Updating The Circle of Relevance…

Many times at the start of class in a semster, or when I get to meet with young people, I try to run through a list of names to see who is interesting or relevant to their worlds. While I do it to convey the idea that you should be curiously learning wide, the reality is is that it serves as a litmus test for me as well to be reminded of the fleeting circle of what is important in a time challenged world today. A tiktok star or an entertainer or an athlete, heck even a commissioner or a president of a major brand, may feel relevant to me or my peers, but can gt blank stares from many in the room. It is an intersting test for both sides.

Now sports is a cyclical business. Seasons come and go and for those at the team level sometimes years can pass without breaking a cycle of repetition. It is a safe way to move a career along, and for those who care to innovate and change things up, the results can be very rewarding. For those who don’t you run the risk of creating repetition out of a job or sometimes even worse, becoming g stale and jaded in the monotony of the cycle.

The same is true in the academic world. Those of us lucky enough to have one foot in education and another foot (and more) in the business world can listen and learn from those around us, updating materials and best practices as the semesters roll along, or we can just keep doing rinse and repeat and sticking to an ongoing lesson plan with many of the same examples. After all, they are new students and they are probably as engaged and eager as ever, and the stories are interesting and compelling right?

Or are they?

There are always a few examples. In talking about personal storytelling recently, I mentioned the iconic sports film “Hoosiers.” It is one of the greatest sports films of all time, and makes its regular appearance on channels like Showtime, especially as hoops season approaches. A timeless classic right? Well not for 40 Columbia grad students, many of whom are in the mid to late 20’s and are looking to make sports a career. I have raised the great film starring Gene Hackman every year for the past 158 years in various classes, and always there were hands that went up saying they knew or had seen the film. For the first time a few years ago…silence. This year, a few hands went up.

“Hoosiers” apparently had run out of time and relevance with a generation.

Ugh.But that’s OK.

Ironically even when mentioning names like Gianni Infantino or Gary Bettman this year there was a drop of knowledge. One student recetly said to me…well, I’m not interested in the hockey busienss so why would I need to know that guy? Hmmm…

When I posted the note on my social channels it was interesting to see the reactions. Most of the responses were distain and disappointment that such a film had fallen off the radar of a generation. However, those responses were not from 30 or twentysomething followers, they were from much older friends and colleagues who had grown up and embraced the story as part of their sports experience.

In short, the film, albeit timeless, was less relevant to a generation today who has come of age with IShowSpeed, “Squid Game,” Mr. Beast and “Drive To Survive.” Those are points of reference and relevance for this age demo. It’s not their fault, it’s really ours for not thinking about their frame of reference and updating the storytelling and the messaging. It also made me think of all those clips and inspiring anthems we see at games. Are they dated? Does anyone going to games understand what “We are The Champions” is, or why Al Pacino is playing a football coach in “Any Given Sunday”? Do the cheers come from 40 or 50 somethings and are they lost on others sitting in the stands?

Its always good for a re-set.

Now can we encourage these people to go back and watch “Field of Dreams” as veteran actors encourage younger people to watch “Casablanca,” with the hope that some fun and knowledge is gleaned from a classic?

Perhaps, but the better example is to understand the relevance of your audience, and use examples, stories and anecdotes that resonate with them in real time, and even mix in some of those nostalgic looks back. Otherwise, you come across as out of date and out of touch.

Lesson learned, maybe one Norman Dale would have even appreciated. Now time to update the decks again.

Keep breaking the cycle.