After a successful weekend in Manchester, England for UFC 105, the UFC will look to continue its growth around the world. In the last year, the UFC has traveled to Canada, England, and Germany, but plans to take the sport to countries such as Italy, France, Australia, and even Abu-Dhabi (the capital of the United Arab Emirates) in the near future. This a very smart and ambitious move for the UFC and could prove to be the groundwork for a global phenomenon years down the line.

This past weekend’s fights were received very positively by the U.K. fan-base; they see that the UFC has been growing steadily for the last few years. The sport of mixed martial arts was very new to the British fans when the UFC first came over, but a few short years later, it has become one of the more popular sports in the country with local stars such as Michael Bisping and Dan Hardy leading the way. Earlier this year, the UFC flagship program, “The Ultimate Fighter” featured a season where it matched up U.S. Fighters against U.K. Fighters, a first for the program. In the end, it was the U.K. who came out on top, showing the kind of effect that expanding globally can have on not only the bottom line as far as dollars for the UFC, but also on their roster of fighters and worldwide talent. UFC president Dana White summed up the road the UFC has traveled in England so far:

“I came here six or seven years ago to try and kick start mixed martial arts in the U.K.,” “When I came over here, nobody knew what it was. There really wasn’t any talent over here. In just six or seven years, we pack a stadium like this tonight.” (With 16,693 spectators packed into Manchester Evening News Arena, UFC 105 became the highest-attended European event in the history of the UFC. )

White also added:

“The other thing about tonight that blows me away is how educated the crowd was, how educated the fans here in the U.K. have become. When guys get side-control and the guy gets back in full-guard, they start cheering. They’re very educated in the ground game. They’re very educated on the fights. It’s amazing how fast this country has come around.”

The UFC will look to bring its brand of fighting to other countries the same way it introduced it here in the United States. Through its reality show, The Ultimate Fighter, the UFC will put on regional versions of the show and is actively trying to work out T.V. deals that will put the UFC into millions of new homes.

“My job is over the next 10 years, the same game of soccer that we play in the U.S. is the same game they play in Canada, Mexico, Spain, Italy, France, etc., and that’s what we’re doing with mixed martial arts right now,” White said. “Everywhere you go all over the world, it’s the same sport, and everybody plays by the same rules. We’re trying to get these television deals in all these countries, major TV deals exposing the fans to it, then you bring a live event to those places. Then the virus spreads and people start training at it, trying to make a living at it, eventually becoming professional athletes. That’s what we’re going to do over the next 10 years.”

“How do we plug this whole thing in with television and how to watch it everywhere? We’re trying to figure that whole thing out and build that now. But the groundwork for this thing is ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ and we’ve been working it very hard, and we’re making it happen. ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ is going to be all over the world. That’s the goal.”

The list of possible regions for the UFC to explore is endless, as martial arts and fighting in some form, is kind of a universal language. Expansion hasn’t been totally problem free, however. White, and the UFC have faced challenges in the past when trying to come into a new market or country. When they went to Germany for the first time earlier this year, they were received well by fans, but country officials were deeming the sport too brutal or dangerous and opposed what the UFC was trying to do. This stigma that the UFC carries is mainly from its beginnings as a no-holds-barred fight sport in the early 1990’s before White ever stepped foot into the company and changed it from top to bottom. I think this is really the only thing that could slow down the UFC’s quest to enter new markets as some local government officials could try to ban it, but the UFC has a team of public relations experts that I would have to believe is up to the task. I think that White is the kind of person who won’t rest until his company’s goals are accomplished, and that 10 years from now, we will see unprecedented growth from this sport internationally.

One last quote from Dana White, because as you start to follow the UFC, you will see that he comes up with some interesting (to say the least) things to say.

“Randy Couture fought in the U.K. tonight and got a [expletive] standing ovation. People went crazy for this American. You don’t ever see that [expletive], and you haven’t seen that since the Mike Tyson days. People are feeling that way all over the world about lots of guys, whether it’s Wanderlei Silva, Anderson Silva, the guys from the U.K., a Canadian. [Expletive Georges St- Pierre] is going to fight Dan Hardy. ‘GSP’ got a warm ovation from the crowd. You don’t see that [expletive] in any other sport. So, there’s a lot of potential globally here to do some cool [ expletive].”

Please continue to post your comments or any questions you may have.

It makes sense that major West Coast agencies continue to grow.  Creative Artists Agency was a player in the entertainment world well before it started buying out the largest sports agents/agencies.  It figured that its existing model and connections could bring in more revenue than those entities had been receiving in the past.  It seems to be doing quite well with that business plan.  Another company with broad entertainment connections for its clients is Wasserman Media Group.  I don’t know when agent Arn Tellem finds time to sleep, with his enormous list of clients in professional basketball and football.  He probably receives over one-hundred calls per day from GMs, reporters, and clients, and still finds time to go on the recruiting trail and find new business.  He also keeps his current clients happy, and seems to have a strong connection to the entertainment world through his wife, Nancy Tellem.  Nancy is the President of CBS and is in charge of all of its television programming.

Quite the power couple, and it definitely benefits Arn’s clients.  Recently, Pau Gasol made an appearance on CSI: Miami.  Last year, Gasol and Jordan Farmar appeared on NUMB3RS.  Both shows are on CBS, both players are clients of Arn Tellem and WMG.  Gasol and Farmar are not the biggest names in the game of basketball, but both of them are playing in Los Angeles, so it is natural for them to want a piece of the limelight.

Want to be a MAJOR player in this industry?  Better start cultivating those connections in the entertainment industry, as well.

On November 5^th, UFC Welterweight Champion, Georges St. Pierre signed a multi-year endorsement deal with athletic apparel powerhouse Under Armour. St-Pierre, known by his fans as GSP, is one of the UFC’s most talented and marketable fighters and will be featured in a national campaign for the industry giant. Outfitted in Under Armour’s ColdGear performance apparel designed to protect athletes in cold temperatures, St. Pierre will serve as the poster boy for mainstream MMA. Beginning in the spring of 2010, St-Pierre will also become the face of Under Armour’s long-time top-selling BoxerJock and BoxerBrief underwear line and will become one of the primary figures for Under Armour’s Recharge suit, a suit designed to re-energize your body, promote muscle repair, and reduce swelling following a workout.

This endorsement is the second huge signing for St. Pierre, who signed with Gatorade last year shortly after being the first MMA fighter to sign with CAA Sports. It marks continued growth for the sport of MMA and puts a mixed martial artist in the conversation with figures from other mainstream sports such as professional football, baseball, and basketball. “Not only is Georges one of the biggest stars in one of the fastest growing sports in the world, but his dedication to training and making himself the best at what he does aligns perfectly with our Brand’s mission to make all athletes better,” stated Steve Battista, Under Armour Senior Vice President. “When we found out that he was a fan of ours, we jumped on the opportunity to bring him into the Under Armour family.”

I, for one, love the idea of MMA getting its due in the world of mainstream advertising. Very few athletes train as hard as some of the better fighters such as St. Pierre and there is a lot of money to be made by associating with a marketable fighter and growing your demographic. The sport of mixed martial arts is growing rapidly with gyms and training facilities opening up left and right, so it makes sense and is very smart for a brand such as Under Armour to seize the opportunity to be associated with it before other brands like Nike or Adidas catch on. NFL players such as Shawn Merriman and Calvin Pace have looked to MMA recently for their personal training and if the trend continues, the “MMA workout” could be the next big thing with Under Armour at the helm.

The UFC has recently debuted their new UFC Gym division to try and take advantage of the market for combat fitness, while MMA apparel leader Tapout has also just started to produce health and fitness performance supplements after years of just selling clothing and fight gear. This recent turn to fitness and performance has opened up endless possibilities for MMA in the multi-billion dollar fitness industry and could possibly lead to growth of the sport as a whole.

It will be interesting to see how things develop in the next three years in regards to MMA as a form of major brand advertising. Will large companies such as Under Armour just use fighters for print advertising, or will they get into the expensive business of sponsoring the fighters for their training and on their fight nights or become major sponsors for the UFC as a whole? Bud Light and Harley Davidson were some of the first big name sponsors to come on in recent year,s but to have a company such as Under Armour, or one day Nike, associated with the sport could give it some validation in the eyes of the mainstream sports fan.

I am interested in hearing what you guys think and how you perceive MMA on this site, so leave comments and hopefully we can spark a discussion.

To be honest, I kind of did a lot of thinking in this offseason and I wanted to go back to playing golf because I loved playing golf again. It had nothing to do with not even wanting sponsorships or if there wasn’t availability there. I just used to love playing golf, I used to love going out to the course everyday and some of that stuff can kind of get in the way. This year, I wanted my focus to be golf, and golf only and just not even worry about that other stuff.

His father, Mike Moore, echoed his sons sentiment in a recent ESPN article, “It’s not about money — it wasn’t going into the year and it isn’t now,” Mike Moore added. “It’s about aligning himself with products that befit his game. … He has a way that he enjoys looking and a way that he enjoys playing the game. He’s a very unique individual and he feels it’s important to be true to himself.”  Unique is right. Moore, at various times throughout the season, has sported a headband, flashy v-neck sweaters with ties and puma shoes (just like a pair people where on the streets) but with golf spikes attached – all items purchased by Moore.

So was it worth it? Moore’s answer would be an astounding yes. Moore finished this season with personal bests of a 70.46 scoring average, just over $2.2 million in earnings and his first PGA Tour victory.  Furthermore, that $2.2 million in earnings is over $1 million more than he earned in his previous season on tour. So to all pf Moore’s naysayers who bashed his decision to forgo $300-500K, he quips “less is Moore.”

IMG does not have a specific division for hockey, but it is experienced in marketing hockey players; it handled the marketing of Wayne Gretzky and Jaromir Jagr when they were in the NHL. IMG will look to expand on Ovechkin’s current endorsement portfolio which includes CCM, Energizer, Hair Cuttery, and Hockey Ink.

Ovechkin’s style of play on the ice and personality off the ice provide the foundation for incredible potential in product endorsements. On the ice, Ovechkin has scored some of the most impressive highlight-reel goals in the history of the game and still has energy to make the huge hits that hockey fans love to see. Off the ice, his personality is on display in interviews showcasing his contagious smile (interview starts at 2:00), love for the fun of the game, and pre-game antics which include racing a utility cart around the arena. The city of Washington D.C. fell in love with Ovechkin over the past couple years and it shows in ticket sales- the Capitals sold out all 12,000 season tickets this year.

What role did Ovechkin’s agent play in acquiring this marketing deal with IMG? Ovechkin’s representation is a roundtable that consists of his father, mother, financial adviser George Landa, and attorney Stephen Screnci. All decisions involving Ovechkin’s career are made collectively by that group. It would definitely be interesting to sit in on a negotiation involving all those parties, and they are obviously doing something right.

For a little insight on the negotiation of his $124 million contract which Alex and his mother conducted without an agent, watch this video at the 2:40 mark. You’ll notice the language barrier makes it hard for Alex to express in English exactly what he means, but IMG said it isn’t worried about that.

You’ve landed a talented athlete as a new client. A professional contract is fast-approaching. When the contract is signed, will the athlete’s online presence be ready?

In sports, the athlete’s name is the brand. So it should come as no surprise the bad guys on the internet, known as cyber-squatters, may try to take advantage of your athlete’s name and brand.

An example: In California, a single cyber-squatter was recently convicted of registering the domain names of nearly 800 basketball players. Domain names are Web browser addresses, like SteveNash.com and ChrisBosh.com. The affected players ranged from NBA pros to top high school and college players. Because of this one squatter, hundred’s of athletes were unable to take the first step into online branding. This was just one squatter — there are thousands of squatters on the NET trying to make money from athletes’ brands.

As an agent, you need to start managing your client’s online brand early —before fame and success attract the cyber-squatters. It’s critical for agents to help athletes create a comprehensive online branding strategy.

Here are 5 simple tips to help agents prepare and protect a player’s online brand:

1. Register a Dot-Com Domain Name

Domain names are Web addresses, so they are the focus of your online branding plan. Having a domain name with your player’s first and/or last name in it, like RogerFederer.COM, is the Grand Slam of Internet branding. The domain is also part of the player’s main email address.

But, web domains are a scarce resource, and are registered on a first-come-first-serve basis —  so even RogerFederer.COM doesn’t own Federer.COM

Once you start searching for an available domain name, you’ll be surprised how hard it is to find an available domain name. If your client has an uncommon name, you may be lucky and still be able to acquire CLIENTNAME.COM. Other good domains to register are nicknames. Shorter domain names are usually better, dashes and digits in a domain name are not as easily remembered by site visitors.

The Dot-Com domain is the most memorable and upscale—it’s far better than the other top-level domains (.NET, .ORG, .INFO, .BIZ, .US, etc.).

To register a domain, visit a Domain Registrar like Godaddy.com (http://GoDaddy.com). If the client’s name is available, you can register it for about $8 a year – you’ll need to renew every year or you lose the name. There are also many websites, such as Afternic.com and Sedo.com, that help you buy and acquire domains that are already registered — though auction prices can be exorbitant.

As long as you’re able to get the athlete’s main domain, it’s not worth going overboard speculating on a bunch of domains when an athlete is just starting out. However, keep in mind that the squatters will try to take advantage of typos in web addresses, so you may consider acquiring common misspellings of your client’s name (for Tennis, think Nadall.com, Nedal.com).

Later in this article I have some tips for what to do if you can’t get the name you want.

2. Create Social Networking Accounts

When fans want to find out about an athlete, they’ll go to the social networking sites; MySpace and Facebook are the biggest. With MySpace, you’ve always been able to get a page like http://Myspace.com/CLIENTNAME, so, you’ll want to grab that. Facebook now has that feature, too. And you’ll want to start and take ownership of a Facebook Fan Club for your client.

What content do you put on all these social media sites? It doesn’t matter—you can leave them blank to start with. The main point is that you control the real estate for your brand.

If you or your client does create some content on a social media page, keep the site very professional. Don’t let the athlete use these accounts for gossiping with friends, uploading photos or video of last Saturday night’s party, or other unprofessional uses. Future sponsors and advertisers will be watching, so you need to keep the client’s content squeaky clean and  presentable. Once something is on the Internet, it’s nearly impossible to take it down.

But remember: The main point is to acquire these online properties, even if you don’t use them at first. It’s far better to have nothing on a Web pages than to have cyber-squatters fill the page with advertisements.

3. Create a Twitter Account

Twitter, an online Short Message Service (SMS) site, is extremely popular and growing so quickly that it gets a checklist item all to itself. When fame first strikes, Twitter is where the trendsetters will talk about your client. Beware: Twitter squatters are already grabbing up all the famous Twitter account names.

Signing up for a Twitter account is free, so sign-up for an account name that matches the client’s real name. You may want to update the Twitter status occasionally with things like recent victories and upcoming games. But again, the key is to own the Twitter account for later use and to prevent someone else from controlling the Twitter account.

4. Setup Email and Instant Messaging

Fans, sponsors, advertisers and other vendors will want to communicate with an athlete. When your client owns a COM domain, you can automatically receive all email sent to any address at @CLIENTNAME.COM.

But, as part of a comprehensive branding plan, create free accounts at Gmail, Yahoo Mail, and HotMail: CLIENTNAME@gmail.com, CLIENTNAME@yahoo.com, and CLIENTNAME@msn.com. Setup the accounts so that they invisibly forward email to a single address.

Additionally, try to get brandable accounts for AOL Instant Messenger and MSN Messenger.

5. Setup Voicemail

For a business phone number, you can set up a free GoogleVoice (http://voice.google.com) account, which comes with a free phone number in almost any area code. Configure GoogleVoice to automatically forward voice-mail to your email accounts as an audio/text attachment. Or you can forward all GoogleVoice calls to your cell phone (the forwarding will be invisible to the caller).

If your client needs to speak with the press by phone, he or she can easily make phone calls through the GoogleVoice account using their existing cell phone. Have the client use the GoogleVoice as a business phone number for all sports-related activities to prevent the athlete’s personal phone information from becoming mixed with the athlete’s career info. Keeping an athlete’s professional life and personal life separate will also help protect the athlete’s privacy.

Troubleshooting Your Brand

What do you do if you can’t get all of the above items? Well, if your athlete’s name is very common like Joe Smith, then he’s a little late to the Internet party. But you can still try for domains like “JoeSmithHockey.com”.

What if fame has already struck and the athlete’s brand is already cyber-squatted? There are laws to protect an athlete’s name and brand. Contact an intellectual property attorney who specializes in trademarks. If the athlete’s name is fairly unique, having a lawyer send a letter to the various social media sites can often get them transferred to the player. Gaining control of a squatted domain is a little more complicated, but an attorney can definitely help to acquire it. Solving cyber-squatting problems through the legal system will cost you a lot more time and effort than doing it right the first time.

Be Ready for Fame…

Most importantly, it’s critical to be a few steps ahead of the cyber-squatters. With the first whiff of fame, squatters will notice an up-and-coming player and grab up all the prime Internet real estate related to that player. You can reduce future legal costs by keeping up with online trends and by beating the squatters to the prime Internet real estate. Your client’s future sponsors will appreciate a clean online-brand that isn’t full of Internet spam.

Remember: Your job as an agent is to help plan for the athlete’s entire career. It’s never too early to get a player’s brand ready. By spending a little effort up front, you can make future success that much sweeter.

Last year, I had the opportunity to attend the 2008 Princeton Sports Symposium as a general attendee.  I covered the event prior to attending and then wrote a short wrap-up.  Overall, I was extremely impressed with the event, and came home with many ideas concerning how to improve our own symposium hosted at the University of Florida Levin College of Law.

This year, I have the honor of actually participating on one of the 2009 Princeton Sports Symposium panels.  It is actually one of the first panels of the day, titled, “Partnership Activation Rising Stars.”  The entire agenda may be viewed here.  As was the case last year, Leverage Agency is the title sponsor of the event.  I cannot wait to see many of the people that I was introduced to last year, and meet plenty of new faces.  The important facts are as follows:

What: 2009 Princeton Sports Symposium Sponsored by Leverage Agency

When: Friday, December 4, 2009 (starts at 9:00 a.m. with Continental Breakfast)

Where: Friend Center, Princeton University (pictured to the right, map)

As a side note, I asked my girlfriend to date me a day before I left for last year’s symposium.  We are still together to this day.  Unfortunately, I will miss our actual one-year anniversary, but I will make it up to her (as if any of you care about that).

What: Panel: The Impact of Social Networking on the Sports World, Presented by the New York State Bar Association’s Entertainment, Arts and Sports Law Section

When: Tuesday, November 17, 2009 (8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.)

Where: Herrick, Feinstein, LLP, 2 Park Ave., New York, NY (14th floor amphitheater) / map

Moderator: Matthew D. Pace, Herrick, Feinstein LLP

Panelists:

• Lawrence Epstein, EVP and General Counsel, Ultimate Fighting Championship
• Jeffrey Gewirtz, SVP & General Counsel, NETS Basketball/Brooklyn Sports & Entertainment
• Steven Herz, Founder and President, If Management
• Elizabeth Matthews, EVP & Deputy General Counsel of MTV Networks

Discussion: How social networking is impacting the business of sports today from the perspective of copyright owners, distribution partners and athletes.

• How are Leagues, Teams and Athletes using social networking to promote themselves and their products?
• What are the risks associated with use of social networking platforms?
• Who controls the ownership of content — the League, the Team or the individual?
• Is this strictly promotional or is there a business model to monetize this?
• Does this impact the League news policies? Does this impact on the exclusivity of television agreements?
• Does this fall within a news exception or other fair use category? How would that affect copyright owners?
• How does the DMCA operate in this area, and how does it affect copyright owners? Is there law comparable to the DMCA in international markets?
• Can the fan in the stands capture photos or video and distribute them electronically to those outside the stadium?
• Does this, or real-time scores and blogs pose a threat to the content owners’ rights?
• Relevant cases – Mark Cuban’s position against bloggers, Olympics blogging policy, Viacom v. YouTube and Google, New York Rangers vs. NHL

Cost: Students can attend for free.  New York State Bar members pay $25.  Nonmembers have to front $35.  Click here for more information and to register.

It wasn’t until after a year of establishing his first business, 5M Studios, that creative director and CEO Joey Kirk decided to spin off a second company, 5M Sports.

“We wanted to make 5M Sports because it covers a very niche portion of design services,” Kirk says. “We want to tailor our services to athletes and sports organizations because, like our tagline says, we like sports.”

They don’t just like sports though; they love them. Working alongside marketing director Caleb Mezzy, a recent grad of Temple University, 5M Sports has worked with several high profile athletes in the development of Twitter backgrounds, web sites, logos, camp brochures and recruiting packets.

Here are a couple of examples:

• Website for Jesse Witten (tennis player)
• Twitter background for Duane Brown (LT for Houston Texans)

“We started with one client. And with some effort and a lot of emails, we’ve managed to grow significantly just since the launch of business back in August,” Kirk says.

Now, 5M Sports is working with several sport agencies and other organizations in building web sites for professional athletes as well as developing t-shirt designs, brand identity and other marketing materials.

“We have lots and lots of competition,” Kirk says. “Anyone that builds web sites want to develop them for athletes. They think they are cash cows.  But for us, that’s not the case. We love working with athletes. We’re not after their money.”

While there are a few design companies dedicated to working with athletes, 5M Sports stands out among its competition. With high-quality professional design and solid customer service, Kirk and 5M Sports work with almost any budget and are always on time with deliverables.

“We pride ourselves in making sure the client is always happy,” Kirk says. “We’ve never lost a client (nor has 5M Studios), and we don’t plan to start.”

So you want to work in sports?  You’ve put in the days, the months, and the years into getting yourself ready to be a productive member of the sports industry.  You have recently graduated college, maybe even with an industry specific degree in sports management.  In some cases, you even went out and got yourself a fancy post graduate degree and now you are ready to take on the challenge of working in the sports industry.  If this sounds like you and you are currently gainfully employed in the same sports industry you set out to conquer during these ever important early years of your professional career, then consider yourself a lucky member of the minority.  The majority, on the other hand, is the ever expanding group of young sports industry prospects who have a lot to offer, but no one willing to take a chance on them.  I am a part of this majority, and in this case, it is definitely better not to be running with the crowd.

I am 24 years of age, have a bachelor’s degree in sports management, and have held 3 different internship positions since graduating in 2007.  I have interned for a sports and entertainment public relations firm, an up-start NFL agent, and most recently a sports event hospitality company. I believe internships are a great way to learn more about the industry you want to be in, but like anything else, they have their pros and cons.  An obvious pro is that you can learn and gain experience in the industry you have wanted so much to be a part of.  This isn’t as fool proof as one may like; however, since you will find companies who only value their interns as a means to input data and nothing else.  On the other hand, you also may be lucky and work for a company who splits up the boring, tedious work that you are most definitely supposed to be doing at this stage of your career with actual company matters that require creative thoughts and ideas to stimulate your mind and give you the real experience you can use down the line. I have had the opportunity to intern in both types of settings and have a real appreciation for companies who value their internship programs.  But what if you are in the type of situation where your voice isn’t being heard…ever?  Well, that is where you have to make your own luck and figure out a way to do what is necessary to be noticed.

My personal motto for all work situations is to treat everyday like it is an interview. I learned this from the NFL agent I interned with for over a year and I try and do my best to keep that kind of enthusiasm and commitment day in and day out no matter how unglamorous the tedious work for the day might be.  The one thing that every internship has in common is that it is a foot in the door.  Getting that foot in the door is hard enough and you want to make the most out of it because things could suddenly open up, and if you have made yourself an indispensable part of the office and have shown great effort, then you could be in line for a promotion and subsequently a place in the sports industry. An internship also provides you with experience for your resume and can be a great way to make connections and grow your network.

Your network might be your most important asset in the sports industry. I recently spoke with someone who has the job I want at the company I would like to work for, in order to try and gain some perspective and advice.  What I learned from him is that connections trump all. He had worked in the industry for a few years, graduated high in his class and obtained his MBA, but was convinced all of that was peanuts compared to connections he had made, one of which was with his boss that led to him getting his job.  When this person said, “I’m convinced my boss doesn’t ever look at resumes” I rethought my game plan and refocused it on networking and selling myself as a person, because there are countless people out there, some of you included, with more impressive resumes than me and I need to separate myself from the gathering herd of applicants.  You should be doing the same thing.  Sell yourself, get creative and come up with your own game plan to follow.

Don’t get discouraged.  Get hungry.  If this is something you want and you are passionate about it and can afford to maybe work a night job for a few years so you can spend your days working for free towards your goal, then do it.  I personally need to be doing something I’m passionate about to be effective, and I love sports.  I’ve been told to maybe work a job in a different industry and figure it out later, but the time is always now to do what you love and the road isn’t always an easy one.  It is easy to get down on yourself if you, like me, have had a little trouble climbing the corporate ladder, but know that you’re not alone.  In the mean time, keep yourself sharp and try to make yourself stand out, but try not to take any jobs from me!