Jul 20
They say there’s no crying in baseball, but this is the sport of Lou Gehrig’s farewell speech and Field of Dreams. We don’t like cheesy sentiment or flowery expressions of emotion, yet we dance around the field and hug each other in victory, or weep in the dugout and slam locker room doors in defeat.
So, how do I say goodbye to something I’ve devoted my time, energy, and passion to for the last two years? Read the rest of this entry »
Are superior athletes born that way? Or can people become superior athletes through hard work?
Bounce: Mozart, Federer, Picasso, Beckham, and the Science of Success by Matthew Syed, champion table tennis player and commentator for the BBC, argues the latter. He says that athletes are made, not born. Through purposeful practice, athletes can master skills to the point they are automatic, just as using a pencil or driving a car. As part of this learning, athletes must be willing to embrace mistakes, and coaches must recognize players for their effort and progress, not what talent they perceive the player as having. The same approach can also be used to produce superior artists, executives, and professionals. Read the rest of this entry »
Jun 9
Bad calls and unlucky breaks don’t just happen in baseball. They once happened to me in Toastmasters. Whether they happen in baseball or Toastmasters, they offer a lesson, if you’re willing to accept it. Read the rest of this entry »
When I was a UCLA student, I looked up to John Wooden. When I became an adult and a parent, I came to appreciate him even more. I liked his approach to coaching and mentoring, and I admired how he used sports to build character. As he said, “What you are as a person is far more important that what you are as a basketball player.” In the tributes his players gave him before and after he died, it’s clear that he was more than a coach to them. He was a mentor and a father figure. He produced winning teams by turning his players into winners.
I’m now dealing with situations in my league that make me wonder if his lessons are lost on this generation of coaches and players. Strangely enough, the incidents started on the day he died. The incidents all stem from placing winning above everything else. Read the rest of this entry »
May 9
I decided not to run for another term as league president. Just to be clear: I’m still happy with the league. No one did anything to upset me. No one said something on Facebook or in the Mid-Season Evaluations that hurt my feelings. I’m not running simply because I’m a believer in term limits.
I’ve been involved in community organizations long enough to know that there is a proper amount of time for someone to be in a position of leadership. Two years is a good enough time. It certainly is good enough for me. I needed the first year just to figure out what I’m doing. I then needed the second term to learn the things I didn’t learn in in the first and to provide stability and continuity for the group. Beyond that, I can see risks to an organization when someone stays a leader for too long. The membership becomes complacent. They feel, “We don’t have to step up and help, because that guy will do the work for us.” The organization can also become lazy. People fall back on the philosophy, “We should do things this way because that’s the way we’ve always done them.” I’ve seen that philosophy hurt many organizations.
In order for an organization to be successful, it needs keep bringing in new blood and new ideas. It needs to be able to pass the reins of leadership from one generation to the next. This is what our league has done, and this is how we’ve been able to last since 1957.
This is why, as strange as it sounds, I won’t miss being president. No, it’s not because I didn’t like the job or enjoy the chance to give a big speech and hand out trophies each year. (Although I will be glad to get my evenings back.) To me, power, or what little a Little League president actually has of it, is best used to empower others. I see leadership as a service. Our primary job is to remove obstacles so others can do their best work. As Lao Tsu said, “A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.”
I will miss people I’ve been working with on the Board, in other leagues, and throughout the organization. People make an experience enjoyable, and I’ve enjoyed working with people from other divisions. My son will be playing on a different field next season, so I won’t be able to see most of them as often as I do now. There are some perks of the job that I will miss, but the greatest is the satisfaction that comes from helping others. As I learned from my mom (a former PTA president and Scout leader), the giving is the gift. The most rewarding part about volunteering is to see the people you help through it. You touch the lives of people you may never meet and who may not realize that you helped them. Yet, the impact of your efforts can last long after those kids have grown. I am grateful that I had a chance to give.
In the meantime, I’m still fully committed to my role until my term ends. There will be no lame-duck, short-timer’s disease from me. And when the time comes, I will be ready to hand the presidency to the next person who takes on the challenge of the job.
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I am an award-winning public speaker and writer and past president of Saddleback Little League. In this site, I share my speeches, writing, and thoughts on a variety of subjects. Enjoy!
Matthew Stern