Fans of the Seattle Mariners know how special Cal Raleigh is as a player and what he means to the organization. After hearing Cal in interviews over the years they also have a good sense of his personality and sense of humor. 

Cal Raleigh is all about the team. He doesn't like to talk about himself, but he was forced to Friday night when he set a franchise record for most home runs by a catcher.

It's a huge milestone and one he didn't really want to talk about, but I couldn't avoid asking the questions because it's the topic everyone watching expects him to talk about. Here's how I approached the walk-off interview with Cal Raleigh and what it means for the conversations you're having at work.

I can't change anyone's personality. I can't force them to answer questions in a specific way. It's important to meet people where they are in a conversation and that's why it's important to spend time building relationships and talking to co-workers. You'll be in a better position to under...

You can be authentic and prepared all at the same time. In fact, it's the only way I made it through technical difficulties during a pregame interview this week.

I was chatting with NBA and Seattle SuperSonics legend Gary Payton and while he was answering the first question I got word the microphone was cutting in and out. We needed to make a switch during the live interview. There was a lot happening behind the scenes and the interview could have easily gone off the rails if not for a script and time spent planning for distractions. 

Often when I suggest scripting out a presentation or interview, folks push back and say things like "I want it to sound conversational." or "I don't want it to sound scripted." or "I just want to show up and be present in the moment." 

The technical difficulties during the pregame interview are a reminder about the value of scripting and preparing. I was able to stay focused while dealing with a huge distraction and hopefully no one at home knew the...

Just in case you were wondering... and I know some of you are because I frequently get questions (more like comments on social media) inquiring about my thought process during post-game interviews. It's usually some form of "What was she thinking?" 

Now you don't have to guess or wonder, I'm pulling back the curtain for the first time and sharing my thought process and factors at play when guiding the conversation during a post-game interview. 

Jorge Polanco played both hero and goat during the Mariners 2025 Opening Day win against the A's and we talked about the good and the bad during the walk-off, on-field interview. It's always easier to talk after wins but it doesn't mean we can (or should) avoid the mistakes - something that's true in sports and business. 

Going behind the scenes of this post-game interview gives you an idea of how approach conversations about accountability with your team at work. It's another way to think outside the box scores and make sports conversatio...

Who do you have this weekend, Eagles or Chiefs?

When the best teams in the NFL duke it out Sunday in the Super Bowl there will be plenty of conversation around Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs quest to become the first team in NFL history to win three straight Super Bowls. As for the Eagles it’s a chance to avenge a Super Bowl loss to the Chiefs just two years ago.

You know who we won’t be talking about this weekend?

The best quarterbacks in the league based on the numbers. Or the best wide receivers, or the defensive players with the most tackles, sacks or interceptions this year. Because they’re not playing on Sunday. Their teams didn’t make it to the Super Bowl.

Eagles running back Saquon Barkley is the exception. We will be talking about the best running back in the league this year because he finished with the most rushing yards and the highest yards per game average.

You know what this tells me? The numbers don’t speak for themselves. If the players who did their job at the h...

On occasion I joke about getting “talks too much” on every single report card. On occasion I see other people, usually women, saying the same thing on social media and sharing how those conversation skills led to a successful career. I often add to the conversation and say I was just practicing for my career in broadcasting and as a keynote speaker. What I don’t share is the deep insecurity that comes along with hearing that critique for so many years, and it hasn’t always come from other people. Too often it’s my own inner dialogue that becomes the roadblock.

The fear that I “talked too much” and maybe even was “too much” in general made it easy to follow the advice I got early in my career: it’s best if you don’t say anything and just let your work speak for itself. It’s easily the worst advice, doled out by male colleagues who didn’t know what to do with a woman in the locker room. To be fair, they didn’t have much precedent to go on. When I got into the industry women were allowed...

Networking is something most of us think takes hours and minutes. As in, you attend a networking event that takes a couple hours in the evening, or you schedule an hour lunch or a 30-minute coffee meeting. 

It's true that networking takes place in those moments, but it's equally true that networking can take place in seconds. I know, because it's how I build relationships and network with athletes inside professional locker rooms. 

Here's what we miss most often about networking:

1. It's not the time spent, it's the connection made. 
2. It's more important to show up consistently over time than wait or hope for a big conversation or opportunity.

As I explained during the "What Do you Know to Be True?" podcast, I measure conversations in seconds, not minutes and I make the most of the few seconds I get talking to athletes during the week. 

Here are 5 Small Ways to Build Relationships 

1. Make a plan for what you want to get out of an interaction. Maybe it's an introduction, mayb...

Home field advantage could be about the comforts of home, not having to travel or the familiarity of a particular setup.

Home field advantage is also measurable in sports.

Through the first half of the 2024 season the Seattle Mariners have one of the best home field advantages in baseball. They’ve won about 69% of their games at T-Mobile Park, which is ranks in the Top 5 home winning percentages in Major League Baseball.

But what gives them the edge? Is it ball park dimensions, fans or the weather/environment?

Here’s what I find interesting about all three of those factors – the players aren’t in control of any of them. You can’t change how a ballpark was built, you can’t tell fans how to react and you can’t control the weather and yet those external factors all play a part in the outcome of a game.

With that in mind, let’s think about this in the context of your team at work.

• What factors give you an advantage?
• How can you create an advantage in your current environment?
...

I could teach a Masterclass in waiting. Not being patient, just waiting.

It’s a large part of my job, and that can be frustrating for someone who likes to be on-the-go, not to mention efficient in attacking a to-do list.

After more than two decades in sports broadcasting and countless hours spent waiting for people to be ready to talk to me, I’ve accepted it’s part of my job. I’ve also come to these two realizations.

Waiting is work. You are doing something. In “real life” we thinking waiting is a waste of time, but for me it’s a large part of success. It’s far better for me to wait until a player is ready to talk to me than to force my agenda and timeline on them. That never leads to the type of interaction I’m looking for and doesn’t do much to further the relationship.

Smiling counts. I won’t try to tell you to be patient while waiting. I’m usually not. I’ve actually found it’s not about being patient as much as finding different ways to measure success. That’s why I smile and s...

Caitlin Clark is the most prolific scorer in college basketball history. The records she set at Iowa led to storylines sports fans around the country followed. 

The increased popularity and viewership of women's basketball can be directly traced to Clark. 

Her career and accomplishments have spark countless sports conversations, but here's what I keep thinking about - if it was my job to coach Caitlin Clark, what skills would I need to support a superstar talent? 

Thinking outside the box scores leads us to a different type of conversation altogether, one that could benefit every leader because it's ultimately about the high performers on your team. 

There's no question Clark is highly motivated on her own, but she can't win by herself. No one can. Her individual efforts get a lot of attention, but her team is the reason she won. So think about that in terms of the rising star in your organization and the high performers you manage. How do you create an environment that encou...

Athletes train for change because it’s part of the job. They’re going to take the field, court or pitch and be forced to change direction.

It’s rare an athlete gets to run straight ahead unimpeded while doing their job, (the exception being track athletes, of course.)

They expect change, so they prepare for it.

In fact, if you were to watch practices you would discover that most of practice is about making adjustments and changing direction. They anticipate the scenarios they’ll encounter in a game or match and create drills that help them respond effectively.  

Anyone who’s ever played sports would tell you that’s what practice is for.

So how are you practicing for change in your career?

This is another example of using sports to think outside the box scores and have a bigger conversation about preparing for change.

• How are you training yourself to be resilient and respond effectively when change happens?
• Do you spend time encouraging your team to practice and prepare for ch
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