What I Like... With Blue Equity LLC COO Mike Principe

Blue Equity LLC COO Mike Principe

In our continuing series, SportsBusiness Daily/SportsBusiness Journal asks top sports execs for their thoughts, ideas, aspirations and likes. Today, Blue Equity LLC COO and Blue Entertainment Sports Television Managing Dir MIKE PRINCIPE.

What I like in a business deal: Value accretion -- that which increases or adds to the value or other assets in a platform.

A story that bears watching: The rise of the Chinese athlete on the world stage and the USOC's response.

An insight: Experiential sports, where the fans are the event and participate in the sensation of competing in a structured environment, resonate deepest with the targeted audience.

An influential person in my career: BOB SILLERMAN, founder of SFX Entertainment and now Chairman and CEO of CKX Inc. He has such a command of what is of greatest relevance to a particular situation and how to best achieve his objectives.

An out-of-the-box idea: Anything that comes out of the mind of KENNY DICHTER, co-Founder of Marquis Jets with JESSE ITZLER. When Kenny and Jesse created Marquis Jets, they created an industry. Brilliant.

A timeless idea: Playing ball until it gets dark.

A marketing idea: The reinvention and repackaging of the Disney Princesses.

A business solution: Don't re-create the wheel, but think hard enough and the solution generally presents itself.

A strategy: Focused with a back-up plan.

A hire: Someone who, after we have worked together, goes on to surpass me on the food chain.

A brand: Velcro. Like it or not, has anyone outside of the military (or the Velcro company) ever referred to the stuff as a "hook and loop fastener?"

A trend: Responsible agriculture. Let's hope it's not just a trend but is here to stay.

An innovation: The DVR.

A business decision: Clarity -- a decision that is well thought out and leaves no room for misinterpretation.

Principe Lauds World Baseball Classic Idea

A pro league business initiative: The World Baseball Classic.

An ad campaign: A good dose of humor is more likely to keep folks talking.

An idea I wish I had thought of: Selling a sponsorship to the offseason.

What I like about my job: Every day is a very different day.

Sports: The passion and inspiration.

Sports journalism: The fair and unbiased reporting so prevalent in the industry.

Sports finance: Providing the means to bring a team to a city and enriching the lives of millions.

Negotiating a deal: Understanding the important points for all interested parties, creating a structure which satisfies them and then bringing the deal to conclusion.

Relationship building: Is absolutely critical in doing a deal. You don't just walk away after it's done. The trust and respect built during the negotiations are important factors in a deal's ultimate success.

Sports business: The many facets to the business and, as it is constantly evolving, the innovation.

Sports management: The challenge of working with people with healthy personalities and, at times, different agendas to achieve a common goal.

College sports: Watching women's softball. It is the purest form of sport, where the athletes are playing for nothing more than their love of the game.

Competing in this business: You can't just react. You must be thinking three steps ahead.

The direction of sports business: The push toward interacting with the fans on their level.

Sports fans: That there will always be sports fans.

What I would like to change: The perception that all athletes, agents and owners are self-centered individuals driven solely by greed.

See different: A mandatory three-game suspension for not running out a pop fly.

Reintroduce: The company softball game.

Eliminate: Labor stoppages.

See more of: Kids out of their houses and on the playgrounds.

What I don't like in general: Negativity.

Pet peeve: Tardiness.

In sports: The pressure people feel to take performance-enhancing drugs, knowing full well the damage they can cause.

In business: Variables -- not knowing, with a good degree of certainty, the outcome of a chosen course of action.

In sports management: The challenge of working with people with healthy personalities and, at times, different agendas to achieve a common goal.

In negotiations: Forced deals. Know when to walk away.

In sports finance: The public and private disconnect which can act to the detriment of the fans.

In sports facilities: Long bathroom lines.

My job: Saying goodnight to my family over the phone.

About the direction of sports business: The need for rising ticket prices.

Personal what I like...that would surprise those who know me: I own music by MC SHAN.

Above all else: New York City pizza.

Lincoln One Of Principe's Heroes

Hero: ABRAHAM LINCOLN.

Teams: 1977 and 1978 Yankees, 1985 St. John's basketball.

Cities: New York, Rome.

Time of year: Summer.

Books: Anything by UMBERTO ECO and military history. So much can be learned from how decisions are made under unimaginable pressure.

Gadget: The GPS.

Trip: Sicily.

Movie: "Young Frankenstein."

TV: "30 Rock" and "Arrested Development."

Concerts: Whatever's playing at the Prospect Park band shell.

Dessert: Strawberry-rhubarb pie.

Drink: Chocolate egg cream.

Vacation spot: Seychelles.

Quote: "When I was 16, my father was the most ignorant man in the world. By the time I reached 21, I was surprised at how much he had learned in five years." (Attributed to MARK TWAIN)

Possession: A baseball signed by the 1959 Yankees.

Magazines: Sports Illustrated and National Geographic.

Web sites: Yahoo Sports, ESPN and the league sites.

Singers: ELLA FITZGERALD and NEIL YOUNG.