I was driving to see my mechanic when I heard the news on the radio about Dolly Parton. I sat in the lobby for an hour or so and everyone… everyone that came in the shop talked about Dolly.

Some observations:

It’s a curious thing. A few understand it, but most do not. In over 25 years in the format I’ve never been a part of an interview where a potential program director or air talent was even asked if they knew what the format was about.

Coming from a background in mainstream radio I didn’t really understand what our format was about either. I thought the format was about the music we play, the deejays, the promotions and doing radio stuff. After all, that’s radio, right? I had to undergo a process of learning that our format is about something much more important. I learned it from listening to our listeners.

Back to school time is everywhere. In the stores with sales. On the streets with school buses. There are even tax free days for Back to School. It’s not an official holiday like Christmas, Ground Hog Day, or Millard Fillmore’s birthday, but it is just as evident.

Back to school affects everyone’s schedule, even those that don’t go to school. (Can’t say that about ole’ Millard’s birthday.)

When the great artist and sculptor Michelangelo was asked how he created his famous 17-foot-tall statue of David he responded, “It was easy. I just took away everything that didn’t look like David.”

That profound simplicity could be a nifty way to approach fine tuning your radio station.

If people come to your station to be encouraged just take away the stuff that doesn’t do that.

It all started with a spam call. At least I thought it was.

“I’m reaching out because as a part of our brand promise we mentioned that we would contact you anytime we saw an opportunity to further improve on your overall finances…”

That one line helped change my perspective. It wasn’t a spam call at all. I realized that I had an existing relationship with this company, and they were attempting to fulfill a “brand promise” they had made to me.

Key points:

When we radio people talk about programming do you know what tends to come up? It’s the stuff. Clocks. New music. Rotations. Liners. Commercial breaks. Traffic reports. Stuff that fits ever so nicely on a spread sheet.

Well, I have news for you. Good news, in fact. Your station has a secret weapon. And it’s not any of that stuff.

It’s people.

It’s simple, really.*

In a short burst of clarity and creativity, I’ve come up with The World’s Simplest Checklist for a really swell radio station. (Believe me they only come to me in short bursts).

Grab your #2 pencil and count up your points!

Unfortunately, ours is a format where most people in our town don’t know the music nor have a favorite song. That’s a real dilemma since the foundation of every successful music format is hits and stars.

Fortunately, the music in our format can be life transforming. Every listener has a story. Every person at your radio station has a story. And there is no such thing as an unfamiliar story if it gives perspective that God is in our story.

I’m told that the United States of America was born 250 years ago with a Declaration of Independence, and a subsequent Bill of Rights for all citizens to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. But as Americans we know that with rights comes responsibility.

So it is for your radio station.

The celebration of our nation’s 250th birthday is a powerful lesson of focus, shared values, and emotional connection.

Over the last three plus decades, I’ve served as a semi-professional public address announcer for major league spring training and minor league baseball. That’s lots and lots and lots of dizzy bat races, dirtiest cars in the parking lot, and “Take Me out to the Ballgames”!

Do you know what I enjoy most?