Swing And a Miss

Swing and A Miss

John Paul Derryberry

Our team struggled with a case, as we watched a client struggling to find their footing. We were a bunch of young professionals, thinking we would be the group that cracked the code. As we discussed the issues, we were reminded that failure often happens in this line of work. Yet this team struggled to come to grips with our failure; losing a client to lack of progress was something that happened to other groups.

We lost, and we hung our heads in defeat. Young, bold, and confident were replaced by seeds of doubt that occur when youth's boundless optimism is met with the reality of the limits of life. Those two things meeting often lead to the slow deterioration of hope in young professionals, and the line to walk out of the field begins. It probably would have happened to me if not for a lifer who spouted the perfect analogy at the precise moment my brain could hear it.

As we struggled to regain our mojo, the wily veteran, in a team meeting, told us to snap out of it. It's baseball, they shouted at us. Over the next 10-to-15 minutes, they explained how many at-bats we can get with people and how many times we are brave enough to attempt another swing at the plate. I had a good chuckle when they stated, who cares if it's a hit, a base on balls, or you get hit by a pitch? Just get on base with our clients.

I have thought about this interaction weekly in my career, and often, when I see other leaders unwilling to engage in that type of thinking. Getting people, in any line of work, to understand the importance of reps, trying again, and giving young professionals that lesson: we will fail in our career; it's part of every business.

Anyone who has played baseball, softball or any other sport know failure is apart of it. Heck, one of the least baseball failed baseball player ever failed, Tony Gwen, struck out 434 times. I haven’t failed 434 clients. One failure is not career-threatening, if we learn to find the courage to keep walking up to the batter's box and trying again. It's a lesson that still breaks up any slump in my career, and, as a wily veteran, I try to give to others.