(photo credit: bamboo-inspiration.com)
Baseball is a sport whose athletes thrive on emotion. Those
who control their emotion win, those who let it control them, lose.
A hitter’s IQ is important, but not as important as his EQ:
emotional quotient. This is the
mental game.
Acquiring a strong EQ means maturing as a person, as a
leader. Hitters that complain, pout or show negative body language are focused
on recent and past failure, and are scared that the future will hold more of
the same. Hitters that throw equipment or shove their helmet into the rack
might be worried that they aren’t good enough or cannot make an adjustment.
Know this: the moment that a human definitely commits one’s
self to a growth mindset, everything changes.
When that commitment comes, three concepts will be applied.
It takes patience
to trust the process. It takes
serious passion to work hard enough
to trust that process will pay off. If you don’t have patience, passion AND a
work ethic, you will likely be a roller coaster ride of success.
So, how high is your EQ?
Nothing is more common than unfulfilled talent. It takes a
high EQ to fulfill your talent. So many hitters have average ability, and top
notch EQ, and they get the job done at a high level. They are always on base
and execute big swings. So why does talent fail? Talent fails when it listens
to fear, doesn’t work hard enough, doesn’t trust the process, and doesn’t hit
with passion. We need all three.
Lots of hitters try to hit well. They show up. They hit a
lot. They work on their swings. The best prepare their minds to be relentless,
aggressive and confident while they
prepare their bodies. When the game challenges them, their minds are ready, and
they are in control of their bodies to put their best swing on the ball.
The difference between preparing well, and preparing well
enough to win, is small. When cooked to 211 degrees, water is simply very hot.
At 212 degrees, that hot water produces steam that can power a locomotive. One
degree is the difference.
Perhaps the greatest example of patience and process can be
found with the giant timber bamboo. It must be watered daily and requires lots
of water to grow. In the first three years, a planted giant timber bamboo seed
does not grow one inch. Then, in the third year, it will grow 90 feet in 60
days. One must be passionate, process oriented and patient to grow giant timber
bamboo.
You see, it’s not just what we do, it’s how we do it that matters. Tee work, drill work, mirror work, video
work, machine work, live throwing, soft toss, front toss. If we do not prepare
the mind during each of these activities, we miss out on our extra one degree.