Motivational Coaching

Basketball coach Pat Riley knows a thing or two about change when it comes to his professional life.

Now he’s lecturing on the subject of change to anyone with $149 to spare.

Riley was hired Saturday as coach and president of the Miami Heat, his third professional basketball team in five years, following stints coaching the Lakers and, most recently, the New York Knicks.

On Friday, the Knicks received $1 million and a first-round draft pick from Heat in exchange for the right to hire Riley, who still had a year left on his contract with the Knicks.

On Sept. 19, Riley is giving a motivational speech at the Century Plaza sponsored by a Carlsbad, Calif., company, Heroes & Legends. The company is touting the talk--which costs $149--as “Pat Riley Live as He Returns to Southern California for One Glorious Night to Unleash the Winner Within You.”

Among the topics Riley is scheduled to address: “How to Ride the Cycles of Team Change,” “Create Change Within Continuity” and “Build Solid Foundations.”

Will This Gimmick Wash?

Southern California can boast a number of car-related firsts, dating back to drive-in churches in the post-World War II era. Now a local car wash is trying to get some mileage out of a gimmicky first in the auto world.

The Hollywood Car Wash near Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street boasts that it is the first in the nation to offer frequent-flier miles to frequent customers.

The program is clearly skewed toward owners of dirtier cars. Drivers have to spend $500 to earn anything.

A Bland Reaction to Pete

Does Pete Wilson move markets?

The California governor may be nearing a record on the number of times he formally and informally declares his intent to run for President. Last week, he made yet another announcement, this time using the Statue of Liberty as a backdrop.

So how does the market react to Wilson presidential announcements?

As it turns out, it barely moves, although lately it tends to drop, albeit slightly.

Last week, the Dow Jones industrial average dropped 7.4 points on the day of Wilson’s Statue of Liberty announcement. In the first full trading day after Wilson appeared in June on Larry King Live--in what was hyped as a declaration of his candidacy--the market fell 3.8 points.

Things were a little more bullish in March.

The market was up slightly on days when there was news related to Wilson’s presidential aspirations, including the day he opened a bank account for a possible White House run, the day he formed an exploratory committee, and another when he was quoted as saying he had a duty to run.

Briefly. . .

Jimmy Hoffa Jr., who is running for the office of Teamsters president that his father once held, is issuing “Hoffagram” campaign updates. . . . Smart Money magazine says a tattoo removal in Santa Rosa, Calif., is $1,040 but only $500 in Salt Lake City and $600 in Little Rock, Ark.