In 1727, a 21-year-old Benjamin Franklin arrived in Philadelphia with little more than a few coins in his pocket. He was a runaway apprentice—no connections, no credentials, no pedigree.

But Franklin understood something most people miss: success isn’t just about what you know. It’s about who you’re in the room with.

So he created a room. He founded the Junto—a small club of tradesmen, artisans, and merchants who met every Friday night to share ideas, challenge each other, and open doors. From that room came America’s first public library, the first volunteer fire department, and the foundations of the University of Pennsylvania.

Franklin didn’t wait to be invited into the rooms that mattered. He built one – and filled it with people who could help him see beyond his own lens.

It’s a lesson most of us learn the hard way.

For years, I watched the most talented superintendents not get the best jobs. The ones who advanced weren’t the most skilled agronomists or the hardest workers. They were the most visible.

And the rest of us? We stayed stuck in a box we didn’t build. Operational experts. Turf guys. Valuable, sure – but not perceived as strategic enough. Not leadership material. Not in the rooms where decisions actually get made.

I couldn’t control that narrative. But I could never accept it either.

Since I jumped into my venture five years ago, I’ve stepped into rooms with New York Times bestselling authors, 8 and 9-figure business owners, and professionals looking to climb the career and corporate ladder – hitting the same walls I and so many other golf course superintendents face.

In some cases, historic industry norms and stereotypes plague them like pedigree. Where you came from. What title you hold. What box people put you in before you ever open your mouth.

And here’s what surprised me: even 8-figure business owners were fighting for visibility in their own way.

The walls we face aren’t unique. Visibility and positioning are universal challenges. And the path forward is the same regardless of industry – exposure creates opportunity.

Then last week, 30,000 golf industry professionals gathered in Orlando for the PGA Show.

Brands. Retailers. PGA and LPGA professionals. Media. Buyers. Executives.

Decision-makers from every corner of the $102 billion golf business – all in one place.

And it hit me again: this is where the money happens. This is where relationships get built that shape careers, open doors, and create opportunities most superintendents never see.

Not because they’re not qualified. But because they’re not in the room.

If you’re ready to stop being invisible to the people who shape your career, it starts with exposure. Here are three STEPS to getting in the right rooms.

STEP 1: Recognize the Silo Is Keeping You Invisible

When you stay isolated in the operational silo, you become invisible to the people who shape your career.

You might be the best agronomist in your region. Your greens might roll true every single day. But if the only people who know your name are your crew and your GM, your ceiling is set by whoever happens to be in your corner – not by what you’re actually capable of.

Here’s the hard truth: research shows that being physically visible to supervisors and peers provides multiple benefits – faster advancement, higher pay increases, and better performance evaluations.¹ A Pew Research survey found that 63% of people who left jobs in 2021 cited lack of advancement opportunities as a primary reason.²

The pattern is clear. People don’t get promoted because they’re the most talented. They get promoted because decision-makers know who they are.

Influence doesn’t come from waiting to be noticed. It comes from being present where decisions get made.

STEP 2: Understand Where the Real Conversations Happen

Let me be clear: the GCSAA Conference matters. It’s the room for turf professionals – focused, specialized, and full of people who understand what we do. If you want to sharpen your agronomic knowledge and connect with your peers, it’s essential.

But the PGA Show is a different animal.

It’s 2–3× the size. Over 1,000 exhibitors compared to roughly 450 at GCSAA. And the audience isn’t just superintendents—it’s manufacturers, retailers, buyers, PGA and LPGA professionals, media, and club operators across every facet of golf.

That’s broad market exposure. That’s where you see how the entire industry moves—not just the turf side.

The data backs this up. Studies estimate that 70–85% of job openings exist in the “hidden job market”—positions filled through networking and referrals before ever being posted publicly.³ Referrals alone account for 40% of hires, even though only 7% of applicants come through that channel.⁴

The math is simple: if you’re not in the rooms where relationships form, you’re competing for a fraction of the opportunities.

Industry conferences like the PGA Show aren’t just trade shows. They’re where hiring conversations start months before a job ever gets posted.

STEP 3: Put Yourself in Rooms That Stretch You

When you’re in those rooms, you start to see the game differently. You understand what owners care about. You hear what’s driving equipment purchases, membership trends, and capital investments. You stop thinking like a department head and start thinking like a business partner.

Research from Harvard Business Review found that employees who actively invest in visibility and network development are promoted 42% faster than peers with equal technical performance but limited external visibility.⁵ That’s not a marginal difference – it’s a career-altering gap.

And even if you’re not ready to have those conversations yourself, here’s the minimum: you gain credibility with the people at your club who are in those rooms. Your GM. Your board members. Your ownership group. When you can speak their language – when you understand the pressures they’re navigating – you stop being the turf guy and start being a strategic partner.

That shift doesn’t happen by accident. It happens by putting yourself in rooms that stretch you.

Imagine what becomes possible when you stop waiting to be noticed and start positioning yourself where opportunity lives. Imagine walking into your next career conversation with relationships already built, credibility already established, and a perspective that extends far beyond the maintenance facility.

The most talented superintendents don’t always get the best jobs. But the most visible ones? They get opportunities the rest of us never even hear about.

So here’s my challenge for you this week: Take an honest look at the rooms you’re in right now. Are they stretching you? Are they exposing you to the people and conversations that move your career forward? Or are you surrounded by the same voices, the same perspectives, the same operational echo chamber?

If you want more influence, you need more exposure. Period.

And if you’ve never been to the PGA Show, put it on your calendar. January 2026. Orlando. Thirty thousand industry professionals. Decision-makers from every corner of the game. A chance to see the business of golf from a completely different lens.

Level up the room. The opportunities will follow.

What’s one room you’ve been avoiding that could change your career trajectory?

Footnotes:

Harvard Business Review. (2024). “Career Capital and Promotion Velocity Study.” HBR Research.Book a FREE Talent Strategy Call to learn how leading clubs are aligning culture with strategy – and see how your operations can get there too.

Elsbach, K. D., Cable, D. M., & Sherman, J. W. (2010). “How Passive ‘Face Time’ Affects Perceptions of Employees: Evidence of Spontaneous Trait Inference.” Human Relations 63, no. 6: 735–760.

Parker, K., & Horowitz, J. M. (2022). “Majority of Workers Who Quit a Job in 2021 Cite Low Pay, No Opportunities for Advancement, Feeling Disrespected.” Pew Research Center.

Adler, L. (2016). “New Survey Reveals 85% of All Jobs are Filled Via Networking.” LinkedIn.

Jobvite. (2021). “Job Seeker Nation Report.” Jobvite Annual Survey.

From the team at Bloom Golf Partners