Lessons from the bump: Life is not a game of Perfect

The perfect game. ? A pitcher’s dream. ? 27 up. ? 27 down.???

Consider this: ? There have been 24 perfect games in the history of major league baseball. ? And there have been approximately 235,000 total games played. ? That means a perfect game has a similar probability as getting struck by lightning.?????

Not many of us who have picked up a ball and learned how to pitch at a young age have ever gotten to experience that at any level above little league. ? I was fortunate enough to have a couple of games where I got close. ? A no hitter in high school. ? A 1 hitter in college. That’s about as close as I came. ? And frankly, it wasn’t that close.???

In the pursuit of perfection, we often find ourselves grappling with an elusive goal.? As a former pitcher, I understand the allure of the perfect game.? Yet, even in my closest attempts, I discovered an essential truth:? life is not a game of perfect.

My competitive spirit began fueling my focus more on what I hadn’t achieved, overshadowing my victories. ? Eventually, this focus on the “misses” took a toll. ? I started trying to be a perfectionist in every game I pitched. ? And frankly, on every pitch I threw. ? Striving for perfection led me to overthink and overanalyze on the mound. I was mentally anchored to an almost impossible goal, hindering my performance and potential.? Pitching demanded adaptation, a balance between conscious strategy and natural ability. ? Overthinking stifled the latter.? Crash Davis' counsel to Ebby Calvin “Nuke” LaLoosh in Bull Durham resonates:? "Don't think.? Just throw."??

This mindset became my achilles heel. Then came a pivotal conversation with one of my favorite coaches that I played for, current Stanford Head Baseball Coach David Esquer . ? He recommended a surprising read: "Golf is Not a Game of Perfect" by Dr. Bob Rotella. ? Not exactly the book most 20 year old college baseball players are dying to read. ??? Despite the odd fit, this book reshaped my approach.? I embraced its principles, and the results were transformative: ? Unanimous 1st team All West Coast Conference selection. ? But it didn’t happen by accident or by pure talent alone. ? It required me to commit to the learning and then to apply the principles.???

Although there are many principles in the book, three emerged for me, applicable not only in baseball but also in the business realm:???

1. Excellence over Perfection. ? Perfection is in the eye of the beholder, and everyone’s perception of perfect will be different. ? It’s very clear what a perfect game looks like in baseball. ? 27 up, 27 down. ? But this is something that’s difficult to translate over into the business world. ? The point? ? Perfection should not be the goal. ? Perfection's mirage can drive us to exhaustion and decreased performance.? Instead, set a standard of excellence for yourself and your team.? Define it clearly, celebrate achievements when they occur, and share instances of excellence so everyone knows exactly what it looks like. ? Strive for attainable and sustainable excellence, leaving behind the futile chase of perfection.??
2. Micro-Goals for Macro Triumphs. ? Nick Saban would describe this as “ the process”. ? ? Focusing on the task at hand.? ? How we do one thing is how we do everything. ? So, what are micro-goals? ? These are the small, very detailed steps or tasks required over the course of time in order to achieve a much bigger macro goal. ? In other words, eating the whale one bite at a time.? Every night before I pitched in a big game, I would journal and write down micro goals for the game the next day.? I focused on the things that would put me and our team in the best position to win the game knowing that some things were outside of my control.? ? I would journal out the following: ? How many innings I wanted to pitch. ? How many total pitches I wanted to throw. ? How many first pitch strikes I wanted to throw. ? How many strikeouts I wanted to have.? You get the point. ? I was very detailed, and this process helped me to create a very clear roadmap of what I wanted to achieve the next day.? Incredibly, after implementing this process, it was almost scary how close I would come to the micro-goals I set for myself. ? Application to business? ? Most businesses set annual goals or big rocks and then develop plans to achieve those goals.? Some are better at this than others. ? Big goals are great…………..but they must be broken down into small, achievable, actionable tasks. ? And then executed on a daily basis.? ? This is “the process”.? ? This process requires discipline, commitment, and the ability to break down big goals into their very detailed individual parts. ? But the payoff is absolutely worth it and will lead to big breakthroughs that may at first have appeared daunting.??
3. Embrace Strategic Misses. ? In pitching, this is knowing where to miss on a pitch based on a hitter’s strengths. ? If the hitter likes pitches on the inner half of the plate, and you’re trying to throw a pitch on the outside corner…………..don’t miss the pitch over the plate. ? Either you’re going to throw a pitch on the outside corner, or you’re going to miss it outside of the strike zone so a “miss” doesn’t turn into a home run.? Just as a pitcher works to miss a pitch strategically, businesses and employees should acknowledge our weaknesses and play to our strengths.? This means directing efforts toward what you excel at, minimizing resource waste.? Even if we “miss” a big opportunity taking this approach, we more than likely will learn, adapt, and still be closer to our end goal because we directed our focus based on our strengths.? By focusing on what we are good at, it often results in delivering the goals we are striving for in a way that is “good enough” but may not be perfect.??

For those who may struggle with perfectionist tendencies, I cannot recommend the book “Golf is not a game of perfect” highly enough. ? Understand that life's imperfections are catalysts for growth.? Failure is part of the journey, and will propel us closer to our goals.

In conclusion, life's path is not a journey toward perfection but a navigation of imperfections.? As you strive for excellence, set achievable micro-goals, and leverage your strengths.? Remember, the pursuit of perfection can blind us to the beauty of growth.? Embrace imperfection, for therein lies true success.?

Until next time, keep making an impact!?? ?? ?