Charlie Mechem sits down with Mark Zecchino, the host and producer of Golf Talk Canada TV and Radio, and the live play-by-play announcer for PGA tour radio on Sirius XM Radio and PGA Radio. Mark reflects on anecdotes from Charlie’s book, “Total Anecdotal: A Fun Guide to Help You Become a Better Speaker and Writer.” You can learn more about the book at charliemechem.com/book, or find it available through Amazon or Barnes & Noble, and perhaps your local bookstore.
Arrogance and Ego in the Media Profession
Being in the media profession, on television and radio, and in golf, it’s not uncommon to come across individuals who are arrogant and egotistical. In Mark’s experience, a microphone or a camera in someone’s face can cause people to feel overly important, give them a false sense of superiority, and make them think the world doesn’t operate without them
It’s important to remember, you needed help on the way up, so don’t forget what it took and who helped you to get where you are. You meet the same people on the way down as you do on the way up. With this in mind, helping others—just as they helped you—and making time for others should be implemented as everyday practice in order to avoid arrogance and ego.
Arrogance and ego can be dangerous especially with men, Mark says. Male arrogance and ego can be especially damaging to relationships within and outside of the workplace.
Show Up and Keep Saying Yes
A friend of Mark’s used to always say, “show up and keep saying yes.” There are always opportunities just around the corner, you just have to have the courage to make the turn.
Mark used to be afraid to try new things and build walls that are hard to get over—to take that turn around the corner. All of this changed when he decided to take the leap into a new career path.
Ask questions and find new ways to do things, Mark advises. People in all walks of life need to stop putting limitations on themselves, stop seeing just the problems, and they’ll open up a new world in both work and family and personal life
Cut the Flowery Speak
Mark has always been a talker, he says. It can be hard for him to be succinct and wrap things up. Being in radio and TV it sometimes requires more color and flowery description, so it can be difficult when it comes to dropping all the pretenses and get to the point.
When dealing with people and their time, especially in business, it is important to get to the point. If there is a reason for people to be engaged, you have to find it right away, as you only have a small window of time upon interacting with someone to grab their attention and keep it.
There is a time to be flowery and a time to be brief and to the point—have the know-how of when those times are.
Flexibility to Change
Mark had a very successful career in marketing and advertising, and could have easily stayed on that path. However, roughly ten years ago he decided he wasn’t happy doing that. He wanted to create content. Eventually Mark decided he wanted to be a broadcaster—to walk in the same room as the best players in the world.
Many people thought he was crazy to make such a change. People are scared to make changes and listen to new ideas, you have to take a chance sometimes in order to succeed.
One of Mark’s pet peeves in both business and life: just because you’ve always done something one way, doesn’t mean you have to always do it that way. If we didn’t do things differently, make changes and innovate, men would still be reading under a big candle.
If you’d like to listen to more episodes of “15 Minutes With Charlie,” please visit the podcast page or search for “15 Minutes With Charlie” in your podcasting app. If you are enjoying the show you should check out “Total Anecdotal: A Fun Guide to Help You Become a Better Speaker and Writer.” Learn more on our book page, or find it available through Amazon or Barnes & Noble, and perhaps your local bookstore.
