Elbow Up: COVID-19 Edition

Six weeks ago yesterday we were playing in our first tournament of the season, and my 8 year old had just hit his first over-the-fence home run. It’s been 43 days, and we haven’t seen the field since.

The good news is that municipalities around the country are starting to consider reopening their economies, and that means we’re at least getting closer to playing some baseball.

The even better news is there’s nothing stopping your child from getting better during this time off. In fact, it’s been a perfect time to get ahead of the competition, and learn a few good life lessons!

Humans in general struggle with focusing on what they can control. Baseball is no different. Players tend to focus on umpires, coaches, and circumstances…all things they cannot control.

I’ve tried to teach this to every young player I’ve ever coached…

So…as you continue to shelter-in-place waiting on baseball season to pick back up, use this as an opportunity to teach this life lesson.

What We Cannot Control

• Umpires

• Coaches

• Coronavirus (COVID-19)

• Other people

• Decisions made by elected officials

• Teachers

• Bosses

• The weather

What We Can, and Should, Control

• Attitude

• Effort

• Personal hygiene and safety

• Following the rules/law

• How much you practice on your own

• How hard you work when nobody is watching

• Preparation

Certainly feel free to add or subtract items as they may relate to your situation, but the point is we have a great opportunity to use our current circumstances to focus on what we can actually control.

We’re all going to get out of this shelter-in-place at some point, and it will be very clear who has put in the work when nobody was watching!

Kevin Burke writes the Elbow Up newsletter. A former player and current husband and dad, he has coached Coach Pitch through High School and currently coaches his son’s 8 year old “travel” team. 😀

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