The NFL draft is the world’s biggest televised recruiting event. When the NFL is out of playing season, the drama of the draft occupies our attention for weeks, if not months!
The expert analysts write up many “mock†drafts, and we talk about who will be picked and in what order. Then, after the draft, the drama continues as the draft picks are evaluated and teams are assigned grades by the analysts. Who knew recruiting could be so entertaining for weeks on end?
Each and every draft, not only combines pure physical tools and talent (measurables), but also character (immeasurables). In many ways this draft was about character and not just talent. Character is a modifier of talent. It can increase the utilization of talent if it is of good quality or it can reduce the utilization of talent to the point that it is effectively non-existent.
The biggest example of this played out over the course of last year and into this year in the Aaron Hernandez murder trial. Aaron Hernandez, a very talented tight end for the New England Patriots, was convicted of murder. While he was in jail, his team won the Super Bowl. The dichotomy of these two destinations in his life is instructive.
The most telling examples of lack of character have all been displayed by violence against other people. One good litmus test for our own character assessment, “How am I treating others?â€.
In the world of engineering in the chemical and refining industry, draft day continues. The market has become steadily more active each month this year and demand for many product line ups are solid. The cycles of industries and companies continue. As one industry cycles down, another cycles up. As one company shrinks, another expands. The market outlook for refining and downstream looks good and we have many clients in the up cycle that are ready to draft talent (and character).