We live in interesting times.

Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton are among the worst-rated presidential candidates of the last seven decades according to Gallup.  Only the unfavorable rating of Barry Goldwater in 1964 was higher, and he lost in one of the biggest landslides in history to Lyndon Johnson.  I think it was Jimmy Fallon who said these candidates are lucky they are running against the only candidate in history they could beat.

The noise is everywhere.  One can hardly get away from it.

Outlandish statements.

E-mail scandals.

Ego.

Trust.

“To find a unique position, what you must do is look inside the prospect’s mind.  You won’t find an ‘uncola’ idea inside a 7-Up can.  You find it inside the cola drinker’s head.”
~Jack Trout and Al Reis.

Time magazine seized the moment of the 4th of July holiday and focused on 240 reasons to celebrate America!  The cover was branded 99.9% politics free!

The “Jack” format was based upon two preconceived perceptions.

1) That radio/music wasn’t as good as it used to be, and

2) that there are a whole bunch of good songs out there that we weren’t hearing on the radio.  The execution of the format was secondary (as was its specific design based upon the market).  Listeners bought into the premise without questioning whether KC and the Sunshine Band should be played next to Deep Purple, just like voters have bought into Trump or Clinton despite the outlandish statements or latest e-mail scandal.

When you tap into an existing idea or perception, you offer the listener a reference point for the value your station provides.  It’s kind of like the “You are here” sign at the mall.  Where Nordstrom is located in mall isn’t meaningful unless I know where I am in relation to it.

My guess is that your station is 99.9% politics free, as well.  And my guess is that you’re not taking credit for it.

“There’s something wrong!”,  declared the analysis.   Well, it must be true!  They had a nifty graph and everything!

It’s tempting to assume that something is meaningful just because it can be graphed, or just because it made the headlines, (never more obvious to me than after two weeks of staring at political conventions).  Those assumptions are often the result of what Dan and Chip Heath refer to as “The Spotlight Effect”.

“We are quick to jump to conclusions because we give too much weight to the information that is right in front of us, while failing to consider the information that’s just offstage…

…The spotlight only lights one spot.  Everything outside it is obscured.  When we begin to shift the spotlight from side to side the situation starts to look very different.  And that, in essence, is the core difficulty in decision making.

What’s in the spotlight will rarely be everything we need to make a good decision, but we won’t always remember to shift the light.   Sometimes, in fact, we’ll forget there’s a spotlight at all, dwelling so long in the tiny circle of light that we forget there’s a broader landscape beyond it.”

If we look outside the spotlight of this analysis of song themes we discover something else just offstage.  Maybe these songs were written, sung, and produced for something other than filling a theological quota.  Maybe they were written to inspire, touch the heart, and to be loved.

There is a natural and indisputable friction between art and science.  Great stations understand that art and science need to be applied distinctly.

I know of a radio station that had this so confused that they actually had created a place in the hourly clock for what they called, “The God break”.  (I’M NOT MAKING THIS UP, as Dave Barry would say.)  Yep, at 20 past the hour you could tune in every hour and hear some deejay obligated to say something religious.  Got to fill that quota, don’tchaknow!
This misuse of analytics is a reminder that a great radio station, like a magnificent piece of art or a much loved song, is never the result of paint by the numbers.

“The left hemispheres of our brains are wired for empirical, scientific, objective reality: absolute truth.The right hemispheres of our brains are sponges thirsty for impressions, symbols, metaphors, connections and patterns. These patterns can be auditory, visual or behavioral.

Auditory patterns are called music.   Visual patterns are called art.

Behavioral patterns are called personality.   The more complex the pattern, the deeper the beauty.”
~Roy Williams

The deeper the beauty.   Hmm.  Let’s see a graph of that!

I’m not suggesting that the lyrics to Christian music shouldn’t be meaningful and theologically sound, but to conclude there is “something wrong” because there are ten times more songs about love than fear infers that there is “something right” about some other possible ratio.   Maybe we could do 50/50 in morning drive, and adjust to 70/30 when the kiddos get out of school!

The best radio stations are those that apply the left-brained science (music research, clock structure, format execution) to create compelling right-brained art; art that inspires, offers hope, and helps connects us to God and our values.

As long as we’re creating some charts,  what’s the deal with all these songs about Christmas and none about The Feast of Unleavened Bread?

Our minds crave simplicity.

The doctor says to take a pill.  We eagerly agree because its simple.  Until he tells us that the pill will cause us to lose our hair.  Ouch!  Now it becomes more complicated and not such a great idea.

Just look at the presidential election campaigns.  Political viewpoints are compressed into 140 character Twitter feeds and 20 second soundbites.  Ask ten people why they are supporting Donald or Hillary and nine will respond with one sentence.

“People are drawn to black and white opinions because they are simple, not because they are true.  Truth demands serious effort and thought.”
~Donald Miller

Correlation v. causation

“Every time we see a link between an event or action with another, what comes to mind is that the event or action has caused the other.”*

That’s causation.

On the other hand “correlation is an action or occurrence that can be linked to another”, but “linking one thing with another does not always prove that the result has been caused by the other.”*

*www.differencebetween.net

Our desire for simplicity drives us to conclude that one thing causes another simply because they occurred at the same time.

The ratings went up because we added new jingles!

The ratings went down because we had fewer traffic reports!

Our biases cause us to value things we know, mostly things inside the radio station, and to undervalue what we don’t know, mostly things outside the station.  That’s why it is so easy to imagine how tweaking the Farm Report increased the ratings than consider how the meter/diary holder’s two-week vacation impacted our numbers.

Successful radio stations strive not for answers than are simple, but answers that are true.  But, darn it, that demands effort and thought.

I was recently reunited with some guys that I worked with more than 30 years ago at a very special station in each of our careers.  One of the reasons it was special was that we set a record for highest ratings for an FM station in that market up to that time.  Double digit stuff, don’tchaknow!

As I try to gain perspective on that time in my on-air career I realize that a very simple but illusive idea contributed to our success.

We made each other better.

The GM had a close relationship with the staff, the PD poured himself into developing the talent and executing fundamentals, and the talent held each other accountable.  None of us wanted to be considered to be the weakest link, but each was suspicious he might be.  This was particularly true for me, the youngest and newest member of the team.

“The people we surround ourselves with either raise or lower our standards.  They either help us to become the best version of ourselves or encourage us to become lesser versions of ourselves.  We become like our friends…  The people around help to make us great.

We all need people in our lives who raise our standards, remind us of our essential purpose, and challenge us to become the best version of ourselves.”
~Seth Godin

So, how does this play out at your station?

• Do you hear the station playing in the hallways, or does it feel more like a lawyer’s office?  (This is a more significant indicator than you might think, because it is a direct reflection of passion for the product!)
• Do your people go about their work in silos, where the left hand doesn’t know what the right hand is doing; or do they interact openly as teammates?
• Is your team willing to speak truth to leadership, or do they have to hold their tongue for fear of repercussion or ridicule?

I hope that someday, maybe even 30 years from now, you’ll look back on the those you’re working with now and be able to say they were people who made you better.

This Frost Advisory is dedicated to Tim, Ed, Bob, Kevin, and Casey: teammates that made me better.

The thing that radio has the potential to do so well is the very thing we do so poorly.  Right here.  Right now.

Unless…

In the aftermath of the Dallas tragedy I heard several radio stations in Texas capture that immediate intimacy.

Jeff and Rebecca at KCBI in Dallas shared their grief about the events that happened literally four blocks from their studios.  I have stood in their studio and looked west out the very window that was their vantage point to a stunned city.

The remarkable Frank Reed at KLTY shared song lyrics that gave fresh context to the hope in the music we play.

The talented duos of Steve and Amy at Spirit 105.9 in Austin, and Carder and Rachelle at KSBJ in Houston opened their hearts and gave their listeners a way to be a good neighbor, the audio equivalent of carrying down a casserole and flowers across the street for a someone in need.

My talented friend Sterling Tarrant created a mosaic in sound of listeners and leaders, pastors and police with the lyrical epiphany, “When I look into the face of my enemy I see my brother.”

Immediate intimacy.

So, what’s my point?

It is admirable for our format to step to the plate in times of need.  Often remarkable, as cited above.  But we have the opportunity to have this kind of immediate intimacy every day, not just in reaction to a horrific event.

Too often we default to the routine ‘partly cloudy and 75’ stuff I saw on Facebook or something that sounds like a boring homework assignment with instructions to go to the station’s website.

The more immediate, the more intimate.

Your listener cares about…

…that ten mile back up on I-4 when she’s five miles into it and late for a big meeting…

…that hail storm coming in from the west when he’s trying to get home to put the cars in the garage…

…the rainout of the baseball game when the son has his hopes up and it’s his last season to play…

…their seat assignment, but only when boarding the plane.

The more immediate it is, the more intimate it becomes, because the more it matters.  Right here.  Right now.

If what you’re talking about is relevant, then it is just four blocks away… to somebody.

Maybe we should always sound like it.

The United States of America was born 240 years ago with a Declaration of Independence, and a subsequent Bill of Rights for all citizens to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.  But as Americans we know that with rights comes responsibility.

Yes, you have the right to play any song you want.  But you also have the responsibility of creating passionate fans beginning with a foundation of songs they know and love.

Yes, you have the right to talk about anything you want.  But you have the responsibility of connecting with common interests and values, and communicating the bigger idea!  That’s how groups become tribes, and tribes become movements.

Yes, you have the right to blabber on as long as you want.  But you have the responsibility of communicating effectively, which means being purposeful, prepared, and precise.

Yes, you have the right to be among the lowest rated stations in your market.  But you have the responsibility that goes with being the largest church in town.  To fulfill that responsibility your station needs a clear purpose, a team of people that are united around it, and the passion and determination to execute the programming and marketing elements that make that purpose a reality.

On this 4th of July weekend, let’s wave our flags, shoot off our fireworks, and sing our patriotic songs.

But let’s not forget our responsibilities!

How you answer this question can determine the success of your station.  Relevant… or interesting?

Choosing only content that is relevant to your listener forces the talent to put the listener ahead of themselves.  This profound realignment of priorities is a paradigm shift from what is interesting to the talent to what is relevant to the listener.

In other words, does your station serve your listeners or just serve your own interests?

Hearing irrelevant content on the air is the result of air talent first looking for things that are “interesting” and then trying to make them relevant.  That is how one ends up hearing things like Shirley Temple’s birthday, National Pickle Week, and what I did on my summer vacation.

Without an objective filter of relevance to the listener, the talent resorts to becoming sort of a content assembly line, paying little attention to whether what they say enhances the listener’s experience or fulfills their expectations of the station.

Ego rears its ugly head when we assume that the listener will care about anything we decide to talk about.  It’s not true in life and it’s certainly not true in radio.

As a budding 23-year-old disc jockey I was hired at my first “big” station where everyone on the air was better than me.  Frankly, they were all so much better that my insecurities had me convinced that they had actually hired me by mistake.

After the ink on my deal was securely dried, I got up the courage to ask my new PD, “Why in the world did you hire me?”  He smiled and responded, “It was one break you did on your audition tape.”  He had heard me give a phone number on a throwaway PSA followed by, “you might want to write that down on the dust on your dashboard.”

That one unassuming break told my soon to be programming mentor all he needed to know about this young air talent; those who put the listener first are those who are willing to learn.

Chris Rice echoed that idea years later in his song “The Other Side of the Radio.”

“Cause it’s you and me singing the same song right now
And maybe this will bring us together somehow
And maybe there’s a million people all singing a long
Somebody started thinking about the third line
And maybe someone’s saying a prayer for the first time
And that’s enough reason to keep me singing my song,
Singing my songs, on the other side of the radio.”

“You can do anything… once”, boomed my dad’s voice to his mischievous adolescent son.

Those words served as a life lesson of accountability.  But, you know what?  Those words were also true.  I COULD do anything… once.

So can your station.

Making programming decisions based strictly upon what you’ve already done is like driving while looking in the rear view mirror.  It won’t get you anywhere but where you’ve already been.

As I write this a popular Orlando barbecue restaurant is opening its usually closed doors on Sunday to raise money for the shooting victims.  Well, guess what?  They’ve never done that before.  It’s interesting how even opposite behaviors – being closed on Sundays and opening this particular Sunday – are ways to demonstrate a core value of their business – giving back to the community.

In other words, the more they innovate the more they are able to fulfill their mission.

Resisting a new idea because “it doesn’t sound like my station” is the cry of the rear view mirror driver.  I also know those that innovated once but that innovation became their own “we’ve always done it this way”, and refused to innovate beyond it.

The programming lesson learned this Father’s Day is that you can do anything… once!  It’s called innovation!

“If you leave a white post alone it will soon be a black post.  If you particularly want it to be white you must be always painting it again; that is, you must be always having a revolution.  Briefly, if you want the old white post you must have a new white post.”
~G. K. Chesterton

Paul McCartney, Bernie Sanders, Tiger Woods, Justin Bieber, Russell Wilson, Jenny McCarthy.

I reckon’ there’s not much of a common thread through these famous names.  But within hours of hearing the news each tweeted out a tribute to Muhammad Ali.  I counted 729,699 tweets about the man self-identified as “The Greatest”.  My Google search stretched to almost eight million.  I overheard conversations about The Champ while walking through the Los Angeles airport.

Interesting the words people used.  Few even mentioned boxing.  Remarkable.  While the sport may have launched his fame, his persona made him bigger than boxing.  (Consequently making boxing bigger than ever before).

What words would people use to describe your radio station?  Would they simply describe the category which you are in by default: that Christian station?

Would they describe just the ordinary tools you use (mix of music, deejays, contests, traffic and weather together)?  Or would they describe your station as something special, more significant, and beyond the boundaries of the ordinary?

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.

There was nothing ordinary about Muhammad Ali.  That, my friends… is why people are talking about him.

Memorial Day weekend is a time to remember those who have sacrificed for our freedom.  Maybe, just maybe, there is a greater lesson that applies to the legacy of your radio station.

How will your radio station be remembered?

Will it be remembered as the station that plays 25 minute music sweeps without any talk, or that it helped your community to be a better place to live and raise a family?

Will it be remembered for precisely hitting the spot sets within “bow tie” on the quarter hour, or one that helps worthy organizations in your community connect with volunteers that help others?

Will it be remembered as the station with the Joke of the Day, or one that honors moms and dads for the most important commitment they’ll ever make – raising their kids with values that make a difference in the world?

Now don’t get me wrong… there is nothing inherently wrong with a radio station having amusing little features that are appropriately targeted.

…but…

…it doesn’t matter what you do if what you do doesn’t matter.

In his book, “A Million Miles in a Thousand Years“, Donald Miller asks if they made a movie about a man who wanted to buy a Volvo, it wouldn’t be a very interesting movie.  He goes on to point out that many of us live our lives that way.

Your station has a legacy.  You are writing another chapter in that legacy every day.