This past week, I was working with a pitcher on the mound. His throwing intensity was pretty low – considering this was the second week he had picked up a baseball in over four months. We had a stalker radar gun set up, but I wasn’t quite concerned with the number on the gun. It was simply set up to optimize feedback for how his arm was moving – something we identified in his assessment as a great opportunity for improvement.
At least, that’s how I designed it.
After a few dozen throws off the mound, you could tell something was off. He wasn’t moving really well. Instead of working on the things we had hammered throughout the week, he was starting to fall back into common compensation patterns. The arm wasn’t as clean. The body was getting sloppy. The numbers were far from great – especially considering the intensity he was exuding. You could sense his frustration.
He asked, “Why am I not throwing hard?” I paused. Once he asked this question, I realized the fault in my design. My intention for the gun was not to become an objective. It was simply feedback. When I realized my mistake, I asked, “Is your goal right now to throw hard, or is it to throw well?” He responded to throw well. So then I asked, “Why are you trying to throw hard?” He didn’t have a great answer. I responded, “Instead of trying to chase a number, let’s chase things that are going to help you throw better.”
Immediately understanding, he dropped his throwing intensity. We created a new focus and measure of success for each rep. The number on the gun was irrelevant. Our focus was going to be on the inefficiencies we identified in his evaluation. If he was throwing slower, but felt better, we were going to be happy about the rep.
