#nacda

The annual NACDA affiliates convention is one of my favorite weeks of the year. Not only is it a solid four days of professional development but also it is an opportunity to learn from your peers. This was my fourth consecutive as a member of CoSIDA. I particularly use this time to network and renew. A big part of this profession is that we make acquaintances all across the country and convention is one of the few times we get to see each other and we aren’t on the different sides of the field/court.

Some of my best friends in the business I have made at CoSIDA. Others I have made at past jobs/conferences but now we only see each other once a year at convention. There are a lot of social things to do while at convention and I love those, but I enjoy the time in between sessions when you are all kind of standing around, it’s a good opportunity to walk up to someone next to you and introduce yourself.

This year was my favorite experience.  I learned so much and laughed a lot more. After arriving to Dallas mid-afternoon on Sunday I headed to the CoSIDA Keynote presented by Chris Winfield. I think this might actually be the first time I attended the keynote and I am happy I did, and disappointed in myself for not attending ones in the past.

Winfield talked about how to make small steps to keep moving forward each day. He spoke about designating your MIT (most important task) and spending 25 minutes of uninterrupted time working with a five-minute break eight times a day. I honestly felt like Chris was talking to me throughout his whole keynote. Since returning from convention I have utilized “inbox pause” in Google, which he told us about. I have turned my notifications off on my phone, the less distractions the better as I try to accomplish more in a day without feeling like I am constantly working.

Sunday night I was able to spend time with my Sunshine State Conference friends at the Stretch Internet social. The guys at stretch were so helpful to me during my time in the SSC although they will never admit it, they never complained about my frequent phone calls when technology and myself did not mix. Sunday night was almost like a homecoming to me, so many hugs and laughs and stories being told. It was awesome.

Monday was BUSY! I don’t think I had five minutes to myself to pause and relax from sessions, to meetings, to everything in between. I learned the most Monday and attended “Think Like a Communicator” to “Life Outside of Being an SID”, both of which had great and panelists like April Goode (Virginia Tech), Gina Lehe (College Football Playoff) and Brian Miller (Stony Brook). I also sat in on my perennial favorite graphics session with the legendary Mark Majewski. I honestly think I go watch Mark every year for the laughs because I know I will never amount to what him and Kyle Stopperan (Miami) can create. Although I will say I did learn a few tips and tricks from them, mainly “less is more”.

Monday night I met with a special group of individuals, Jimmy Smith (Delaware), Maggie Hayon (Delaware), Chip Fontanazza (UCF) and a few others as we are setting the foundation for a new organization called CAFEDCA (College Athletics Fan Engagement & Digital Content Association). I can go on about this new organization but I can save that for a later post. Thanks to everyone who took time to meet on Monday night. If you are reading this and are interested in joining the organization, send me an email ([email protected]) and follow @CAFEDCA on Twitter to join our weekly chats at 8pm.

That night we all went to the Sidearm party. There I got to see a lot of old friends especially Ira Thor whom I connected with last year at Young CoSIDA after having a total “fan girl” moment. A year later we have developed a great friendship and I turn to him for advice almost weekly. If you don’t know Ira, I suggest you get to know him.

Tuesday I did the CoSIDA Cares community service project. Aside from community service being a great experience, we worked with the Miracle League of Frisco and Keeper of the Game. After we went to a Frisco Rough Riders game with the kids. It was pretty cool. Tuesday also served as another networking opportunity as I got to formally meet Chevonne Mansfield (American Athletic Conference) and Krystal Warren (Dayton). Chevonne had showed interest in helping out with the blog in the future so I am hoping we can get on her soon.

After community service I went to the NACWAA/CoSIDA reception and then down to the exhibit hall for a little bit before going to dinner with my coworkers and Athletic Director. Following dinner I went to Young CoSIDA which is always the best event of the year. Aside from there being no air conditioning in Dallas and me standing under a fan the whole night, it was a great time.

Tuesday morning came and I went to a few last sessions, the CoSIDA awards ceremony (shout out to Lamar Carter on being this year’s Rising Star) and some meetings. I got to meet my mentor Bill Dyer (Virginia Tech) whom is AWESOME by the way and we had a really good chat, more to come on Bill and my convo in a later post. I had a quick drink with a good friend Ryan Jones (NCAA) while my coworkers finished their last session and before I knew it I was saying my goodbyes and heading to Dallas/Fort Worth for my flight home.

All in all, this year was my best convention. I feel that I learned so much and met so many interesting people. I am looking forward to returning back “home” to Orlando for 2017. I could go on and on about convention but I will leave it at this, next year I want to be MORE involved. I would love to be a panelist; I think that there needs to be more female SID panelists especially when it comes to weighing in on the work/life balance of a SID.

Hopefully for those of you reading this that didn’t make the trip to Dallas I was able to give some insight on what you missed out on. Any further questions feel free to reach out.

I entitled my post "Lost" because I feel as if I've been lost from Tumblr these last few weeks. Shame on me for taking the time to post some meaningless topics on here for you all to read. Shame on me!

Not shame on me for just getting back from NACDA 2015 in Orlando! This was my first foray into the world of college athletic directors and their convention that they all talk about. Now don't get me wrong! I've been to my fair share of conventions in my lifetime but the NACDA Convention puts all other conventions to shame! No wonder it costs so much to go.... The location, speakers, exhibit hall and luncheons were atop of my list of classy and well-done! Not only did I have the chance to rub shoulders with BCS AD's and the sports biz top exec's, I had the chance to take part in an exclusive event: the Senior Administrators Mentoring Institute.

The Mentoring Institute was 24 hours of listening to the top AD's in the country candidly talk about everything from handling high-profile coaches, drug testing, job searching and strategic planning. It was an experience that I highly recommend and one that I will be doing again!

That's what has been going on with me! Pray for me always and I'll be praying for you!

Certified Florida Criminal Law Expert Stephen Cobb Receives Top 10 Attorney Award from National Academy of Criminal Defense Attorneys

Stephen G. Cobb

CRESTVIEW, FL (Law Firm Newswire) December 8, 2014 – The Cobb Criminal Defense Law Firm is pleased to announce that founding attorney Stephen G. Cobb has been selected as a Top 10 Attorney by the National Academy of Criminal Defense Attorneys(NACDA). NACDA is a professional organization comprised of legal professionals who practice in criminal defense and share the mission to…

Is social media making us anti-social? The answer is complicated.

Yes.

and no.

Huh? How is that possible?

I, for one, am guilty of sitting at a table in a public place, scouring through hours of tweets and social media posts - trying to digest everything I missed in the last 30 seconds of real life. It's a nervous tick. It's so annoying that my wife, my kids and even my dog will take my iPhone out of my hand to get my attention.

Social media offers instant gratification. It offers external validation. It fills a void that may or may not be healthy.

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Break social media down into two words: social and media.

We are now able to communicate easier, quicker and (in most cases) more effectively than ever. Social.

We consume and share news and information more than ever, easier than ever. Hence, media.

We are social beings by nature, but has the influence of social media really made us anti-social? It depends on who you ask. (Side note: read 'Stop Wasting Your Time on Twitter' by Matt Knisely)

I think we are so consumed by connecting with others that we may tend to forget the deep-rooted relationships we've already forged. Yet, we long for MORE human interaction. It's natural. However, as we get older, we tend to lose contact with acquaintances and casual friends, instead choosing to focus on family and really close friends.

Social media has tricked us into thinking we have to be in the moment every waking second of the day. It's not true. Live your life, don't tweet your life (said multiple times by Kevin DeShazo).

One of the cool things (and sometimes creepy, depending on the situation) about being so "social" on social media: going to conferences such as NACDA and COSIDA and meeting people face-to-face (finally!) after interacting for lengths of time on social media.

It's like we're all on a never-ending episode of Blind Date or Singled Out. When we see someone we "follow" on Twitter, do we go up and introduce ourselves?

How do we start the conversation?

What if he/she doesn't like the real me? What if they only like the social media me?

Sometimes I feel weird when the first thing someone says to me is: "I follow you on Twitter." I don't know what to say. But, social media opens endless doors to developing and maintaining meaningful, long-lasting relationships.

Don't be stuck behind a Twitter handle. Don't get hung up on how many "connections" you have on LinkedIn on Twitter.

Don't forget about what matters in life: Living life.

Let social media open the door, but you're responsible for making real-life relationships...real.

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A day later, I am still in awe of those that won an award at the 2014 CoSIDA Convention in Orlando. Even months after being told I was the recipient of the Rising Star Award, I'm in shock myself.

It's an honor, a privilege and a humbling moment in my life.

I thanked as many people as I could during Wednesday's luncheon, but inevitably, I left some people out. 

I had written an acceptance speech that didn't have to deliver, but it's pasted below in its entirety with everyone I want to thank for being a part of my professional journey.

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"Before I do anything, I want to thank my wife Ashleigh. This award belongs to her just as much as it belongs to me. She's the real star in my life. She's believed in me from day 1 and when I didn't believe in myself. She's enjoyed the highest of the highs and she's been by my side through the lowest of the lows.

Thank you for being the best teammate any man could ask for. I love you.

Thank you to my former student assistant Chris Whitehead, who nominated me for this award. I am proud to him a colleague and more importantly a friend.

Today wouldn't be possible without those that took a chance on a South Louisiana kid who didn't know this industry existed.

Thank you to Mike Montoro for hiring me at Southern Miss. Thank you Mary Beth and Dan McDonald, who treated me and Ashleigh like their own. Dan taught me the meaning of working hard and treating others properly.

Thank you to Randy Burnside, who convinced me to move to Huntington, W.Va., for graduate school. It was one of the best decisions I've ever made.

Thank you to Ian McCaw and Nick Joos for the opportunity at Baylor. I learned more in four years than I ever expected.

Thank you to Blake James and Chris Freet for believing me and mentoring me through my first two years at Miami. I am forever grateful.

Last, but certainly not least - thank you to my Communications Staff at Miami - Amy Woodruff, Taylor McGillis, Camron Ghorbi and David Villavicencio. I learn from you guys every day and you challenge me to be a better leader.

Thank you.

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Not only is every day a job interview, every day is also a chance to get better. If I didn't learn something new today or have the opportunity to teach someone, then today was a failure. I base my daily success on whether or not I learned something new or taught someone something new.

After spending four days in Orlando at the 2013 CoSIDA and NACDA conventions, I go back to work Monday knowing more than I did when I left last week. One of the greatest things about this week was interacting with NACDA and NACMA members.

I was humbled to have the opportunity to be a part of two great panel discussions during the CoSIDA Convention - "Media and Social Media Training for the Student-Athlete" and "Streamlining". I learned so much more from my fellow panelists in each discussion than the information I tried to impart on those in attendance.

While I loved talking about all the things we're doing at The U, I spent the majority of my time in Orlando learning and engaging with what others were doing at their schools.

Starbucks in the lobby of the Marriott Orlando World Center was the epicenter of all the communications and social media chatter for the week. I was humbled to meet and interact with those in the profession that I admire and try to emulate. Social media allows for all of us to engage and share ideas on an entirely different level.

I can recite my notes from all the panels I attended, but that would be boring. Instead, I'd rather share the five things I took away from this week's conventions:

We're all in this together. I write this blog because I love what I do, I love to write, and I love to share ideas and my experiences. That's the only way to learn.

Never underestimate what you do. With CoSIDA and NACDA conventions now in one place, it was a great opportunity to interact with others in athletics outside of communications. Be proud of what you represent..

If you have a good idea you want to share, then share it. The only way we can get better is by sharing and exchanging our thoughts and ideas. Don't be afraid to share something you think would be beneficial for our industry.

You don't have to join every social network just to do it. Some networks work School X or A University, but they may not work for you. Stick to what works best for you.

"The secret sauce to happiness is gratitude." I thoroughly enjoyed John Foley's presentation Saturday on "high performance leadership". Don't take anything for granted. Be happy you're here. #gladtobehere

Unfortunately, one other lesson I learned during my time in Orlando was possibly the toughest of them all. There are some people that will always mock you or try to hurt you when all you want to do is help others. At the end of the day, my callings in life were to work in communications and to be a teacher. That's all I want to do and yet there were a few (the 1%) that decided to tear me down instead. And that's a shame because we're all in this together. I won't let that 1% overshadow the opportunity I had to share ideas with others and to learn from others I admire and emulate in the profession.

I'm glad to be here.

Thank you to everyone who made CoSIDA and NACDA a tremendous success this year. And thank you to all the great people I met for the first time - you have me a better professional and I hope to continue learning from each and every one of you.

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Jack of all trades, master of none.

Communications and public relations professionals have a tremendous amount of responsibilities. There is more required of us than press releases, stats and media guides like 20 years ago.

We no longer only the “spin doctors” and “sunshine pumpers”. We are now content curators - whether it’s features, infographics, Facebook posts, blogs, Instagram photos, Vine videos or YouTube channels. We are in charge of content; we control our message.

With the addition of content curation, streamlining our operations and processes are vital. Why? Streamlining is necessary in order to remain efficient and get the most of your time and your staff.

I was invited to speak on a “Streamlining” panel Saturday afternoon at the 2013 CoSIDA Convention in Orlando. I’ll be joining Berne Caferelli from Notre Dame and Blair Cox from George Fox. While it has taken a while to establish a streamlined operation, it has become more and more beneficial with each day.

Of the many streamlining efforts we’re making at the University of Miami, I am most proud of two projects - our Communications Standards and the beginnings of our digital archive.

The latter sounds rather painstaking - and it is - but the final product will be a tremendous resource for our staff, media and fans to use for a long time.

Communications Standards (click for the PDF) What began as a simple style guide for my staff has evolved into a 74-page Communications Standards that has become a benchmark for other Communications departments at the University of Miami. It lays out everything from web style to social media policies and procedures. It is a constantly evolving document that will feature visual standards. A special thanks to Eric Nichols from South Carolina for sharing their social media strategy with us; we’ve adopted theirs as our foundation and hope to update for the 2013-14 academic year.

Digital Archive Is there anything more fun than digitizing Miami’s entire 90-year athletics history? I’m a history nerd and it’s a lot of fun for me, but it’s intense. Scanning photos and documents; emailing them to yourself; saving them into separate personnel folders (by sport); and eventually cropping the photos and downsizing PDFs. My goal is to have a digital personnel folder for every athlete, coach and administrator that has been at The U.

For the media and the fans, my end-goal is to have a head shot, action shot, bio and career stats for every letterwinner by sport. A daunting task that will take upwards up 2-3 years, but an excellent source of information for our media.

Game Notes and Media Almanacs Two of the biggest things I’ve advocated for the last few years are media almanacs (leaner media guides) and much thinner game notes. What we thought were awesome game notes 10 years ago - you know, the 100-page manifestos that would overheat our printers and copiers - are obsolete and a waste of time. A waste of time for both us and the media who we expect to read them.

I want our almanacs to be media-friendly, print-friendly and an easy resource to use.

Social Media Scheduling and Planning Whoever said you can’t schedule social media was wrong. You can. Scheduling tweets, Facebook posts and Tumblr blog posts are our greatest friend. They help us plan out our day ahead of time. Of course, in the event of a tragedy or bad news, you have to remember to turn off those scheduled posts. Keeping scheduled posts during a major news event or tragedy could have an adverse effect on your brand.

Also, take an assessment of what times work best for you to post. For instance, we have the highest engagement rate on Facebook from 5-10 p.m. ET. With Twitter, we have high traffic around 11 a.m. and again at 3 p.m. - typical times for people to take breaks at work.

Set aside times for certain members of your team to monitor social media. Give yourself a break from social. There’s no ‘I’ in team, but there is a ‘me’ in media (this sentence doesn’t make sense). Use your team to their advantage and set times for a difference person to post and/or monitor.

Editorial Calendar With our summer social media series, I laid out an editorial calendar for my team for their reference. It listed times each day for certain posts and on what platforms. This calendar setup will be a huge asset for us when school resumes so we know what/when/where we’re posting for each sport.

That’s what I’m hoping to cover during my portion of our “Streamlining” panel Saturday in Orlando. I am looking forward to meeting other communications professionals and reconnecting with colleagues at NACDA and CoSIDA this week.

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