Howdy hey ,

If you've been watching women's college basketball at any point this year, you know the name Caitlin Clark. The all-time leading scorer in NCAA basketball history (men and women). Presumptive overall #1 pick in the WNBA Draft (which has her heading to good ol' Indiana). Newest ad spokesperson for Nike, State Farm, and many, many more to come.

As I write this, Iowa got past LSU (supported heavily by Clark's 41-point bonanza) to reach the Final Four and a date with championship destiny this weekend. Needless to say, Caitlin Clark has etched her name in the history books, with vastly more potential ahead.

So, naturally, when a phenom like Clark emerges, people gotta ask: "Is she the greatest of all time?"

Recency ≠ History 

Before the NCAA Tourney started, The Athletic anonymously asked over 35 women's basketball coaches: In their estimation, who was the women's basketball G.O.A.T.? The top four answers, in order:

• Cheryl Miller, USC, 1983-1986
• Breanna Stewart, UConn, 2012-2016
• Diana Taurasi, UConn, 2000-2004
• Caitlin Clark, Iowa, 2020-present

Coaches agreed that Clark is good. Like, amazingly good. But the best to ever do it? Most coaches are not sold on that quite yet.

When asked to elaborate, one coach had something to say that I wanted to highlight:

I think it’s hard because I think it’s skewed a bit, and it doesn’t take anything from Caitlin. It’s skewed because the amount of coverage there is now compared to some other times, it’s skewed a little bit because of her style, which is so fun and so great to watch.

But I would say she’s Steph Curry, whereas Breanna Stewart is more like a Kevin Durant — who’s the better player? Who will go down in history as being better?

I bolded "history" in that quote because that's the crux of the question at hand. Experienced basketball coaches know their industry well. They remember Miller's dominance in the 80s, and Stewart's four championships in four years at UConn. They're steeped in the history of great women's college basketball.

But for the average consumer? Right now, we see Caitlin Clark all around us, all the time. We're inundated with Clark Mania — we asked if she was the G.O.A.T. before her final NCAA Tournament even started. When was the last time the regular viewing public saw Cheryl Miller?

This is an example of recency bias: The tendency for our minds to place greater importance on events that happened most recently. You see this in your life everywhere:

• Employee performance evaluations, where we remember the most recent things someone did and use that to determine overall performance. It rewards the "What have you done for me lately?" crowd instead of assessing an employee's true value over time.
• Investing, where we believe a rising market will keep rising or a dropping market will keep dropping. Recency bias is a powerful motivator in behavioral economics.
• Sports, through MVP voting and G.O.A.T. lists. Harvard Sports Analysis Collective found that NBA MVP voting was swayed by whether a player played on the East or West Coast and if they played better later in the season.

Now, just because something happened recently does not mean it isn't better. Caitlin Clark could be the best women's player to touch a basketball court. Iowa could hoist the championship trophy this weekend. Clark could set records in the WNBA — or the Big3 League, if Ice Cube has anything to say about it.

But, driven by this bias, humans push recency into history too fast. We think the best option now will be the best historically. Whether picking the best basketball player or making wise stock trades, we stake our claim in the latest and greatest, sometimes ignoring what a thoughtful examination of history can tell us.

Times change; aim for timeless

So, where does all this intersect with your business? Apart from reviewing your performance review process for recency bias, it reminds us that the basic principles of good business will always matter, even as time and trends shift like desert sand.

Right now, agencies are inundated with new information, opportunities, and challenges. The explosion of new technological tools and platforms. The allures and dangers of generative AI. The collapse of the journalism market. The hot topics and trends that bubble up in Q2 and are toast by Q3.

Agencies live on the edge of right now; they have to. Clients expect comms professionals to know their industry intimately and maintain a finger on the world's pulse. However, the driving need for recency can quickly seep into every aspect of agency operations, from client interactions to performance management.

Does that mean what's in vogue right now is bad? Like, will generative AI prove useful or fatal to agency work?

I'll give you the same answer that I have for: "Is Caitlin Clark the women's college basketball G.O.A.T.?"

I don't know.

Instead, I invite agency leaders to establish core principles based on history. There are timeless elements to the work we offer our clients and the culture we nurture for our employees:

• Treat people fairly and respectfully.
• Understand your client's values and work hard to deliver on their expectations.
• The best tools are the ones people actually use.
• Know how to tell a compelling story.

Only after you've cemented your first principles should you experiment with recency. When you understand how "the latest and greatest" intermix with your core values, you can make smart leadership decisions and feel good about them. That's what allows a new technology like generative AI to positively impact your work and culture instead of damaging your reputation, financial future, and client and employee relationships.

Caitlin Clark's contributions to basketball may prove timeless—we just don't know yet. The same is true of new technology and trends in your business. That doesn't mean you can't enjoy the most recent things: Watching Clark sink ridiculous threes is fun, as is getting AI to help with that pesky story outline.

Just be mindful of where today's hot new thing fits into your company's history. Good business principles are timeless because they work. You are your industry's expert—you're steeped in the history of communications. Use your experience to lead from a place of timelessness, and your agency will be better for it.

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Stellar content about content

What to do when you're tired of being tired

By Brad Stulberg, The Growth Equation

Brad Stulberg does a lot around maintaining high productivity levels and how physical and mental health management intersects. This post from a couple of years ago found me during a late-winter slump and helped me visualize my way out of it.

Stulberg frames it as "behavioral activation," which is based on the idea that action can create motivation, especially when you’re in a rut.

When you feel this way, you often get stuck in the quicksand of your own feelings. They drag you down. Instead of languishing, Stulberg offers a better way forward:

Instead, you shift the focus to getting started with what you have planned in front of you, taking your feelings, whatever they may be, along for the ride. Doing so gives you the best chance at improving your mood.

His article provides a few more actionable steps to get you moving.

Your Action Item: Whether you, a coworker, or a direct report are feeling down in the dumps, you can all benefit from behavioral activation. Peruse the article and identify a method you want to try. Give it a shot and document your results.

Motivation follows action — see if that hypothesis matches your experiment's results.

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UNHIRED Ep. 2: Loneliness, Cash Flow, and Individual Growth

Hosted by Allison Nordenbrock Brown and featuring yours truly

UNHIRED, the podcast by entrepreneurs for entrepreneurs, is back with a new episode. This one has me in it, and I talk about the ups and downs of entrepreneurship. Certified as "only 25% snarky remarks."

Your Action Item: Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

Content from my pocket of the galaxy

BSU Digital Marketing Summit — April 29, 2024

I'm speaking at Ball State's first Digital Marketing Summit on April 29th. I'll be on campus in Muncie to run a workshop on telling more compelling stories in your marketing efforts. There's a great slate of speakers throughout the day who will undoubtedly have a ton of good marketing stuff to cover.

Your Action Item: If you want to attend, sign up here. Feel free to invite others in your network — especially marketing-minded students!

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Go Hawkeyes.

See you soon,

Alex