Most of us have been raised to be modest, polite, and avoid inflated self-assessment. Some have learned adapted that posture and in the heat of business decision-making it becomes easy to underestimate what we’re truly capable of accomplishing.
Further, many of us have learned that lesson too well; and put in the position of managing program directors or a sales team, we may project that underestimation on them, thus undervaluing their potential as well.
Eventually, “underestimation” can seep through a department silently but steadily; reducing company élan, slowly smothering momentum.
It’s critical to recognize the difference between “strategy” and “tactics.” Working with managers and PD’s we’ve spoken of this many times. Still, on encountering troubled radio formats (or markets clusters) we find confusion over these terms and their application. “Strategy” is defined by the process of “winning the war.” In each Gulf War American command had a clear and realistic strategy for defeating the enemy. In a battle or a format war, “the steamroller strategy” only works if your side has the talent, resources, and personnel to attack your opponent. It calls for you to decide on the course, pour it on with everything you have, and stick with it until you prevail! This doctrine is not a game; it’s a way of business life.
Radio wars are not won by “defensive tactics”… unless your format holds at least a two-to-one lead in core demos! In other words, regardless of format, if your brand is virtually tied with your format antagonist, when in doubt attack! Radio wars aren’t won by “defensive tactics” (unless you lead by a double digit margin).
Given all that we face in today’s unprecedented climate too many CEO’s and managers revert to a defensive approach to business. A never-before crisis like Covid can force leadership to take a conservative posture. There may be a tine for seeking shelter, avoiding competitive conflict, but it would seem logical doing so can transform some organizations into sitting ducks.
As the cliché goes, “the best defense is a strong offense.” So go forward, be aggressive! Don’t give your competition a chance to pin you down. Trepidation and loss of inertia (translated to loss of morale) often march arm-in-arm with unnecessary “defensive” thinking.
Many of our very best programming clients attack a problem, attack the market, and attack the competition if warranted. When you practice this doctrine as a matter of “operating to win”… you usually do! A long arm’s reach from George Patton, Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, “A foolish consistency is the hobgoblin of little minds.”
