Wisdom of Colin Cowherd

I've said this before, but I'm constantly amazed at how much marketing and business insight I get from listening to ESPN's Colin Cowherd on the way to work.

His most recent gem came in discussing how the National Spelling Bee attracted TV ratings that rivaled prime-time Major League Baseball. It was a topic on his show because hardcore baseball fans had complained that the spelling bee was a dog and not equal to baseball in interest or importance.

"Don't listen to the diehards and the purists," Cowherd said. "Do not let them drive the bus."

His point was that diehard fans and baseball purists are blind to new possibilities.

I heard Cowherd's take at the same time we're tackling a dramatic redesign of our newspaper that could take us in bold new directions and question many of the strategies that have served newspapers so well over the years.

Consistently throughout this redesign process the voice in my head has been saying, "Don't listen to the diehards and purists."