Wear The Hat

Sometimes, supporting a small business is as simple as wearing a hat…

Just before I interviewed Stephenville head football coach and athletic director Sterling Doty, he noticed something across from our booth: two businesses from his own community, Barefoot Athletics and its newer clothing brand, High Creek.

So, Doty walked over, talked with them, grabbed a High Creek hat, and wore it during our interview.

That was it.

No endorsement deal. No elaborate sponsorship activation. No marketing consultant armed with a 47-slide PowerPoint explaining the synergistic potential of strategic headwear.

He simply saw an opportunity to give a local business some visibility, and he took it.

Near the end of our conversation, I asked him about the hat. Doty explained that Barefoot Athletics owners Matt and Mitch Copeland are part of the Stephenville community and among the biggest supporters of the school’s booster club.

It was a small example of how healthy communities tend to work. Local businesses support schools, teams, and organizations. In return, coaches, schools, and community leaders have opportunities to support the businesses helping keep those programs strong.

America has more than 36 million small businesses. They represent over 99% of all U.S. businesses and employ tens of millions of Americans.

But statistics only explain part of their importance.

Especially in smaller communities, businesses and schools exist in an ecosystem. Businesses sponsor teams, employ parents and graduates, buy advertisements, donate to fundraisers, and write checks. Schools, coaches, and community leaders can return some of that loyalty by remembering who consistently shows up for them.

And maybe there’s a broader lesson buried underneath one High Creek hat in Stephenville.

Wear the hat.

Not literally, necessarily. Although, in Doty’s case, that worked pretty well.

Wear the hat means looking for those small opportunities to advocate for somebody else. Mention the local restaurant you love. Recommend the contractor who treated you fairly. Share the work of the person building something worthwhile. Introduce two people who could help each other.

Wear the hat means understanding that not every interaction needs to be transactional. You don’t always need a commission, a sponsorship agreement, a favor owed, or some meticulously calculated return on investment.

Sometimes helping somebody should be enough of a return.

Doty saw an opportunity that probably took 30 seconds and required virtually nothing from him. He wore the hat, gave a local business some exposure, and strengthened a relationship between people who are already investing in the same community.

There are opportunities to “wear the hat” around us constantly. Most aren’t grand gestures. They’re small, almost forgettable decisions that collectively determine whether we merely live near other people or actually participate in a community.

So, when you see one, don’t overthink it.

Wear the hat.