Guess what? It’s not all about you.
Anyone who has ever played on a team knows that. And shortstops know it best.
This idea is the fabric of his or her nature. While pitchers, outfielders, and catchers have received the lion’s share of the glory in baseball, they would be nowhere without a good shortstop.
The great 1910 Chicago Cub infielders Evers and Chance would be nothing without their shortstop Tinkers. The late 1990s will remembered not only by gargantuan home runs by drugged-up sluggers, but also for the great shortstop play of Cal Ripken, Alex Rodriguez, Derek Jeter, Nomar Garciaparra, and Barry Larkin. Yankees legend Phil Rizzuto selflessly helped his teams win World Series after World Series, but finished his career with a mediocre looking stat line. Oh yeah, he’s in the Hall of Fame.
You’ve got to be asking yourself: What does any of this have to do with content? Everything. The skills needed to be a good shortstop are the same as those possessed by a good Web editor.
Here are 3 things Web editors should keep in mind to better field their position:
Be a Field General
Once a shortstop digs his metal cleats into the manicured infield dirt, he has no equal. He also never shuts up. He’s constantly shouting support to his pitcher, directing his fellow infielders to the best position, and eagerly anticipating the ball being hit in his direction. He leads by example and never walks or jogs back to the dugout. He is always sprinting.
A Web editor must always be sprinting and leading by example. Your job is to run through walls so that the people you work for don’t have to. At the end of every day, there should be a Web editor-shaped hole in the wall of your office. Make sure your coworkers know you have their backs, and they will have yours. You are their first line of defense, so do everything possible to make yourself bulletproof.
Never stop moving the team forward, never stop pushing the envelope, and never shut up. The end result will not only be an improved website, but a team that respects you and is ready to battle with you every day.
Don’t Hate. Innovate.
It’s lazy for any shortstop to start making excuses why he doesn’t get to a ball that should be easily fielded. It’s even worse, when the shortstop starts picking apart and bemoaning the success of other shortstops that are playing the game better.
The same thing can be said of Web editors. So much time can be wasted complaining about the resources you don’t have, or how your competition’s website is superior to yours.
Stop it.
The first reason they do things better than you, is because you’re not doing anything. Identify the areas where your website performs well, and put all your effort into making them spectacular. And when you’re not working on that, come up with some out-of-the-box ideas that shake up the rest of your site. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes.
Derek Jeter gets asked about what he thinks about people who call him a poor fielder all the time. Does he pout and rage at the reporters and fans? Of course not—he’s a professional. He goes out there and does what he does well fantastically, and figures out a way to get through the rest without hurting his team.
You should do the same Mr. and Ms. Web editor.
Nothing is About You.
A shortstop can’t turn a double play without a partner, can’t score a run without the next batter in the lineup, and can’t will the pitcher to make the opposing team hit groundballs in his direction. A great shortstop knows he needs his teammates as much as they need him.
Whether you write every article on the website, have your own blog, or you have some say in design and advertising, you aren’t working in a vacuum. You need to be as inclusive as possible. Every idea needs to be heard, debated, and if it’s a good one, assimilated. You should never believe that every idea you have is the right one. And even if that were true, there are probably more ideas from the people around you that will make it an even better idea.
You’re not doing this job to make yourself look good. You should be dedicating yourself to making your website the best it can be, and making the people you work for and work with look like stars.
It is worth repeating: nothing you have done, and nothing you will do is about you.
The recent New York Times best seller The Art of Fielding focuses on the trials and triumphs of an up-and-coming shortstop. I’ll leave you with one of my favorite lines in the book that could easily have been written about a Web editor:
The shortstop is a source of stillness at the center of the defense. He projects this stillness and his teammates respond.
Now go run into some walls.
[Image: jellaluna]
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Great piece, Dan! I must say that baseball analogies are apt in just about every circumstance life and business present. I played (and still play) shortstop. Quiet feet I no longer have, but you’re right about everything else
It’s quite incredible how everything can be related to baseball. All about hard work and dedication.
I play shortstop for my softball team as. So far I haven’t maimed anyone like my buddy did when he played the position, which I’ve got going for me
The web editor, like the shortstop, the trash collector, and the undertaker is the unsung hero of the cause. Well done, Mr. Ford.
Thanks Allan.
I’d add grocery store manager to that list in honor of my Dad. I’ve been around hard work all my life, so I really appreciate and never take for granted all the little things that go into making something great. It’s not just about word structure and layout, it’s about having the right image label and the right part of the sentence externally or internally linked. All the little things add up that make the big things on the front end that much stronger.
I’m going to start calling myself The Undertaker. That would look great on a business card.
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