Performing Under Pressure

I just watched something really cool in the Home Run Derby.

These are some of the best hitters in baseball, getting pitches meant to be hit out of the park. And still, it was amazing how quickly everything could change.

A player would hit six, seven, even nine home runs in a row. Then the rhythm would disappear. Maybe fatigue changed the swing a little. Maybe they started thinking about the number they needed. Maybe they rushed or went after a pitch that wasn’t really theirs.

The skill was still there. So was the strength. But the pressure seemed to pull them away from what they already knew how to do.

I thought about how that can happen to the rest of us too. We know what we’re doing, but the numbers are down, the clock is running, or people are waiting for an answer, and suddenly we start forcing things.

Then the final came down to Jordan Walker and Kyle Schwarber.

Walker said his approach was to stay relaxed. Schwarber said he wanted to follow the energy of the crowd.

And you could feel both.

The Philadelphia fans were going wild for Schwarber. His teammates were completely into it. With one swing left, he had ten home runs. He let a pitch go by, waited for the next one, and sent his 11th home run into the upper deck.

Then Walker tied him at 11 with one swing remaining. The crowd went quiet. The whole Derby came down to one pitch.

Walker stayed relaxed and hit the winning home run deep into the stands.

First Home Run Derby. Final swing. He won it.

Afterward, he said, “I just came in here and tried to be easy and swing as easy as I could.”

I loved that.

He didn’t say he tried to swing harder. He tried to be easy.

And he seemed just as relaxed afterward, hugging Schwarber and the other players, enjoying the win without making himself bigger than the moment.

Maybe there’s something in that for the rest of us.

Sometimes we need to follow the energy around us. Sometimes we need to settle into ourselves. And sometimes, even when there is only one swing left, we need to let the wrong pitch pass.

Maybe performing under pressure is not always about trying harder.

Maybe it is about becoming easy enough to trust what we already know.

My Auténtico Self™