New York Lawyer
November 20, 2003

Q:
I�ve read your advice that I shouldn�t worry about not being interested in sports talk in the workplace. But it�s such a constant topic. How can I get by if I want to participate, so I fit in at least a little? What are some practical tips?

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A:

Since I didn�t have a clue about this, I was happy to receive many practical ideas from readers on how to handle sports-a-phobia in one�s career.

Many suggest thinking about a surface knowledge of sports as part of the job. You read the business section every day, right? So check out the sports pages, too, just so you know about the big World Series game and the deciding playoff hockey match. One reader says: �People can easily pick up a lot about current sports simply by skimming the sports page every day from whatever newspaper they read. This will give them much more fluency and familiarity with what's going on, so even if they are not as knowledgeable or enthusiastic as the other guys, they would at least know the major, recent developments and have a good idea what the `big game� is that they're all talking about.�

Another reader says her sports-hating brother has it nailed: �He scans the morning paper every day to get one sports-related headline (e.g., Lakers top the Losers), and then asks his customers if they saw the Lakers game last night, and wasn't it amazing how they beat the Losers. After the customer prattles on sufficiently, my brother changes the topic to what he really wants to discuss. No one has ever noticed that all he knows is one headline!� I guess you can go a long way on a single thought. And remember, true sports nuts don�t need much to set them off. Give them a little inspiration and they�ll be off and running.

Another approach is distraction. You can concentrate on a sport you actually care about (which might not be of general interest), and cause such fatigue people will happily change the subject. A reader says, �I have learned everything I can about the Tour de France (the ONLY sport that interests me). When the sports nuts start talking about their stupid games, I butt in and start prattling about the Tour de France so much, they change the topic to something of mutual interest just to shut me up. Works (almost) every time!�

A die-hard sports fan advises that you pick one team and get serious: �It is indeed difficult to become an expert on professional baseball or football in a single day. However, the best, easiest way to get `in� with the guys is to 1) follow a particular team, 2) follow them closely and 3) become a fan. That is, if your fellow lawyers are talking about the best pitchers in the league, it will no doubt be difficult to chime in. However, if you know in depth info of ONLY Team X, you would be deemed a `diehard fan� who follows one team closely to the exclusion of others, and there is never anything wrong with following your favorite team in such a way. As long as the discussion is about pitching, you will be able to chime in on your own team's pitching woes.�

This reader goes on: �Anyone who can pass the bar exam should be able to spend three to four hours on ESPN.com and a team's website, and by doing so will know much more than his colleagues about that team. By following the team (say for 10 minutes) on a daily basis, enough knowledge about the team and the sport should be acquired so as to allow the person to talk naturally and about the sport.� So there�s your homework.

Here�s another wrinkle. Females who are diehard sports fans sometimes find their male colleagues are miffed that the woman knows at least as much as they do. One reader writes, �I am a female lawyer and an avid sports fan. According to my male friends and even some partners at my firm, I know more about sports than just about any other woman - and most men. The men in my group are constantly talking about sports (fantasy football, basketball, hockey, etc). I, however, choose not to participate because the men are threatened and have even changed the subject when I do choose to participate, given that I might actually add something valuable to the conversation.�

Despite being edged out of sports conversations, her enthusiasm lives on, and she goes on to give some super, highly specific tips:

�1. Watch SportsCenter nightly or in the morning before work. In one hour, you will be up to speed on all current events.

�2. Read ESPN.com, especially the columns written by Bill Simmons, aka The Sports Guy. There is a complete archive of his work available on the website. Every single male sports fan I know reads The Sports Guy's columns religiously. They are chock full of information about current events and sports history over the past 10 years. FYI, Bill Simmons is also a writer for Jimmy Kimmel's talk show.

�3. Go to the local baseball games with a knowledgeable friend .You don't need great seats, just a ticket for the bleachers on a Saturday afternoon. You can watch the whole game unfold and observe the fans.

�4. Go to sports bars with friends. Watch as many different games as possible and take it all in. Sports bars are especially great during the NCAA basketball tournament in March - April.

�5. Read the Almanac. I know this may sound obsessive, but the sports sections in the almanac contain excellent summaries of key data points for all the major sports. I have learned that trivia questions are great sports conversation starters.�

Well, there you have it. Doubtless there are thousands of other tips to get sports-a-phobes out of the bleachers and behind home plate, but these should give a start.

Sincerely,
Holly English
Principal Consultant, Values at Work