More On Mindset....

Tonight we had a solid win against Elizabethton.  The same team who put up a 7 spot on us in the game yesterday.  You guys at home are getting these blogs on tape delay...LOL.  I am writing these as though they are being published daily even though they are not.  So if you actually care and start following the Johnson City Cardinals, I apologize for confusing you!!!

Anyhow...tonight we won a 6-4 game.  We pitched decently the entire evening and did some things better tonight then the night before.  A couple times we did better with not paying attention to the umpire and using the next pitch in the sequence that we wanted to use.  We also did a bit better at not paying attention to how bad or good the umpire was at any given point in the game.

But I wanted to add some more thoughts to my Umpires Don't Exist blog.  I wanted to expand some more on the idea of mindset and how important that truly is.  Now I can easily call mindset by other terms such as perspective or perception so please don't get caught up in logistics.  This topic really plays off of the Law of Attraction series I have started and actually still need to finish, but if you are at all curious you can go back and read them after finishing this blog.

So let's get to it...ok so the last blog I talked about how a pitcher was stuck on how an umpire was making bad calls on balls and strikes.  And I talked about how I felt he let those bad calls basically ruin his outing and put him in a state of mind where he was no longer effective and able to compete.  My whole point in the topic of mindset or perspective is that the better your mindset is or perspective is, the more successful you will be.  Absolutely, no doubt about it!!!

Let's look at it two ways.  You are pitching in a game.  The game is close.  The umpire is not consistent with his strike zone.  He is calling balls where you feel they should be strikes.  What do you do???  How is your mindset???  Do you look at the experience as a way to become a victim and make excuses of why you are not able to compete?  Or do you not even respond to the umpire's calls because you are so focused on the next pitch you don't even respond with a thought of "I can't." 

You see, in the game of baseball, you can actually create your outings.  You can create how you are going to pitch, how you are going to respond and how your game is going to end up.  The reason why people make it to the big leagues and thrive is because their mindset is automatically set to succeed.  They don't listen to excuses, they don't make excuses, they don't blame anyone else for their tough days and they certainly don't give up or give in when outside circumstances may make it a bit tougher for them. 

If you are in a baseball game and an umpire doesn't give you calls you feel you deserve and instantly your reaction or habit of thought takes you towards the road of being a victim or making excuses or it enables you to compete, then guess what, you will never be the pitcher you want to be.  But if you can be aware of how you think or react to adversity when you are on the mound then you can start working towards the mindset and perspective you need to be a successful pitcher, a big league pitcher. 

As you get better and better in becoming non-reactive to adverse situations and you are becoming better and better at immediately focusing on solutions instead of problems, the momentum builds and you actually breed yourself into success.  The mindset becomes a feeling place and it follows you wherever you go. 

Have you ever been in a game and FELT so confident you knew good things were going to happen?  Have you ever been in a game and you FELT scared or worried and you were not sure what was going to happen next?  Well, what happened in those two situations????  In my brief professional career I knew exactly when I was going to have a solid outing and when I was in serious trouble. 

The mindset you have and create in your career will absolutely create your outings and your career so please start to think about how you feel and think when you are on the mound and competing. 

Ok, all for now....Happy Pitching!!!!

Perspective is Power!

Everything in life is perspective.  The way you choose to perceive experiences in your life is how you get what you want out of your life experiences.  If each experience is just perceived as a way to move forward with more clarity, then each day should become richer, more lively, and better.

The easiest example of this is the current player you are watching in the World Series, right now, Albert Pujols.  Sure, I could really mention any of the current players on either roster because they all come equipped with stories of how they made it to the 2011 World Series.  But when people mention Albert Pujols, you listen.  His presence is obvious and powerful and how he got there was through an amazing perspective.  I partly say this because I have listened to him talk in the past several years I have been with the Cardinals Organization.  I also say this because look at his life, look at his manifestations, look at how he creates, listen to how he talks, look at how he carries himself, listen to the words he speaks, listen to the clarity of his voice.  It is oozing from every pore in his body.  And once again it happened the other night.  What happened you asked, well, perspective happened.

Albert Pujols was just another hitter in the first two games of the World Series, actually he wasn't even average at that time, when you look at the numbers.  I believe he started 0 for 8.  If he carried that 0 for 8 into game 3 he would have probably finished that game 0 for 12.  Especially after the way the media was tearing him up for the defensive mishap he had in the ninth inning of game 2.  But again, listen to how he talks.  The media interviewed him the next day and asked him about the defensive play.  Their perspective was that he let the team down, could have had an easy out at third base if he would have caught the relay throw.  Then the media was giving it to him a little more about the 0 for 8 start.

Now for Albert's perspective.  His response to the botched relay throw was simple.  He lost focus for a second, the ball cut on him and he wasn't able to make the play.  His response to the 0 for 8 start was just as simple.  Albert said he was making great swings and hitting the ball hard it was just not falling for him.  You see, this game of baseball is goofy.  Timing is everything.  It just so happened that Albert had a defensive mishap at a key time in the season.  But does that make the decade and more that he has played and won gold gloves defensively just disappear?  Not at all, in fact, that is why Albert can have the perspective that he has.  He is trained that way.  He knows who he is, the results don't control his mind, he does.  The same goes for the hitting side of things.  Albert is one of the best hitters who has ever played the game of baseball.  He knows there are going to be times that he will go 0 for whatever, but he also knows how to view the game.  His perspective is with each current AB.  The result can't matter because nobody gets on base or gets a hit with every AB.  If Albert got fixated on each AB the game would be a roller coaster and there is no way he would have ever been Albert Pujols.  Instead, Albert takes the perspective of putting a good approach or process to each AB.  If the result comes then great, if not, he goes back to the process and clears his mind.  So he was able to take all that information from the first two games and then made sure his perspective was in the right place, then he went to work.  The result.....3 homeruns and a 5 for 6 night!!

Perspective is a beautiful thing.  It can always work for you and work in your favor, all you have to do is practice.  Practice making perspective your best friend.  Practice your points of view in life and in baseball and things will start to roll your way more and more.  Don't be so impatient with all this.  Take your time, take a step back, take a look at your life and how things are going for you.  Learn about how you look at things more and more.  Stop blaming the guy next to you.  Who cares, just keep practicing and little by little things will come around, I promise!!!

Ok, all for now...enjoy your week and keep it moving!!