The Big Picture - April 2014 - (Page 4)

insight by Gregory Sharpless www.bigpicture.net EDITORIAL Gregory Sharpless Editor-in-Chief gregory.sharpless@stmediagroup.com Adrienne Palmer Associate Editor adrienne.palmer@stmediagroup.com Lessons Learned It was 1971 when I learned how to play tennis. One day, my oldest brother, Tom, brought me to the courts that sat behind his townhouse, and I joined him, his wife, and one of their friends in whacking around that little white fuzzy ball (this was before green tennis balls had come along) on a hot summer day. I laced up my Red Ball Jets and grabbed my brother's spare wooden tennis racquet that he had bought at the local Western Auto store, and ran onto the court ("Hey, Greg, you have to take the press off the racquet first," oops). The Rolling Stones' "Brown Sugar" was playing on someone's transistor radio, and three nearby Frisbee throwers were smoking something I had once caught a whiff of when hanging out with some older kids. Of course I had to learn a lot of the tennis basics that first time out. Like: "Greg, don't stand in the service box when returning serve." And: "Greg, let's try to keep the ball from flying over the fence, eh?" And: "No, Greg, you don't get a third serve, this isn't baseball." And so on. But I got better. And along the way, I also learned a few things from my brother that can be applied to business as well, and managing a company and a staff: * You don't have to force everything - it doesn't have to be all about pure power. Yes, sometimes, power can be a big advantage. But there are other times when you can win a point with placement. And, sometimes, a crazy, looping spin will also work. And, let's face it, there's also just old-fashioned luck. There are all kinds of ways to win a point - how you do so often depends upon the situation. * Don't take tennis so seriously, have a little fun with it. But at the same time, there is a time to be serious on the court, and knowing the difference can help you set a tone for yourself and those around you. * You can trash talk your opponent - but always smile when you're doing it. You're competing, you're not in a life-and-death battle; besides, your competition might one day be your ally. * If you're pretty evenly matched with your competition, winning a match can often come down to just a few points, a few moments when you're on the court. You have to recognize when those points - those moments - are, and take full advantage of them. Tom passed away a few months ago, but I like to think his tennis lessons - as well as other lessons - have lived on in me in one form or another. His grandson has expressed an interest in playing tennis this year; maybe I'll have to break out the old Western Auto racquet. Kathleen DeZarn Art Director kathy.dezarn@stmediagroup.com Marty McGhie, Craig Miller, Beth Osborne, Jared Smith Columnists Rick Bachelder, Kathy Boydstun, Terry Corman, Scott Crosby, Brandon Gabriel, Michael Garcia, Kirk Green, Robert Kissel, Tina McLaughlin, Craig Miller, Carmen Rad, Greg Root, Jared Smith, Mark Taylor Editorial Advisory Board SALES Murray Kasmenn Senior Vp/Group publisher 770/578-2577 murray.kasmenn@stmediagroup.com Lou Arneberg Business Development Manager East and Midwest US, E Canada 800/654-5169 lou.arneberg@stmediagroup.com Ben Stauss Business Development Manager West and South US, W Canada, Europe, Asia 513/263-9363 ben.stauss@stmediagroup.com Linda Volz production Supervisor linda.volz@stmediagroup.com Tedd Swormstedt president Steve Duccilli Senior Vp of Content Christine Baloga Audience Development Director Kari Freudenberger Director, Online Media Subscription Services/ Copies/Back Issues (847) 763-4938 tbp@halldata.com bigpicture.net/subscribe bigpicture.net/renew THE BiG piCTUrE (iSSN 1082-9660) is published 9 times annually (Jan/Feb, March, April, May, June/July, August, September, October, Nov/Dec) by ST Media Group international inc., 11262 Cornell park Dr., Cincinnati, OH 45242-1812. 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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Big Picture - April 2014

The Big Picture - April 2014
Contents
InSight
Wide Angle
Up Front
Graphics on the Go
Dynamic Signage
Go Big or Go Home
RIP Chord: Creating a Harmonious Workflow
Weighing in on the RIP
The Ups and Downs of an Escalator Wrap
R+D
Explorer

The Big Picture - April 2014