different reasons. This is so meaningful, so powerful, and so significant…I just cant wait for you all to listen. So stay tuned for that on Wednesday.As for today – is QA time!This weeks question comes in from Dave in Tallahassee – Dave writes in:Hi Brian, big fan of the podcasts and I can’t wait to tune into your Facebook live sessions, what a cool idea to interact with your audience.[Yes! For those of you that don’t know I run a Facebook Live session from the Work in Sports facebook page – not the podcast group – our company page every Thursday at 7:30pm EST – you should really tune in]Just curious – you have mentioned many times about researching a company before you have an interview, can you give us some examples on the type of research you should do and how this will help in the process?Why yes David, I can.Lets break this down – the idea behind doing research, the over-arching principle, is to feel like you understand the company before you go in the door. The more you can layer in your knowledge and your sense of preparation in the interview process, the more impressive you will be.So let’s break down some actual research angles and then provide some ways you can naturally work this info into the conversation:1: How do they make money? Sometimes it’s simple – they sell tickets to a game.Other times it’s more complex – They manage business to business sponsorships deals and help negotiate long term leases at arenas. I don’t know I’m spitballing here. But it is essential for your to understanding their products, their likely clients or audience, and their motivation – i.e. how they make money.Why because that’s the root of every business and it will tell you how the company divisions are weighted. Quick example, when I worked in the sports media I was on the content/editorial side … but I didn’t work any deals, I didn’t bring in any revenue, I covered the teams. Even if I was great at my job I was very replaceable.

Melanie Newman: Major League Talent – Work in Sports Podcast E148 Jan 16, 2019

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Melanie Newman is just one of just five women calling play-by-play in professional baseball. Learn more about how she beat the odds and keeps pushing for more on the Work in Sports podcast!Hi everybody I’m Brian Clapp, Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast…I was struck this week by a response I received on our private facebook group for fans of this podcast. If you aren’t a member of the podcast group, you should be, search for the work in sports podcast on facebook and join in.I posted in there that I wanted the serious people in the group to post their 2019 plans – all the steps they were going to take this year to reach their goals of working in the sports industry. I wanted them to post these plans, and then allow the rest of us to hold them accountable.Personally, I thought this was a great idea. Because I want everyone to take real steps, real action… not just a bunch of cheap talk. What are you going to do!If you are a student – what is your plan? What internships are you going to aim for, what events are you going to volunteer at, what courses are you going to take, what clubs are you going to get involved in, what people are you going to network with what information interviews are you going to set up – and how will they all help you toward your goal. This is a plan. This is something you can execute and push you toward you ultimate goal. Every step has meaning and purpose.So I post this call to action and I get a response – now this is just one response, most of the responses were positive – a person says “At this point, I don’t need a plan, as much as I want a foot in the door.”Look I get it, people feel desperate, people are scared, people want their career to appear before them and when it doesn’t happen that way they get frustrated. A plan takes time, a job is now.I can hear the frustration bubbling up inside this person. But here’s the honest truth.Things like leadership, and love, and fitness…and your career – don’t just happen, they are a consistent process. They take time and they take many little tiny micro decisions, or micro actions, that eventually lead up to the point where you get the result you want.You don’t go to the gym one day and become fit. You don’t just want a job and get a job.It takes steps. It’s takes consistent positive action. How do you know what those actions are?Well, think about this for a second. Before you started listening to this podcast did you know the steps Brian Killingsworth took to become CMO of the Vegas Golden Knights? Or how Nicole Lynn became a sports agent? Or how Mike Judge became the manager of ticket sales for the Cleveland Browns?No you probably didn’t, but now by listening and learning from these experts you have blueprints. By conducting your own informational interviews you have the steps, by networking, and interning and following the QA sessions and facebook live sessions and all the other great content we share at Work in Sports.com you have the game plan.What are you going to do with it?Today’s guest Melanie Newman, Broadcaster for the Frisco RoughRiders is one of just 5 female play by play broadcasters in professional baseball, and she is amazing. Do you really think she’s achieved what she has by “hoping” or “wanting” – no, she worked at it. She set her goals, she made her choices, she went after it…Well, I’ll let her tell you – here she is, Melanie Newman, Broadcaster for the Frisco RoughRiders!Questions for Melanie Newman, Frisco RoughRiders Broadcaster1: Baseball isn’t a sport where you can just wing it – I’ve known people who can fake it through a basketball game, but baseball is really hard work, the games are long, there are a ton of long pauses, lots of strategy that demands some explaining… when did your love of this game start and why?2: What about the media broadcasting side – when did you figure out your love wasn’t just baseball, it was on this storytelling, reporting, broadcasting side of things?

Is There a Hiring Season for Sports Jobs? – Work in Sports Podcast e147 Jan 14, 2019

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Hi everybody, I’m Brian Clapp Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast…As you listen to this episode I’ll be in sunny Phoenix on a business trip with the rest of the Work in Sports crew coming up with new ideas, features and business objectives for our site – the leading job board for the sports industry. Quick check – yep we still have over 10,000 sports jobs available on our site – 10,148 jobs to be exact so the odds are in your favor since you only need one of them.I may do a Facebook live from the Phoenix office so keep a look out for that in the coming days.Coming up on Wednesday – Melanie Newman, Broadcaster for the double A Frisco RoughRiders – one of only 5 women doing play by play in professional baseball, it was an honor talking to her, real pleasure, it’s a great interview.As for today! It’s a QA session day which means I’m answering a fan question… from peter in Chicago.Hi Brian, love the podcast. After Cody Parkey double doinked the game winning field goal, losing to the eagles in the playoffs, I literally closed myself in a room and listen to your podcast. It took my mind off what just happened and helped me transition back to real life goals. It also got me thinking about a question – when is the best time of year to get hired? Is there a seasonality effect to hiring that you’ve noticed in your career?What a cool question Peter…and I have to say I’m honored that I occupied your ear holes in such a time of misery. As you likely know I live outside of Philly, BUT and from Boston, so last year’s super bowl was particularly tough on me. I feel you Peter.Let’s talk hiring seasons!There are really two answers for this – for internships and for full-time work. And there is some variance based on sport so let’s start there.The overarching theme here is that if you want to work in professional sports, a vast majority of hiring takes place in that teams off-season. Usually after the season ends people take some time off…it’s a long season, they need to recharge. Then then spend a few weeks around the office planning for what is next – what do we need for next season, what are our budgets, where are the holes on staff etc.I notice that hiring usually ramps up about 1 month to a month and a half after the season ends for teams.Now during the season teams fill holes, of course, if someone leaves the sales department they’ll hired their replacements. BUT, the larger numbers of openings become public in that 1-2 month period after the season ends.Now that’s on the team side but if we’re just talking about regular old sports jobs at networks, at conferences, at athletic departments, at agencies – Mid-January (i.e. right now) is actually a big hiring period.Why? Well, most companies don’t like to hire much between November and December. It is hard to integrate a new hire when people are on vacations, and there is a general lull around the office as we jump from holiday to holiday and throw in some parties. It’s just different, so most in HR will wait on their hires unless it’s needed immediately.Also, most businesses have an idea on their budget allocations come the first of the year so they may have capital ready for a new hire. There are new sales forecast and new company goals and initiatives – and this can lead to openings in the new year.The first week of January is a blur -people are getting caught up on all the things they neglected at the end of the December, so don’t send in your app, or try to get up an informational interview, or really try to do much that first week. Come back hard in week 2!Now, there is also more competition in January – since there are tons of people making new years resolutions to get new jobs…so the battle for attention ensues!My general recommendation is to have a consistent approach to your job search – do a self-audit so you know where your skills stack up and where you have gaps, find jobs on our site that interest you,

Mailynh Vu Cleveland Indians Assistant Director of Talent Acquisition Jan 09, 2019

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Looking to get a job in sports? Mailynh Vu, Cleveland Indians Assistant Director of Talent Acquisition joins the Work in Sports podcast and shares incredible career advice!Hi everybody, I’m Brian Clapp Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast…There is a mystery that surrounds the hiring practices of professional sports teams, like your grandmother’s secret meatball recipe, no one really knows what goes into the process.This is frustrating.The people in our audience ask daily – how do I stand out from the crowd? Do I need more experience? How do I nail a phone interview? What should be on my resume? How and when do I follow up after an interview?There is really no where to get these answers. Well… until today.Honest and important topics like this aren’t posted around the internet, there isn’t a legit place to research these questions. Sure you’ll find theories, you’ll hear from people like me who share their experience…but if you want the real inside story of how to get hired in pro sports right now, get out your pen and paper, and get ready to take some notes because Mailynh Vu Cleveland Indians Assistant Director of Talent Acquisition is letting you in on the process.Mailynh has been with the Indians for 8 years, and in this far reaching interview we go really deep into the process of hiring at the pro team level.The trends she sees emerging from a hiring stand point –Her process of narrowing the field.What type of things make her notice a resumeThe things people do wrong on their resumeNailing the phone interviewMastering the in person interviewFollowing up after the interviewAnd so much more. After this interview you are going to have yourself one heck of an action plan for you future. Let’s get to work – here’s Mailynh Vu.Questions for Mailynh Vu, Cleveland Indians Assistant Director of Talent Acquisition1: In our audience we have people looking to work in the sports industry, but we also have people who specifically want to work in human resources and talent acquisition – so let’s start with that side, what led you to your career in talent acquisition and why sports?2: I read a recommendation written for you on LinkedIn by a former co-worker and they said “Mailynh was a large part of my success while with the major league franchise's marketing team. She is a supportive colleague who listens and has a knack for helping. She is a compassionate and caring team player, who offers advice and guidance to new employees.”That’s pretty amazing!How important is that style and personality to be successful in Human Resources? Your connection to the employees and desire for them to succeed doesn’t stop on their first day of work, right?3: Let’s talk about the hiring process in a little more detail, in your 8 years what are the trends you see emerging from a hiring stand point – are there more requisitions in certain aspects of the business? Is it constantly changing or pretty standard from year to year?4: So you have a requisition open up – what is your process for narrowing the field? Do you look through mounds of resumes? Use some computer tools to refine things?4a: I know the demands of each job and requirements are different – but what stands out to you? What type of things make you notice of a resume?4b: What about for the wrong reasons – are there certain things you see in resumes or cover letters that are a pet peeve? 5: Lets get back to process, after you narrow down the field to candidates who meet the job requirements, I imagine it’s a phone interview first? What recommendations do you have for people on the phone interview, that can be an awkward experience for many – what makes you hang up that call and think… ”alright, that person stood out for the right reasons!”6: You keep narrowing down the field and then eventually you are at the in person interview – I imagine you’ve sat in on hundreds of these, or conducted them yourself. How does someone really master this part of the proc...

Motivation Doesn’t Work. You Need This Instead. Work in Sports podcast E145 Jan 07, 2019

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Life isn't like the movies. Motivation is temporary. Instead of waiting for inspiration to come from someone else, try this instead. Hi everybody, I’m Brian Clapp Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast.It’s the first Monday episode of the year 2019 – which means I am obligated to set the tone in this episode for what you can expect from me and the rest of the crew at WorkinSports.com in the coming year.Here goes – I’m going to be more raw and honest than ever. Why? It’s not to become some shock jock, quite to opposite, it’s because I’m really sick and tired of the crappy superficial advice that floats around the internet, and I believe with all of my heart, we need our content to go deeper and even more honest and real..You guys and gals listening are, in my eyes, the elite future of this industry, because you a driven to learn and advance. You should be proud of that fact, but the work hasn’t stopped yet, there is still much to do and much to accomplish.I know my pattern is that on Mondays I answer a fan question, and I love these sessions, but today I want to go a slightly different direction. I want to cut to the bone a little bit and explore something that has been really frustrating me lately.It’s the concept of external motivation.I go on my linkedin page and I see post after post from people who call themselves keynote speakers, and motivational speakers and they are all sharing and serving up bite sized nuggets of motivation. Cute quips and modified cliches that are supposed to set you on your path to joy today.I’m sorry – it just doesn’t work that way.Stick with me for a second – I am the biggest Rocky fan you’ll find. I watch every movie, I cry, I get inspired, I do push ups, I vow to get myself into rock star shape every movie. And then, my kid comes over and says “Dad, Nathan pushed me!” and the moment is gone. I’m on to real life. Or my boss calls and says “hey I need you to work on this project” and that sense of desire, that fire within is pushed back deeper and deeper.The idea that someone else can spark true lasting change in you is a wish and a prayer, it is not a plan. You need your motivation to come internally, and you need an actual executable plan to achieve your goals.If I sat down after every Rocky movie and drew myself up a work out plan, and carved out a time in my schedule each day, and I downloaded all the rocky music and I committed to doing something with my motivation – well that can work. But that is the plan working, not the momentary burst of energy that comes from a speech or a movie or a quote.So what is your plan?That’s what you need to set your mind on right now – what is your plan? HOW are you going to reach your goal?Not just that you are motivated to reach it, not just that you are inspired to go far… HOW are you going to do it? What steps are your going to take, what micro decisions are you going to make?For example, let’s say I read an article about a podcast host who grew his audience from 100,000 to 1 million listeners yearly – and for a moment I felt motivated and inspired by that possibility.That’s great, but now I need to form a plan.Which could look like this:Connect with more sports industry thought leaders on LinkedIn – 5 per week.Learn more graphic design skills to promote our content – by FebruaryGrow our email list 25% to help with promotion – by MarchDevelop a media kit for the podcastCreate a podcast hype video – by FebruaryLearn more social media marketing techniques by taking a class and listening to webinars – by JuneThese are just a few steps of a plan that I can put in place to reach my goal – it isn’t enough to feel motivated. It isn’t enough to make a new years resolution. You have to create the steps to get you there. Motivation in temporary. Form a plan.Don’t get me wrong, motivation can be the spark to set things in motion. And, the quips and quotes can be very effective reminders to get you back on track… but you n...

Kurt Svoboda, University of Michigan: Working in Big Time College Athletics Jan 02, 2019

Show notes

Learn more about the challenges and opportunities of working in big time college athletics from University of Michigan Associate Athletic Director Kurt Svoboda!Hi everybody I’m Brian Clapp Director of Content for WorkinSports.com and this is the Work in Sports podcast –Welcome to January 2019 everybody!This is a pretty crazy time of year in the sports world, everything but baseball is in full swing, and even baseball just wrapped up their winter meetings, teams are signing free agents, plans are being made for spring training and hiring is taking place to get ready for next season.Basically, our sports world is at full tilt – and nowhere is that more apparent than in college football.Bowl games seemingly every night, which I don’t know about you, makes me think of all the individual staffers hard at work, in college athletics. Everything from travel, to coaches to trainers, to athletic directors, to PR staff -- everyone is at their heightened best.Sometimes in sports we make things seem more complex than they really are. We look top down at the world of college athletics and see a huge business, big deals, sponsorships, suspensions, hires, injuries, marketing campaigns, fundraising… and it can all seem overwhelming.I sit back sometimes and see the expectations of major college athletic director and think – holy crap, who could possibly do all that? I don’t think I would sleep very well.But then, like with most careers, when you boil it down to the essentials and you observe the best in action – you see things that make the picture clearer.Take Boston College Athletic Director Martin Jarmond.BC earns the right to play in the First Responders Bowl against Boise State in Dallas. They go through weeks of planning, parents, students and fans book flights, hotels, tickets and rental cars to travel down to Dallas for the game.And then, truly the unthinkable happens. The game is cancelled due to weather with 5:08 remaining in the 1st quarter. I don’t know about you, but I don’t recall ever seeing a bowl game cancelled.Now, take a moment and think of yourself at a Walmart and then person in front of you is trying to return the sled they purchased because… well, it hasn’t snowed. They are belligerent, rude, obnoxious and full of blame… as if it is the stores fault it didn’t snow. I want my money back!If I was Martin Jarmond, this would be the visual I’d be having as the weather turned bad…thinking to myself, uh oh this is going to get ugly. People are going to be upset, anger will follow.Jarmond has three options as I see it.1: Just start handling the incoming onslaught and trying to make people happy through apologizing.2: Wait and see what Boise State does and follow suit.3: Take action. Immediately.Jarmond opened door #3 – he took action.Announcing that fans who purchased tickets through the school to the First Responder Bowl will receive a full refund by Jan. 2. AND fans will receive free tickets for the number of bowl tickets they purchased to any BC athletic event through December 2019.Quick decisive simple action. No committee meetings, no revenue impact spreadsheets, no hand wringing or clutching pearls.Instinct. Do what is right by the people. Get ahead of this. Work positively.The reaction was immediate – Twitter lit up with thousands of comments akin to “classy move by Boston College” and what could have been a communication nightmare, turned into a case study for how massive athletic programs should still operate with a soul.Our guest this week knows this better than anyone, Kurt Svoboda is the Associate Athletic Director for External Communication at the University of Michigan, the voice of the athletic department and a true pro in the industry. Prior to UM he worked in similar roles at Stanford and Harvard, managing the flow of communication within the athletic department, and boy does he have some stories to share.In case you have forgotten… that whole “Call Me Maybe” phenomenon from a few years back started with a vi...

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