The Performance Payoff of Practice

"Want to go hit some balls?" I ask my sons.

Lately, the answer has been less than enthusiastic.  Perhaps they might say "Maybe" though if they are feeling a little down, they may come back with a "do we have to?".

And I get it.  I've been a little fanatical about practicing baseball lately.  As in most afternoons or evenings (even on game nights), taking them to get a little 'BP'.  Hitting a baseball is one of the hardest (if not the hardest) things to do in sports, and the older the boys get, the harder it is.  You move from the ball on a tee to a coach basically 'teeing' it up for you to a 9 year old whizzing one by you for a strike followed by whizzing one behind you ("just a bit outside!") for a ball.  The progression is needed but makes hitting a ball all the more harder.  Which leads to my daily inquiry as to whether they want to go hit some balls.

Because, I only know one way to get better at something- practice.  Want to get a hit in a game?  You have to get more hits in practice and you only get more hits in practice when you see more pitches.

One life lesson I want my kids to 'get' is the connection between time spent practicing and the payoff of a better performance.  You might not make the major leagues, but if my child can connect time spent practicing something and then seeing it payoff with a better performance, that's a win no matter what the score says.