X-Games. Detroit's bid versus Austin's bid.

This doesn't quite fit this blog, but I wrote about this a bit yesterday and it's still on my mind.  Both cities swung for the fences, looking to land the X-Games.  Both made fantastic presentations, and Detroit really went for it like a drowning man going for a life preserver -- because they really needed it. Austin was barely even concerned with it, most of the big push was done by corporate interests while the citizens were mostly of the opinion "if it happens, it happens."  I know, because I live in Austin.

So why did Austin get it?  And what can we take away from it?

Let's start with the videos.  Here's Detroit's.

It's actually really good.  It reminds me of Chrysler's "Imported from Detroit" Super Bowl commercial featuring Eminem.  I can understand drawing inspiration from that, it was the first time in a long time that Detroit could really celebrate being Detroit and it was immensely empowering.   This video really shows off Detroit and its beautiful ruins and shows how the X-Games could really rock this gritty, urban feel.  It shows the enthusiasm the people who live there have for the city and how they really want this and how they'll work their ass off to make it work.  It's a video from the heart and it really connects and it's great and wonderful.

If this had been the only video I watched, I'd wonder why they didn't get it.

The only problem is that Austin's is better.  Seriously, watch this.

Yeah.

The intro to the Detroit video is grit and gloom and beautiful ruins. It's a full minute and 40 seconds before anything exciting happens. It's got a cold sepia look to it that feels like winter is never going to be over and summer may never arrive. It certainly fits Detroit, but I wouldn't say it fits the X-Games.

The X-Games is all about flash and style and being hip and trendy and cool.

Oh by the way, guess what city is currently gaining a huge reputation for being hip and trendy and cool?  That's right, it's practically Red Bull Ground Zero around here. Guess what city really captured that feeling in their video? It starts off with trendy dubstep backing music and an edgy little intro. 10 seconds in, we're already seeing skateboarders and BMXers. People out in the sunshine having fun. It doesn't look like we're outside making the best of a bad situation, it looks like we're outside because that's where all the goddamn fun is. These aren't furry monsters in coats, these are fit, tan, toned, and beautiful people. We didn't make a makeshift BMX track out of garbage, that shit already existed (incidentally, I always forget about our downtown BMX park and apparently, it's really, really good). Wakeboarding? Shit, we do that year 'round. A minute in and it feels like I've already seen more action in the Austin video than I saw in the entire Detroit one.

Let's be honest, the Detroit video shows me an X-Games that I want to see on television. I really do want to see those ruins and watch people tearing it up. However, when I watch the Austin video, all I can think of is, why am I not out there doing that? I want to be there. I want to be those people. I want them to be my friends and come over to their house and drink their beer. Best of all, living here, I know that's my town. That's what it's really like here. Bring your shit here, because here in Austin, there's always a party and summer never ends.

So, what can we take away from this?  I'm not entirely sure.  The decision came down to a couple of things, primarily the character and attitude of the city.  It's not like Detroit could have been someone different.  It's not like Austin sold itself as something it's not.  However, there's a few things here. 

One, a big reason that the X-Games are coming here is because of that big nice racetrack east of town.  Without them, this literally would not have happened.  I say that because they're the ones who put this video together, and they're the ones who put in the long hours on the Austin campaign.  I'm also sure that some small part of the decision came down to the fact that the X-Games really wants to go play at premier facility not just in the United States, but the world.

Again, I'm not sure what Detroit could have done, it's not like they aren't trying to attract new businesses and new opportunities, it's just that so many of them -- like the X-Games -- are going to other cities.  Changing their image and their fate isn't going to be easy or cheap.  But at the end of the day, all the passion in the world isn't going to change anything if you don't offer someone a compelling reason to come and make an investment.  Maybe you're getting turned down for every job you apply for.  Is it because you're not trying hard enough and you don't have enough passion for the job?  Maybe.  But it could be that you just haven't put together a compelling enough package.   You can swing for the fences all day, and you can want it more than anything, but if you don't put in the time to build those muscles, your effort will be for naught. 

Let's talk about that package.  Detroit had a tough sell and they didn't get it done.  Why not?  I think it's because they looked at the image they want people to see when they think of Detroit -- a gritty place that's down on its luck but always comes out swinging -- and not what the X-Games wanted for a host city.  That image worked in the Chrysler campaign because you aren't trying convince people to move to your city, you're trying to convince them to buy a product after decades of substandard effort and economic adversity.  You're trying to say, "we've had our hard times.  We've made mistakes and we've paid for those mistakes.  But you should give us another shot, because we were great once and we know how to be great again.  We're gritty and not pretty, but damn it, we are some hard ass motherfuckers who know how to get shit done -- and we've done exactly that."   

That statement may or may not be true, but it damn sure sells a product.  I almost want a Chrysler after that commercial and I can tell you that their product isn't that good yet.  But that doesn't sell a city.  Nothing in that commercial makes me want to visit Detroit.   It makes me feel hopeful and proud for Detroit, but I'm not booking any plane tickets or packing any bags.  Copying from that commercial seems to make sense until you realize that you're selling a completely different product to a completely different crowd. 

The message in the Detroit bid video isn't even remotely the same message that the X-Games, and in particular, the Summer X-Games is trying to sell.  Detroit never thought about what the X-Games wanted, only what they wanted.   Next time you swing for the fences, think about what you're hoping to achieve and think about how you can show others how it's a benefit for them.   Austin never talked about how much they needed this, or how much they wanted it, or how it was going to benefit Austin.  No, they simply said, "here's how we can make your X-Games look awesome.  Come party with us."  As always, that's a message that sells.  

Is Someone Getting the Best of You?

Let me start this off by saying I've had a bad week with lots of setbacks.  I won't get into it, other than to say that we all have times like these.  Everything was coming up roses a week ago, now it's all coming up shit.

As a result, I've been slacking off on just about everything.  Today, this song popped up in my playlist. It happens to be one of my favorites, but I never really heard it before today.  I think there's a double entendre in the title.   The question is a good one, and on the surface, it sounds like the classical definition of "getting the best of someone" -- outdoing, overcoming, outwitting.

However, there's another meaning in there.  Is someone getting the best of you?  Are they getting the best you they can possibly expect?  Today, I realized that question was very relevant -- my friends and my family and my job and my passions and my future plans were getting anything but the best I could give.  They were not getting the best of me.

Why not?  Even when things aren't going right, why can't I still go out there and give the best of me?  Shouldn't that be exactly the time I give the best of me, so that I have the best chance of turning it all around?   It's hard, but if improvement were easy, we'd all do it.  I think it's time I embrace this song and continually think: "Is someone getting the best of me?"  If nothing is getting my best effort and attention, then I'm doing something wrong.

Not commiting

I hate to do another gym-related post, but every time I'm there, I see it as a microcosm of life.

I see so many people who go to the gym and "play" at being there.  This isn't their intent, of course, but it's exactly the overall effect.

They go there with no real goals.  They say, "I want to be in shape" without defining what that means.   This means that it's much easier to quit later.  They don't know what success looks like, so they never get there, never make any real steps to get there, and quit because they aren't seeing any results for their hard work.  Or, they move the goalposts, redefine success, and declare a false victory and move on.

They go there and never push themselves.   I watch so many people pick up 5 pound weights or work out on the machines with the lowest weight setting.  They walk instead of running.  They do three exercises and walk out.   There's a time and place for this kind of thing and it's when you're horribly out of shape and have just started working out -- but if you've been in the gym five days, you're no longer at that point.

They bitch about how hard it is.  Of course it's hard.  That's why there's all those pithy sayings.  My gym used to have one from Lance Armstrong that said, "Everybody wants to know what I am on. What am I on? I am on my bike busting my ass six hours a day; what are you on?"  While he got busted for doping, the quote still holds true.   Even though he used performance enhancing drugs, he was still on his bike, busting his ass, six hours a day, every day.

What I'm saying here is that if you're going to swing for the fences, you've got to commit.  No more half-assing your way though things and trying to make something work without actually working.   You need a game plan.  What does success look like to you?  A million dollars?   A Ferrari in your garage and a vacation house on some tropical island?  The girl you've been pining for the past 10 years?  What is it?  When can you say "Mission Accomplished" and have it mean something?

How are you going to get there?  It's nice to say "I want to be rich" and even define that as "rich means $10 million in my bank account and no debt", but you can wish for that all day long and never get there.  You need to break it down into steps.   Stop thinking about the whole and think about the smallest manageable step.   For instance, I once had to report to a job in San Diego -- where I'd never been, knew no one, and only had the address of the business and the name of my boss.  My mother wondered how I could ever do such a thing, there was so much that could go wrong and so much I didn't know and I had to be there literally tomorrow.

I knew I had to be in San Diego.  Too far to drive, so that's a plane ticket.  Luckily, there's an airport in Austin.  A few minutes online and I had one.  That only got me to the airport.  I'd need to be in Mira Mesa.  Luckily, airports have car rentals, so I'll do that.  How do I get there?  I have an address, I'll use Google Maps to plot a course.   And so on, right down to finding a hotel until I could find an apartment (I need a place to stay) and taking a few days off to come back and pack my stuff and terminate my lease (need my stuff, don't need the apartment in Austin).

You can apply this to anything.  If you want to run a mile, you can start by running two minutes.  Once you can do that, run two, walk two, then run two more.   The next day, try running for three minutes.  Keep building on that plan and you'll eventually get there.  Want to start a business?  Break it down.  There are always steps you can take each day that get you closer to your goal without being impossible.

Once you've started, keep pushing yourself to do more.   If it's easy, you're not working hard enough.  If it's hard, remember that nothing good was ever built without some serious hard work.

Get out there and swing.