Zach Friend finishes a press conference after two SCPD officers were shot in February. Former police spokesman and current Santa Cruz County Supervisor Friend has funneled what he's learned on the job into his new book 'On Message.'
Why do we know the logo for Nike and Target, but not for US Airways? Why did Barack Obama win the presidency in 2008 over several better-funded and better-known opponents? And why did he win again in 2012, with most of the country disappointed in him?
Santa Cruz County Supervisor Zach Friend believes he knows the answers to these questions. His new book, On Message: How a Compelling Narrative Will Make Your Organization Succeed, posits that people and organizations that effectively and honestly tell the story of who they are will achieve success. The book comes out Sept. 17, with a release party and reading on Sept. 18 at Bookshop Santa Cruz. We sat down with Friend to discuss his book and the insights he’s gained over the course of his career, which before his move into local politics included everything from communications expert for the Obama campaign to spokesperson for the Santa Cruz Police Department.
SANTA CRUZ WEEKLY: When did you get the idea for this book?
ZACH FRIEND: I started putting together the ideas for the book in 2010, so in my mind it has been a three-year process. But it’s exciting to have it come out, because I want my parents to have something in their hands.
‘On Message’ is about how politicians and organizations can develop narratives for themselves. What are some of the common mistakes public figures make trying to get their message out, specifically talking to the press?
I think that one of the greatest mistakes that any leader can make is exclusively trying to communicate via facts and figures without going for things that have emotional resonance.
Is that something you became aware of during your time as spokesperson for the police department?
Yeah, we used to talk a lot at the police department about how to communicate things that are pretty horrific. I mean, I could just lay out what happened and tell everybody that at this date and time, this person was brutally assaulted, and this is who we’re looking for and this is what we hope to get out of it. By the way, that is what I would say 95 percent of all law enforcement agencies do. Or you can think about it as: the first thing that I need to recognize, because I live in this community too, is this sucks. What happened sucks. Because we feel it at the police department. We’re dealing with the victim, right? Or the victim’s family if the victim’s not with us.
As SCPD spokesman, you had a reputation for your sense of humor, and your use of foul language. Was that you trying to be authentic, or was that a trick to throw off reporters who might try to get you ‘off message’?
I hadn’t thought of that (laughs). I don’t think you can try to be authentic, actually. But I do believe that it’s just easier to be who you are in all contexts, recognizing that decorum is necessary in certain contexts. To me, you have to see some humor in some of those dark situations, or it would be tough to sleep at night. And you have to be able to blow off some of the steam, and be honest with reporters about it. I like to believe that I was honest with them. And that showed me as whoever I was, including at 2am at a murder scene when we’re all showing up together. That’s who you are. And sometimes you’re gonna use inappropriate language, and tell probably a couple jokes you shouldn’t have. But I’m OK with that.
Hypothetical question: The New York Times publishes a story that says Santa Cruz is the most dangerous city in the U.S. right now. If you were a spokesperson for the city, how would you respond to that?
Well, you’re normally a result of your ability to create the narrative about your community. And I would argue that the narrative of Santa Cruz County is not what it should be. So if The New York Times would write that story, it’s because we failed at doing a good job of having [them] think differently of us. They wouldn’t write that about Boulder [Col.], right? They would write it about here, and the question is why. We have a remarkable outdoor sports enthusiast area, unbelievable small business success stories from Penny Ice Creamery to NextSpace on up. We’re entrepreneurial, environmental, progressive yet focused on the economy. But if you were to go out of town and tell somebody you’re from Santa Cruz, overall there’s a discussion about drugs, there’s a discussion about counterculture. I don’t think that’s the identity of the community, and we should do a better job of retelling that story than we are right now.
What about spin? Does your book teach people how to turn bad situations around?
No. Because what that is, is you trying to put a good face on something, but if the underlying story isn’t good over time, what’s going to happen is it’s going to break apart.
But don’t a lot of politicians and businesses, both of which you explore case studies of in the book, create deceptive and distorted stories about themselves?
I do think that happens. But I don’t think that lasts. I think that if you want to be truly successful in whatever it may be, if you’re not genuine at your underpinning, then something’s going to come out.
You worked in communications for the Obama campaign. How did he use a narrative to win?
He was running in 2008 as a “change” candidate, which is a very common message. “I’m gonna do things differently than the last person.” But here you’ve got a guy who was born in Hawaii, lived a good portion of his life outside the U.S., totally took a different path than any normal, standard road to the presidency. And so the story about him was one of something that is unique and different, and so when he says, “I’m about change,” it made sense to the average voter. The narrative about him made sense.
If you were running for president, what is the personal narrative you would create about yourself?
Well, I appreciate the “if,” because that is most likely not in my future. But in general, you don’t create a narrative. Your narrative is already there because it is who you are. The thing to learn is how to highlight it.
Zach Friend will read from and sign ‘On Message’ at Bookshop Santa Cruz on Sept. 18 at 7:30pm.
