Renewed motivation helps Lucero find job near home

(June 23, 2015) After five frustrating months in the job sports broadcasting market, Dan Lucero was starting to question his future. A cross-country trip reminded him of his passion for radio, and two weeks later, he has landed his next gig. An STAA member, Lucero has been hired as Sports Director at KSTC 1230 AM in Sterling, CO.

Lucero will broadcast play-by-play for six high school sports, host a weekly sports talk show and assist with sales. “I’ll have football, volleyball and softball in the fall, basketball and wrestling in the winter, and baseball in the spring and summer,” says Lucero. “I’ve found in my broadcasting career that I’m never more excited to go to work than when I have a game to call, and those opportunities will be plentiful in Sterling.“

When Lucero left his sports radio job in Kansas last December, he didn’t know what he was going to do. After several weeks of conducting his job search from his home in Wichita, Lucero decided to move back to his home state of Colorado. The frustration and uncertainty were challenging.

“I had gotten my first job in radio just two months after graduating (from DePauw University in 2008), so I was used to being at work and really feeling like I was on a good career path,” says Lucero. “That all changed abruptly and it was difficult to deal with. The longer you go without being in the game, so to speak, the more you start to doubt your abilities and feel like you’re stuck on the sidelines.”

One place from which Lucero drew support during his job search has STAA. “Jon Chelesnik and STAA offered great advice and encouragement during my job search. Even in tough times I felt like I had a plan that I could carry out to bring me closer to my next job, and I felt like I was able to develop some skills that will serve me well in the long run.”

Another key motivator for Lucero was this month’s One Day Ticket to Sportscasting Success seminar – STAA’s annual event in North Carolina. “Attending [ODT] was a huge motivator for me,” says Lucero. “Being surrounded by my peers in the sports broadcasting world and getting to interact with them really re-energized my passion for being on the air. After the One Day Ticket I was more inspired than ever to get back behind a mic and calling play-by-play, my true love in broadcasting. Not two weeks later, I was accepting a job to do just that!

Besides featuring a ton of sports, Lucero’s new job is less than two hours from his hometown of Centennial, CO. “It’s a win all the way around,” Lucero grins.