Jerry West on dealing with tough times

Sorry I’ve been away. Actually, I wrote this to post last week and forgot to publish it.

Lately I’ve been telling business owners a story from an interview I did with Jerry West during his tenure as GM for the Los Angeles Lakers.

Jerry said that he had been through good times and bad times. The good times were great; championship rings, parades, media. The bad times were tough. His wife hated to go shopping because strangers stopped her in the supermarket aisles to tell her what an idiot her husband was.

During either extreme Jerry received fan mail, some of which was quite articulate. When they won a championship, he was the genius GM. When they got ousted from he playoffs early (They didn’t MISS the playoffs from the time he became a player in the early 60’s until he left the team in the late 90’s- over 30 years) the letters would go into excruciating detail about his errors as a coach or manager.

Jerry saved the fan mail. He showed me two folders in his desk file drawer; one of great letters and one for really really bad letters (not the sickos- the intelligent “Let me explain why you are an idiot.” ones.)

When times were bad- a long losing streak or a big trade or a draft choice not working, Jerry took out a letter that proclaimed him a genius, to remind him that this too, shall pass.

When they won a championship, he’d make the time to read a few of the bad letters- to remind him that that getting to the top had a few bumps along the way.

In 2006 (seems a long time ago. doesn’t it?) many of us were buying into our own hype. I wish I had a list of all the business owners who told me “I’m making more money than ever before. I know exactly what I’m doing. Why would I need any advice or help?

Now the feeling of genius has dissipated for most of us. We have been reminded that we are all too human.

A business owner doesn’t need to pull out old letters. The reminders of the good times are all around us. A falling sales chart. Empty desks where we used to have busy employees. Idle trucks.

Turn the tables mentally on those reminders. Instead of brooding on what you don’t have now, look at them as reminders of what things can be when it’s all going right. You got there before, so you know that you can get there again. Then start planning on how to make it happen.