One Hit Per Week

Ever hear of a guy named Derek Jeter?

Jeter’s among the greatest Yankees of all time, alongside names like Babe Ruth, Yogi Berra, Mickey Mantle, and Joe DiMaggio. In fact, Derek Jeter was almost unanimously voted into the Baseball Hall of Fame on the first ballot, falling just one vote short.

You want to know Jeter’s lifetime batting average was?

It’s .310.

That means every time Jeter stepped up to the plate, there was about a 31% chance he’d get a hit.

But look, it’s incredibly hard to get a hit in baseball. Compared to the average MLB lifetime batting average of .275, Jeter’s odds look pretty good!

But think about that difference for a moment: Jeter was only about 3% points more likely to get a hit than his “average” counterparts. If you do the math, that boils down to just one more hit per week!

Seriously. One hit per week is all that separates “average” from greatness.

Greatness is a product of consistency.

Everyone knows the name Jerry Rice. Almost nobody remembers David Tyree. Dan Marino is one of the greatest quarterbacks to ever play in the NFL and he never even won a Super Bowl ring. While stunning feats and unprecedented plays might captivate us in the moment, they don’t have the lasting impact that comes from consistent performance.

You don’t need to cure cancer to be a great person; you just need to consistently leave the world around you better than you found it.

You don’t need to save your child from the clutches of a wild bear to be a great parent; you just need to consistently be there for them.

You don’t need to become the mayor to have a great impact on your community; you just need to consistently show up and make your voice heard.

And you don’t need to deliver some stunning magnum opus to be a great writer; you just need to consistently sit down and write.

On that note, Bearly Thinking is now a weekly newsletter.

I constantly struggle with perfectionism and imposter syndrome. Who the hell am I to write a newsletter? Do I even have anything interesting to say? I don’t have a niche like some of those other folks.

You can now expect Bearly Thinking to land in your inbox every Monday afternoon.

I can’t promise perfect batting average, but I’ll be there to swing for the fences every time.

Because just one hit per week makes all the difference.