The New York Knicks just won the NBA Championship. Every player on that team was once a young athlete with a dream. At some point, they were 10 years old, riding home from practice, imagining what it would feel like to play on the biggest stage.
Most kids dream about becoming a professional.
Few understand what it takes.
Whether your goal is Major League Baseball, college baseball, a successful career or becoming a great husband, father, leader or citizen, there are three things you must develop:
- Passion. Purpose. Grit.
- Not just words.
- Requirements.
1. Passion: The Ability to Suffer
Most people think passion means excitement.
It doesn’t.
The Latin root of the word passion means to suffer.
If you love baseball, you must be willing to suffer for it.
Early mornings.
Late nights.
Failure.
Strikeouts.
Errors.
Being cut.
Being overlooked.
Being injured.
Doing the same drill thousands of times.
Passion is not loving the game when it loves you back.
Passion is staying committed when the game stops rewarding you.
Why You Need It
Because every worthwhile dream comes with a cost.
The players who make it aren’t the ones who avoid suffering.
They’re the ones who embrace it.
How You Get It
By finding something worth sacrificing for.
Not a scholarship.
Not a contract.
Not recognition.
Something deeper.
Growth.
Excellence.
Service.
Purpose.
How You Keep It
Remember why you started.
When motivation fades, commitment remains.
Passion is sustained when your reason is bigger than your feelings.
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2. Purpose: The Reason You Do It
Purpose answers one question: Why?
- Why are you training?
- Why are you sacrificing?
- Why are you willing to suffer?
Without purpose, hard work eventually feels pointless.
Purpose gives suffering meaning.
Why You Need It
Purpose creates direction.
A player with talent but no purpose drifts.
A player with purpose finds a way.
How You Get It
Ask yourself:
- Who am I becoming?
- Who am I serving?
- What problem am I trying to solve?
- What impact do I want my life to have?
The deeper your answers, the stronger your purpose.
How You Keep It
Review it regularly.
Write it down.
Talk about it.
Pray about it.
Purpose isn’t something you discover once.
It’s something you continually develop.
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3. Grit: The Relentless Pursuit of Purpose
Grit is not toughness.
Grit is not attitude.
Grit is the relentless pursuit of purpose.
Grit is showing up again.
And again.
And again.
Especially when nobody is watching.
Why You Need It
Because success takes longer than most people expect.
The difference between good and great is usually consistency.
How You Get It
Keep promises to yourself.
Finish what you start.
Do hard things on purpose.
The more evidence you have that you can overcome difficulty, the grittier you become.
How You Keep It
Focus on the next right step.
Not the entire journey.
The next workout.
The next rep.
The next pitch.
The next day.
Grit grows one decision at a time.
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Three Body Parts You Rarely Think About
Most athletes think about arms, legs, and muscles.
But three overlooked body parts teach us something important about becoming a professional.
Your Heart = Passion
Your heart pumps life throughout your body.
Without it, nothing else works.
Passion does the same thing.
It supplies energy to your effort.
No passion.
No life.
No endurance.
No long-term growth.
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Your Lungs = Purpose
Your lungs provide oxygen.
They help every cell function.
Purpose works the same way.
It gives life to your actions.
Without purpose, you may still move.
But eventually you’ll run out of energy.
Purpose helps you keep breathing when life gets difficult.
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Your Tendons = Grit
Most athletes focus on muscles.
But tendons connect muscles to bones.
They transfer force.
Without healthy tendons, strength cannot be expressed.
Grit is the tendon of achievement.
It connects your passion and purpose to action.
Without grit, dreams stay dreams.
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Practice. Play. Perform.
Many players use these words interchangeably.
They shouldn’t.
Practice
Practice is where habits are built.
Habits are things you do well repeatedly without thinking.
Practice is where you learn.
Practice is where you improve.
Practice is where mistakes are welcomed because growth is the goal.
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Play
Play is where you test what you’ve practiced.
Scrimmages.
Summer games.
Fall ball.
Low-consequence opportunities.
Play gives you feedback.
It reveals whether your habits are strong enough to hold up outside of practice.
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Perform
Performance is different.
Performance happens when the outcome matters.
The playoffs.
The championship game.
The showcase.
The college tryout.
The job interview.
Performance relies on skills.
And skills pay bills.
A skill is something you can do repeatedly without thinking while under stress.
Pressure doesn’t create skill.
Pressure reveals it.
When the game is on the line, you don’t rise to the occasion.
You fall to the level of your training.
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The Question Every Player Must Answer
Do you want to be a professional?
Or do you want the benefits of being a professional?
Because they’re not the same thing.
Professionals embrace suffering.
Professionals have purpose.
Professionals pursue that purpose relentlessly.
Professionals practice.
Professionals play.
Professionals perform.
In baseball, just like in life, there comes a moment when everyone has to decide:
Are you going to buy the ticket?
Or
Are you going to be the ticket?
The choice is yours.
Every rep.
Every day.
Every season.
Keep showing up.
Keep growing.
Keep becoming.
Remember: Intelligence tops being smart.
For more information, visit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth today.
If you found this inspiring and thought-provoking, or if you have any questions, comments or concerns, add me on Discord and let’s go deeper.
C.J. Stewart has built a reputation as one of the leading professional hitting instructors in the country. He is a former professional baseball player in the Chicago Cubs organization and has also served as an associate scout for the Cincinnati Reds. As founder and CEO of Diamond Directors Player Development, C.J. has more than 22 years of player development experience and has built an impressive list of clients, including some of the top young prospects in baseball today. If your desire is to change your game for the better, C.J. Stewart has a proven system of development and a track record of success that can work for you.
