Matt Bish and Wally Reed explain the importance of a positive outlook while selling tickets for the New Jersey Nets. The Nets are currently mired in one of the worst seasons in NBA history.

I have been publishing this blog for a little over a year now; I must admit I am surprised by the variety it contains. Each article addresses issues, people, events and information I consider pertinent to sport management professionals, business leaders, athletes, sport enthusiasts, high school/college students and their parents. Some are inspired by events in my personal life (especially my two daughters), by my interactions with students/alumni/colleagues (I am a sport management professor) and by the events and circumstances of everyday life. My goal is to provide content that helps readers look at things from a different perspective and enables individuals to learn while being entertained.

For this week’s blog I’d like to get your input.

• What types of topics do you enjoy the most?
• What issues would you like to see covered in upcoming posts?
• Do you have any questions about sport management at the college level or in the “real world” of business?
• Is there an area I have not yet covered that you feel should be examined and discussed?

This is your specific invitation to let me know what you want to see from me on this site. Please remember that I am always open to suggestions or comments—I am just taking this week to especially focus upon your thoughts and ideas. To make things easier and to serve as an overview (especially for those relatively new to the blog), I have organized past postings into categories. I am sure there is a better way to do this (feel free to share suggestions) but here goes anyway.

Listed below are the topics from the past year and the month in which you can find the original post within the archives. Please respond with your thoughts, ideas and suggestions for the future…I’m serious…let me know what you think and what you want in the future and I will do what I can to accommodate your wishes. In the meantime, thanks for reading and joining in on the conversation!

For All Readers
1st Time for Everything (March 2009)
A Different Perspective (April 2009)
I am _____? (January 2010)
Make a Positive Lasting Impression (October 2009)
Motivation (June 2009)
Peopling (September 2009)
Planning for Success (February 2009)
Preparation, Reaction, Change (March 2009)
Success (December 2009)
Taking Responsibility (July 2009)
Tips for Landing a Job (May 2009)
What do you read? (February 2010)

Networking and Social Media
10 Tips for Twitter Networking (August 2009)
Basic Networking Tips (January 2009)
How can Twitter help me? (April 2009)
Networking and Fantasy Football (September 2009)

Issues for College Students
Easing the Transition between High School and College (June 2009)
Get Involved (August 2009)
How do you study? (May 2009)
Student-Athletes (February 2009)

Sport Management Majors (Information and Conferences)
Advice for Sport Management Students (December 2009)
Choosing a Sport Management Program (July 2009)
CSRI Conference in Chapel Hill: Day One/Day Two (April 2009)
Health Care Reform and the Sport Industry (July 2009)
Make the Most of the New Year (January 2010)
Princeton Sports Symposium (December 2009)
Sport Management Faculty (February 2009)
Sport Management Projects (May 2009)
Students Host Professional Panel and Charity Event (October 2009)
YCP Alumni on the Web (May 2009)

Highlights of Sport Professionals
Bob Ancharski/Hershey Bears Hockey Club (April 2009)
Lewis Howes/Sports Networker (September 2009)
Steve Masterson/Game Face, Inc. (March 2009)
Packy Moran/University of Ohio (March 2009)
Becky Norris/Oklahoma City Thunder (March 2009)
Jeana Olchowy/National Pro Fastpitch (June 2009)
Dr. Ramlan/Director General of the National Sports Institute of Malaysia (November 2009)
Dave Salter/Author (October 2009)

Miscellaneous Topics
Brest Cancer Awareness Month (October 2009)
Fix It (February 2009)
Random Thoughts (November 2009)
Rush Limbaugh (October 2009)
Summer Job (June 2009)
Trip to Malaysia (November 2009)

I have traveled overseas to teach in the past. Each time, I learn something new and am reminded of the lessons learned from previous trips. In that respect, this experience overseas is no different. To begin with, eating is always an adventure. As usual, I have been advised not to consume fresh vegetables or fruit and to only drink bottled water. Considering the fact that I really like salad and have at least one daily, I am naturally craving one right now!
During last night’s dinner I was also reminded about how difficult it can be to communicate basic, yet important information. For example, although I am not really sure what I ate (it was pretty good) it took a while for the waiter to understand that I wanted a bottle of water. After several attempts, I finally succeeded in getting a diet coke instead. However, when the waiter brought me the soda and poured it in a glass with ice I was back to square one. Again, with communication an issue, I somehow convinced the waiter that I couldn’t drink this particular soda and he brought me a new one. During the entire incident, I was being serenaded with “modern American music” such as Bon Jovi, Boys to Men and Abba. Needless to say, I found the entire situation pretty funny. Breakfast this morning was just as adventurous. The cuisine was beef bacon, cheese omelet and spicy fried rice…and I mean SPICY fried rice! Would you believe I had the same conversation about bottled water during this meal as well? Despite the difficulties in communication, the people here have been very nice and I am enjoying my experience so far.
This morning I had yet another laugh though. Since I am very much a creature of habit, I woke up and as part of my regular morning routine, I put on ESPN while getting dressed. Naturally, I was not not surprised when I did not hear the usual Mike & Mike Show. However, I was expecting to see a version of SportsCenter. Imagine my surprise when I instead saw a replay of the final round of the Carsta SI Italian Ladies Open (won by Marianne Skarpnord) and sand soccer! In any event, I am off to teach for the first day. As always, I am really excited to see what the next adventure will bring and the role communication has in the day’s adventure!

With graduation less than a week away, I have been thinking about the current graduating seniors and what they will be doing in the upcoming years.  They will face many challenges and changes in the industry and I am sure they will be resilient and successful.  This got me thinking about some alumni and what they are doing specifically in terms of new media. Below are three examples of individuals with a vision satisfying a need on the internet.

Steve Masterson started the Sports Business Education Network while he was a student at York. Steve does a wonderful job of revising and updating the site to meet the needs of the members. The Sport Business Education Network (www.sben.org) is a FREE resource dedicated to providing sport-specific resources and information and a central point for job seekers, professors, students, and employers to network — potentially leading to employment.

Matt Blaszka and some friends started SnatchSports (http://snatchsports.com/) in October 2008 due to friends never being able to agree.  Blaszka says “Our writers may not always agree on the issues, but we will always provide a non-biased look into the world of sports. Our goal is to give our opinions, good and bad, on the topic we are most passionate about…sports. If nothing else, we hope to stir some discussion (or debate). We also value outside views (they’re what keep this site going), so feel free to join into any one of the discussions.”

Brendan Wilhide also saw a void and filled it rather quickly.  Brendan created sportsin140.com, a website that covers athletes and sports on Twitter.  The site has been featured on New England Cable News and in the Toronto Globe and Mail and Seattle Times newspapers. It contains the only list of validated athlete Twitter accounts on the Internet. You can follow @sportslist on Twitter for the latest updates.

You can follow all three individuals on Twitter at @Steve_Masterson @blask22 @beingthere