While the nexus of going to Los Angeles this week was for the CAA World Congress of Sport, the reality…one which I am continuing to realize is a sad reality…is that the real learnings occur far away from the stage for the most part. What the value is resides well outside the room with the casual encounters, listenings, and learnings form those who aren’t the same pontificating on stage, although there are always enough takeaways to note for the journey.
Some observations from those stage right in LA
“Socks are the new neckties.” I fully credit my friend and colleague Frank Brown with this one. Whether it was sitting in the front row looking on to stage or attending events or even walking around various places, it is obvious that socks…fun, vibrant, personality driven pieces of a storytelling puzzle, have replaced ties as the new casual personal identifier. Colors, patterns, shapes, lengths, all are now the norm, and I am a glad participant in the mix. I even scored a new pair from my visit to LAFC’s store on Thursday, and frankly, socks as a comfortable identifier for someone who loves walking, is much better than a piece of cloth restricting the neck. Bring em on and put em on. Every pair has a story to tell.
Downtown LA was adorned in graffiti, and I asked an artist why. Wednesday morning, I went on a very early quest for coffee, and as I walked towards the 6 AM Starbucks I passed a young guy, well dressed, pulling out spray cans to tack a blank piece of a metal grate. I stopped for a second and asked if I could watch, and he looked at me and said sure, but he would be on the move quickly. My first and only question was why? I asked because if you haven’t been to downtown LA the graffiti…both the artistic and the destructive…is everywhere, and no more so than all along the massive towers now abandoned across from LA LIVE (read a story on the why here). So why? The answer I got was a little surprising. Here is this young guy…Hispanic, college educated, a designer who had his portfolio in his backpack and was on the way to work…risking jail time defacing a building, for what he sees as needed self-expression and, in many ways, much needed attention to a civic issue. His hope, he told me, is that the massive towers…he did part of one mural he said…becomes a social experiment that actually has value as an art form and that it wakes up the design and art industry to new voices and faces who can emerge as disruptors. He did not view these urban canvases as territorial postings as some gangs have done. He and many others he knows, views them as carefully chosen platforms to tell their story, with the hope of leading to work. Risky for sure. Dangerous no doubt. But the art, and the towers, have raised awareness to the growing urban issues of LA, and maybe there is good that will come out of the blight. At least that’s what he hopes.
Drawing From The Idea Jar. I love listening to the random conversations that day take place well away from the islands of the self-absorbed and the self-important, and often times I find them taking place around an early morning cup of coffee. Thursday, which became an unplanned day of learning and visits, I picked up a great idea from a young woman who was randomly seated next to myself and my colleague Chris Wallace of the LA Clippers at Uncle Bills in Manhattan Beach. The young woman, who runs a business called Nicole Rene Stretch, had just moved back to the area from Hawaii, and she was talking with a lovely couple about the value of moving…physically and mentally. How does she set some of her goals? An idea jar. She writes down thoughts of things to accomplish on pieces of small paper and drops them in a jar. As she has time, she pulls one out, hopefully one each day, and it serves two purposes…written reminder of a task to be done, and as a wakeup call to refresh thought. They can be as simple as reading a story or call a friend, or as complex as learn a new social media platform, but the Idea Jar is a great, tangible way to move things along.
Also, great inspiration was another chance meeting Thursday, with a former student, Nicole Hogan, now working in partnerships for the driverless car startup Waymo. While learning about that business was amazing, what was even more were the Google offices…in Playa Vista, the hanger where Howard Hughes’ Spruce Goose once lived, and where blockbusters like Independence Day and Titanic were filmed. The space was amazing and serves as inspiration for anyone in the area. Another chance meeting led to an unexpected wow on many fronts.
The measurement of $20 Million. We are in a time when the idea of ‘Startup leagues’ seems to be an almost daily occurrence. While it was a topic that was sadly not addressed at the World Congress on stage, it was talked about in and around whatever the Masters of the universe were saying about how great their businesses were. Away from the stage people were talking about how cricket could actually work as a viable business, why there are four startup volleyball leagues when there is no proof that one can even exist yet, when we will actually have enough data to prove that sports played by women can be even more robust businesses (it will be a few years), why does anyone think “pro” leagues in table tennis, women’s rugby, Padel, Pickleball, bull riding, flag football can be actual viable more than buzzworthy “things”? Having been through the fallout of several startups, and still helping some on the “permanent emergent” side, two super smart colleagues who are also investors pointed to the same number. $20 million. Once that number is reached in fundraising, and there is a path of sponsorship, media awareness, and revenue, then there is a chance at success. All the buzz, celebrity “owners,” disruption and viability aren’t serious until you hit that number, and they pointed to several on the niche side, and several now taking hold, that when they got to $20 million, myth became reality. Maybe its not true all the time, but it provided a good example of quantifying buzz and storytelling.
Do you have a card? Lastly, the business card again holds its value. The best case in point was one of our favorite chance encounters, with young Will Conley. Will, who has a great backstory that will help set him apart in the job market (he was a walk on punter at Michigan, worked as a manager and found his way into some of the Maize and Blue’s biggest moments this year), was the first job seeker or information seeker we met in LA who offered up…yes his business card…to us when we first met. Since I am not great with names, that card became invaluable to me as I related his story and introduced him to others over a few days. The tangible, like the Idea Jar, became invaluable. Also invaluable was the reminder of good mentors and listening to those around you. Will’s father Dan Conley, who we also met, is an accomplished storyteller in his own rite, but was nudging young Will through the island of the self-absorbed and self-important to try and find a niche, and we were lucky he nudged us just enough. We will be helping young Will as he wraps in Ann Arbor, all because of the hustle, and the card.
All that as well as stops at USC, sneaking on to the field at the Coliseum, and some great quick stops in and around So Cal made it all a solid week. More to come ahead!
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