baseball – Maureen Monte

KINSHIP

Kinship. Noun. “The feeling of being connected to other people.” Our performance, and even our survival, depends on the feeling of kinship we have with others. To underscore its importance, I will share two stories of two very people, from two very different parts of the world, whose lives were transformed by kinship. Both were problem children; nobody benefits more from kinship than a problem child. Why? Because others often turn against them, leaving them feeling isolated, undervalued, and beleaguered. In such circumstances, kinship can be a lifesaver.

Rule Of Stupids

Stupid is not a nice word. However, after reading about an Olympic athlete who refused to shake hands with a competitor and was sent home for poor sportsmanship, and some intriguing new information about the robbery in Rio, I was transported back to January 2, 2016 when sports analyst Trevor Matich shared his theory on the Rule of Stupids. Matich said, “Don’t do stupid things, in stupid places, at stupid times, around stupid people.” Consider the number of careers, companies and relationships that might have been saved by the Rule of Stupids!

5 Traits (and Outcomes) of a Winning Manager

On the 4th of July, I spent my holiday doing what I enjoy most – watching a winning manager lead an immensely talented team. Let’s look at 5 “best practices” demonstrated by this young manager in his first year on the job.

What’s Your Integrity Worth?

Last week we spoke about “steering our canoe on the river of life.” There were some excellent comments (have a look if you didn’t already). We talked about avoiding other crazy canoe drivers, obstacles, pulling your canoe out to rest, and even switching rivers. After reading a series of interesting newspaper articles over lunch Friday, I realized that we missed one important personal navigation tool: Integrity.

MASTERY

Mastery is a complicated and difficult goal. What does it mean to master your craft and “be your best?” How do we get there? Research shows it is a 10,000 hour commitment, whether you’re learning to play piano, speak French, or become a brain surgeon. Let me put this in perspective. If you dedicate yourself to improving your craft with 5 hours of concentrated effort each week, that equals 260 hours a year. At that rate, you’ll be a master in 38.5 years. Ouch.

Tags: baseball