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My second blogiversary was Saturday. Last year I made a big tah-doo for my first anniversary of The Marketing Spot blog . But this year, I would like use the occasion to say thank you to some special people who helped positively shape my career.
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| Photo Credit: psd |
Thank you, Mike Warms. Mr. Warms was my journalism teacher for the one semester I spent at Trinity Valley Junior College in Athens, Texas. He once rejected one of my stories because I referred to the death of a faculty member as tragic. He said that was my opinion and journalism wasn’t about my opinion. I had to go out and find someone that thought the death was tragic. I did. Things sure have changed in journalism. Sadly, I just found out that Mr. Warms died in 1991 and I never got to tell him thank you for that lesson.
Thank you, Max Rudolph. Max was my broadcast radio instructor at Central Texas College in Killeen. When I told Mr. Rudolph that I wanted to be in sales because that was the path to management, Max challenged me to try something else because I just didn’t have the personality for sales. That challenge inspired me to prove him wrong. He later let me tutor the broadcast sales course.
Thank you, John Fletcher. John was the General Manager and co-owner of KJNE Radio in Waco Texas. In 1984 he almost didn’t hire me to be a copywriter for the station. Thank God he did. John taught me the value of thinking big. He brought personality and big-city radio promotions to small market radio.
Thank you, Jason Jennings. My first three months in radio advertising sales sucked. I was dying until the previously mentioned John Fletcher purchased Jason’s radio sales training tapes. Except Jason didn’t teach me how to sell, he taught me how to help the customer find a solution. Jason taught me that sales was really about helping the customer. Jason Jennings was a guest of my most recent podcast episode.
Thank you, Bob Bunch. Now the General Manager of KWTX-TV, Bob hired me as a as a radio advertising salesman and later promoted me to sales manager. Bob was always willing to try new ideas. Some of it worked, some of it didn’t but he was always one step ahead of the market. Bob taught me to look toward the future and not be stuck in industry norms.
Thank you, Chris Lytle. Chris Lytle was an amazing broadcast sales and management trainer. He created some stellar training programs for the Radio Advertising Bureau. Chris grew up in radio, but he was never about radio. Chris taught me that being a better radio salesperson wasn’t about selling radio, it was about being a better marketer.
Thank you, John Moore. A former marketer for Starbucks and Whole Foods, John Moore is the man behind Brand Autopsy. For some unknown reason, John took me under his wing three years ago. He selflessly gives me advice and helps shape my ideas. But John’s biggest contribution is encouragement. I have some pretty big dreams, but John encourages me to make those dreams bigger. He taught me to not hold back.
Thank you, Carol Ehret. Carol is my beautiful wife. Two years after we married she supported me as I quit a good job with good pay to start The Marketing Spot. She believed in my dream and stood beside me all the way. Without her I would have never made it through the tough times. She has taught me that it’s more important to have a life partner than it is to have a career.
Thanks for reading this post and indulging me. Please remember to say thank you to those that helped shape you along the way.
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