Everything I have learned can be explained through baseball. Life is a game of balls and strikes. Every situation you face – every relationship you have is a new batter. You make your best pitch every chance you have…but here’s the kicker…life has an umpire that you have no control over. I have heard it many times that life is 90% how you react to the uncontrollable 10%. That 10% is the umpire.

I can’t tell you how many times I have been on the mound and thrown a fastball right down the heart of the plate that even Stevie Wonder could have called a strike…and the ump has a wild hair up his nose and decides to call it a ball. When I was younger, I used to get flustered and throw a fit or shake my head. Trust me…that does not help your relationship with the ump. But as time went on, I began to understand the concept that you cannot control the uncontrollables. You can make your best pitch and it can still go south for you. But what do you do in this moment? You have the choice to get “hot” or you can just smile. Take a short walk back to the grass behind the mound…take a deep breath to center yourself…and climb right back on the hill ready to pound the strike zone again. Your choice?

Think life is any different from this?

Make your pitch.

Evan Sanders
The Better Man Project