Believe me, you don't want to get sponsored. "Are you crazy? Of course I want to get sponsored!" I hear this a lot. My first response is...why? What's in it for you? "Free yoyos man!" Really? A few free yoyos? Get a part time job at McDonald's and you'll get far more return on the time put in. Here are some reasons why. 1. Being sponsored is a job. You have obligations, deadlines and tasks. The company expects you to work for them! You have been sponsored as an advertising agent. This takes effort and time that you could be spending having fun yoyoing. Companies generally look at two main areas in a sponsored player. Contest wins and Internet activity. 2. Regular production of videos showing off the product. This may be something you love to do, but when it's final exams or that big project at work is due, and you need to put out a promo video tomorrow, it can turn yoyoing into a job. You need to be constantly pushing yourself to make up or learn fresh material. Are you sure you want to commit to monthy finding a cool place to film, and having fresh material to film? 3. The Internet. You are expected to spend time daily promoting your company on the Internet, in forums, on Facebook, the works. You are no longer free to talk about how much awesomer (yes that's a word) another company's yoyo is, your job is to show the world that the only Yo-yo they need is the newest one by your company. 4. You only ever get to use their gear. Want to show off the cool new yoyo you got that's perfect for your style? Sorry, you can't. Want to enter an online contest where you have to make a video using another company's logo? sorry, you can't. And you are doing all this for a couple of free yoyos? That's a terrible idea! So why do people chase a sponsorship? I have met a variety. I have met many for whom representing a company and promoting them is a joy. I have been In a room with someone who got sponsored, then sat in a room talking about the company and their piece of crap yoyos, then refused to use the company's gear on stage. I have also yoyoed with someone for whom it was almost irrelevant that he was sponsored, he just loved to throw. Obviously there is the prestige factor "I'm super awesome, I'm on team yoyo tiger snake and you aren't *sticks out tongue*." I'm kidding, I have yet to meet anyone in the yoyo community that thinks like that, and I don't expect to, it's one of the joys of yoyoing. Having said that, it is cool being on a team. It does lead me to the reason I enjoy being sponsored. Being part of something. Humans are community animals. We like being part of a tribe. Being on a yoyo team means you have people in your court. For me personally I like the promoting 'work', that's part of the fun for me, and far less a job. I honestly don't think I would have done nearly what I have, or gotten to where I am on my own. So yeah, being sponsored isn't all bad. But it's not a goal worth aiming for, unless you think that thee work will be a joy for you. It's not worth it for any other reason. Find your passion within the yoyo world and enjoy that, and if you get sponsored by a company you can stand behind and enjoy being a part of, all the better.
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So if you are a yoyoer who ever throws in public, you run into the dreaded "Hey man, walk the dog". If you are like me an are usually throwing metal, this is not a good thing. Here is the solution. If you tell people a story and engage them, you win.
"Once upon a time yoyos were simple. They we're round, like a wheel, and did simple tricks. The most popular was walk the dog. Like a dog, these yoyos came back when you tugge on them. Modern yoyos are a different animal. Made of machined aluminum, they have wings and are more like birds that fly than dogs on the ground. As a result, we no longer walk the dog, instead we walk the parrot! " (Insert arm or finger grind here) So back to school. For every teacher that means something different. We all feel excited at seeing what the new year will bring, meeting the new students and so on. We also feel the weight of planning a new year, perhaps moving rooms or changing grades. I have one additional joy that I get to look forward to. The Yo-yo club! At some point in the next couple of weeks, I'll pick a day, open up the gym at lunch, and have a bunch of crazily enthusiastic kids rushing in the play with yoyos.
It's a pretty cool thing to be able to look foward to. |
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