Minnesota Wild GM Joins the Recruiting Blogosphere
Doug Risebrough, former hockey player extraordinaire and now general manager of the Minnesota Wild, has quietly joined the recruiting blogosphere. According to the Star Tribune, Risebrough didn't know what a blog was a year ago but is now a blogger. Welcome!
Risebrough's first blog entry came almost a month ago on October 30th. His blog entry initially discussed the team's upcoming game against Sidney Crosby and the Pittsburgh Penguins. I was fortunate enough to attend that fabulous game after finding tickets for sale at the last minute on Facebook. More interesting than that, however, was his discussion of the potential negative impact of the huge new contract he had just agreed to with future all-star defenseman Brent Burns.
Risebrough essentially expresses concern that the huge contract will change the way that Burns plays. Unlike conventional wisdom, players like Burns who receive huge pay raises don't tend to slack off. Rather, their performance often takes a short-term hit because they try too hard rather than too little. They want to prove that they're worth the money so rather than focusing on what they do well, they try to do too much and end up not doing their own job well.
I see this with college students and recent graduates as well. Rather than focusing on what they were hired to do and making sure that they do that well, they try too hard to impress their boss by taking on additional responsibilities for which they do not have time, are ill prepared, or both. Part of experience is understanding your limitations and playing or performing within those limits. As a new hires gains experience, they gain wisdom and their performance improves steadily and sometimes rapidly.
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