Have you ever had a job or an assignment that you absolutely loved and hoped it would never end? For me, that job was managing the figure skating sponsorship at Chevrolet. The job only lasted a few years, but my love of figure skating and the relationships I made during that time will last a lifetime.
And now that the Winter Olympics are back again, it brings back a flood of memories of one of the best times in my career. I wanted to share that experience with you as well as an important lesson I learned. That lesson is that it’s so much easier to do well in a job assignment if it’s something you love.
I was really good at managing the figure skating program. Know that I don’t say that boastfully, because it wasn’t so much about my skills, it was because I loved it. I easily put extra time and effort into the assignment because I couldn’t stop thinking about it and how it could be better. It was never a list of things I “had” to do, but always things I “wanted” to do.
We all know the famous quote “Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life.” While I had that with figure skating, I haven’t always had it with every assignment. But I learned that trying to find something you love in every assignment you have, will make the work that much easier. It’s a principle I’ve put in place with every job I have had since. I hope that is something you also find in your career.
My Figure Skating Experience
Let me start out my telling you a little about this assignment. I was one of the Promotional Managers at Chevrolet in the late 90’s/early 2000’s. During that time we entered into a sponsorship agreement with the governing body of figure skating, the USFSA, which also included a partnership with ABC Sports. Managing that relationship was assigned to me and I went into it not knowing much about the sport.
What I ended up learning and experiencing was a sport that can be defined by its athleticism and its beauty. Figure skaters are one of the hardest working athletes I have ever seen. The other thing is the fans are amazing. They are well informed and dedicated to the sport like I have never seen. Being around them and meeting many of them inspired me to give them the best experience possible.
What that meant to me was being able to bring the skating experience and the skaters to the fans. During this same timeframe, we had a personal services contract with two of the most popular skaters of all time, Michelle Kwan and Todd Eldredge. We created a scholarship program for female athletes with Michelle Kwan, free skating clinics with Todd Eldredge and even a sweepstakes with the winner attending the U.S. Figure Skating Championships and the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City.
One of the promotions that we used to do was have these “fake” magazine covers that fans could come and take pictures with their families. We also used to host brunches with our dealers and Michelle would come and speak and do a meet and greet. The photo above is from one of those events.
The joy I got from this job was watching the faces of those fans involved. Watching little girls and boys eyes as they skated with Michelle and Todd . Telling the winner of the sweepstakes that they were going to the Olympics are just great memories.
From left to right: with skating legends Peggy Fleming, Scott Hamilton and Paul Wylie
I also had the opportunity to present awards and medals both on ice and television
as part of the sponsorship.
One of my most favorite memories was at the first U.S. Figure Skating Championships after September 11th. It has always been tradition to throw first flowers, and then stuffed animals onto the ice after a great performance. Since it was January 2002, and only a few months later, everyone was banned from bringing in those items.
I hated that that tradition would be lost so I worked with the USFSA on an idea. Chevrolet would manufacture and give away stuffed toys – but not animals – they would be Chevrolet bowties! A combination of marketing and supporting the fans. I knew it was a success when the local Los Angeles newspaper said that it was a “horribly blatant display” of Chevrolet bowties flying through the air haha! The next year we provided mini Corvette plush toys and after that the ban was lifted.
And almost twenty years later, one of the figure skating writers that I knew, Lois Elfman, wanted to revisit that story, as she was there and remembered it well. She reached out and wrote a new story about it just this past September. You can read it at the link below.
My Olympic Experience
As you may have seen on our social media, I had the privilege of running with the Olympic Torch for the 2002 Olympics in Salt Lake City. At that time, Chevrolet was not just sponsoring figure skating, they were also sponsoring USA Hockey, the US Skiing and Snowboarding team and the Olympics, specifically the Torch Relay.
There was an opportunity for employees of General Motors to be torch bearers and there was a nomination process in place. I was fortunate enough to be nominated . As a result I had one of the most amazing and memorable experiences of my life.
We recently posted a one-minute video that I have of me running with the torch on Instagram. You can watch it HERE.
My family drove four hours to watch me run for less than five minutes. Why I love them so much!
(Jeff and I would meet 18 months later.)
I was also invited by the USFSA to attend the Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, which was another dream come true. I was only there for a couple of days, but I was able to attend one of the USA Women’s Hockey games and the Men’s Figure Skating programs.
Left: Heading to the arena for men’s skating. Center: Wearing an actual gold medal won by Russian pairs skater, Elena Berezhnaya. Right: At the USA Women’s Hockey game
One More Joy: Being Able to Include My Family
One of the things that I enjoyed the most was including my family in so many of these events. I was able to bring my parents, Jen, her sister Brittany and my brother and sister-in-law to activities. I also used Brittany as a “model” for our Todd Eldredge Skating Clinics. It was a true family affair and I am grateful to Chevrolet for being able to include them.
My parents, myself and my colleague/friend, Sandy with 2002 Olympic Gold Medalist Sarah Hughes
Jen and Brittany with Michelle Kwan
Jen and Brittany with 1998 Gold Medal winner Tara Lipinski and Todd Eldredge
Have you had a job that you really love? Did you find it so much easier to do the work because it was something you loved? Let me know in the comments below.
If you enjoyed this post, you might enjoy my post on “How I Combined What I Love With What I Do”. It’s all about how I got our handbags on “General Hospital” when I worked at K. Carroll Accessories. You can read it HERE.
