Former Yankee great Don Mattinglywas known as “Donnie Baseball” during his career in New York in the 1980s and 90s. His dignified demeanor was as emblematic of the most storied franchise in American sports as his talent.
Yet he never won a World Series. And when he took over as Manager of the famed Los Angeles Dodgers two years ago, the spotlight was on him as brightly as when he played for the pinstripes.
Now he has steered the Dodgers to the playoffs after a terrible start to the season that had him under a microscope and second-guessed at every turn.
“It’s like a storm for a small period of time, and there’s another story coming,” Mattingly told the New York Times. “It’ll be something else that happens that everybody wants to jump on. I think you just weather that storm, as far as the mass amount of attention to it. Keep going to work and getting your team ready to play.”
At CommCore we remind our clients that an even keel and calm presence can be as powerful a statement to the media in a crisis as memorable sound bites and fiery actions, even in the exciting “win or bust” world of sports and entertainment. The key is having a plan and knowing and staying true to yourself, even when the media is all over you.
It’s no different outside of sports. In a crisis, follow the plan, get back to the basics, and execute the core competency of the business or organization.