In my time as Athletic Director at a large university, I do enjoy connecting with visitors, and will, at times, climb the bleachers for perspective. Those steps open up pleasant conversations that will sometimes turn to suggestions, recommendations, needs, wants, and comments. Most conversations start with:
“I know you have a lot of your plate, but…”
“I am not normally one to complain, but…”
“This is something small, but…”
And leads into the issue of the day, of which I have taken the liberty to keep notes of those issues for my own amusement, of which I will share with you:
- Music too loud
- Music not loud enough
- Too cold in the arena
- Too hot in the arena
- My seat is in a drafty area of the arena
- My seat is too far away
- There are too many stairs
- The floor seats are too close to the floor
- People in front of me are noisy
- Person behind me claps too loud / too close to my ear
- Person in front of me stand too much
- My seat has a pole in the way, I can’t see
- Free popcorn giveaway closed too early
- Not enough food in booster club room
- Too much food in booster club room, such a waste
- Need healthier food in the booster club room
- Need more sauces for chicken nuggets
- Ant hill mounds surrounding arena
- We need a new mascot, he’s looking a little ragged.
- Need to give a lesson to us old people on how to use our phones to get electronic tickets.
- Need to work on the sound system, especially on the balance.
The intentions are well meaning, but notably impossible to satisfy everyone. I chuckle inside as I lean into the beginning of a conversation with fans and cringe as the issue become more and more…noteworthy.
Leadership is a challenging space. We can never please everyone and hope to keep the masses happy. One day, I’d like to retire and sell ice cream. Ice cream makes everyone happy…one would think.
