I’m a firm believer in the idea that if you love what you do, you’ll never work a day in your life. I’ve been fortunate enough to live out my dream over the last eight years, working for and representing all the Toronto teams I grew up idolizing as a child. However, like many of you reading this, what initially attracted me to working in professional sports quickly changed as I learned to love and appreciate the complexities and nuances of the business.
Every team and organization has a unique set of challenges – some struggle with ticket sales, others with partnerships, and almost all face stiff competition within the local marketplace (imagine owning most of the teams, like we do at MLSE!). One of the biggest challenges, however, is ensuring that the people driving the results are getting enough balance in their lives to ensure that burnout doesn’t overwhelm the office and culture.
I know you might be thinking: “…but I LOVE being at all the games”, “I have to stay late in order to get the job done” or “I need my team dialed in at all times”. I know, because I’ve lived through all those thoughts as both a sales rep and a manager. Ultimately, as a leader in professional sports, if you’re hiring the right people, you have a group that is committed to getting the job done – which also means that sometimes they need to be forced to go home! Here are a few tips and tricks that we’ve utilized with Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment (MLSE) to help foster a positive work/life balance:
1. Develop a schedule for working home games
With the Marlies hockey club, many of our home games take place on Saturday and Sunday afternoons. Over the last few seasons, we’ve shifted away from our group working all the games, instead establishing a rotation that allows half the group to be in on each day. We come up with this schedule as a team on a monthly basis, considering large group events, sales kiosk shifts and Fan Experience Package execution. Over a seven-month season and 38 home games, we’ve found that this has allowed our group to find a balance in their lives – and have just as much success capitalizing on game day!
2. Work out as a team
Another tactic that has become a tradition in our office is hosting team circuit training sessions twice a week at lunch time. There’s no hiding the fact that working in sports will sometimes demand long hours, and that the energy you use up in a day in the office makes it very difficult to find the time to stay in shape. By participating in a 30-minute session of body weight exercises, climbing the arena stairs, and conquering monthly goals as a team – we all go home at night with the great feeling of already having exercised that day. If you’re not already doing this, come up with a simple routine and give it a try!
3. Encourage and use your vacation time
Finally, and most importantly – it is critical that time spent at home with family and friends is prioritized and emphasized in the office. As a sports executive, you should never feel afraid or intimidated to ask your manager for time off – even if it means missing a bunch of your team’s home games or an important stretch of the off-season. We are all human beings and going on a family trip or taking a “staycation” to recharge the batteries often brings the balance and joy to our lives that we all crave!
If you are a leader reading this – are you encouraging your people to use all their vacation time? Do you expect your group to stay late every day? As an employee – are you worried about asking for a week off in the middle of the season? A culture of open communication and a strong vision will always create a safe work environment and bring out the best in your people. Ultimately, it’s the people that drive results, and having a healthy work/life balance is THE key ingredient to getting the job done!
Adam
Adam Halberstadt currently runs sales and service initiatives for the Toronto Marlies and the Toronto Argonauts. Both are part of the larger Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment group that also owns and operates the Toronto Maple Leafs, Toronto Raptors, Toronto FC and more. He manages a team of 6 sales representatives that are focused on Argonauts and Marlies and sell full-menu. He's been with the club for 7.5 years and has grown from an intern to a sales leader. He's also a Clubhouse mentor, you can reach out and schedule a call with him here.