With the start of the major league baseball season, a simple success formula recently heard comes to mind. It uses baseball words, but contains plenty of success wisdom.
Which do you think is more important, a home run or a single base hit? Most of us would choose a home run – even a “grand slam” home run. Most of us were also brought up to believe that someday our “ship would come in” – that all of our success or wealth or whatever would arrive at once, in one grand port call.
Funny thing is – more ball games are won with base hits than with home runs. Most ships arrive slowly in port – guided by tiny tugboats – and only after having navigated the wide oceans through a series of thousands of minor navigational corrections.
Yes! Big wins and successful journeys occur most often as the result of daily decisions – not life-altering, once-a-year, mega-decisions. Want to lose weight? It won’t happen because you vow on January 1 to do it. It will be the result of your daily decision to walk, run, or work out. Want excellent health? Your daily, even moment-by-moment, decisions to ingest only healthy foods and avoid junk are the ones that will win the day.
The same holds true for your success in business. While a master plan at the beginning of the year is important, it’s really the steps taken each day that produce the results. As you face each of the very small daily decisions, be careful to make only the right choices. By day’s end they’ll add up to valuable progress both on and off the field.
This is a guest post by Brian Gormley of Cornerstone Properties and Financial Services LLC. If you like this post go to his website and sign up for his “morning coffee” to get weekly inspirational e-mails.
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9 responses so far ↓
1 Mitch (12 comments.) // Apr 26, 2010 at 3:28 pm
Sneaky, using a baseball analogy like this to get your point across. Of course you’re right. Anyone who looks at baseball statistics realizes that there are way more base hits throughout the season than home runs, even if a homer is more splashy. I guess we’re back to the old saw about slow and steady winning races as well; not quite accurate for every race, but more races than one might imagine.
.-= Mitch´s last blog ..10 Tips To Become A Faster And More Efficient Reader – Guest Post =-.
2 Sire (53 comments.) // Apr 26, 2010 at 11:29 pm
Well said Ned. Slow but sure has a lot going for it.
While big ones may be good unless they are consistent the results from them will dwindle over time.
.-= Sire´s last blog ..Scientific Revelation Explaining Why Some A Listers Are Assholes =-.
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4 industrial pumps (2 comments.) // Apr 27, 2010 at 12:59 pm
Hm, you have a good point here and it’s something I haven’t considered. At first I thought, of course a home run is better. But you’re right, success usually comes from a habit of smart decision making and hard work. It doesn’t usually just come out of nowhere and hit us in the face. I think this is an area in which many people in the make-money-online field go wrong. They often think that success will come quickly and easily, and get discouraged when it doesn’t. Looking forward to more thoughtful posts. -Max
5 Ned // Apr 27, 2010 at 5:54 pm
Max – thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment.
Sire, you said “well said Ned”
Yes it is but I didn’t say it. It was taken (with Permission) from a weekly motivational e-mail I get.
Mitch, Yes that is one reason I choose it. It is not only a good point but put forth in a clever way. And it fits’ my personality, I am a turtle in the tortoise and the hare story.
6 Sire (53 comments.) // Apr 27, 2010 at 6:29 pm
OK although Brian said it I read it on your post. It would be the same as if we were at a bar and you said it, even though quoting someone else.
I know, I’m splitting hairs, but I’m sticking by it 😀
.-= Sire´s last blog ..Scientific Revelation Explaining Why Some A Listers Are Assholes =-.
7 Nick Stephens (1 comments.) // May 13, 2010 at 10:34 am
Base hits are great and they do add up but if you are constantly hitting base hits a home run eventually is inevitable. It is nice when the home run is unexpected though.
8 Ned // May 13, 2010 at 8:13 pm
Thanks for stopping by and commenting Nick. If you’ve ready much of my site you see I write a lot about tax liens. That is kink of how I view them. I get a lot of base hits (interest) and every now and then I get the property and hit a home run.
9 47 Real Estate Investment Blogs | HomeEquityLoan.net // Jun 29, 2010 at 8:20 am
[…] Baltimore Real Estate Investing Blog: This blog, although based in Baltimore, offers up a post for success using a baseball analogy that anyone can apply. […]