C.J. Stewart – Page 32

Why consistency is a skill well developed

June 15, 2022 by C.J. Stewart

Excellence is a skill that must be maintained. Let’s break this sentence down by focusing on the words excellence, skill and maintain.

I define excellence as fulfilling expectations. A skill is something you can do well repeatedly without thought while under stress. Continuing to something is what maintaining is all about.

The 2022 MLB Draft is scheduled for July 17-19. Only excellent players will be drafted. They are excellent because they can meet the expectations of running fast, throwing hard, fielding with consistency, etc.

Playing in the minor leagues on the road to the Majors will be filled with stress because these players now are competing daily against the best. When they reach the Majors, they will have to demonstrate that they can maintain excellence in a stressful environment in order to stay.

I’ve had a few of the baseball players I have coached join the US Armed Forces. Each of them talk about how they are not given a gun to shoot until you can prove they can make their bed and clean their boots consistently with excellence.

What are some of the basic things you have to learn to do with excellence on a consistent basis on and off the baseball field in order to become a Major League Baseball player and/or Major League Citizen?

Remember: Intelligence tops being smart.

For more information, visit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth today. Also, check out our Digital Magazine.

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.

What it takes to stake your claim at success

June 8, 2022 by C.J. Stewart

Paulo Coelho once said, “Whenever you want to achieve something, keep your eyes open, concentrate and make sure you know exactly what it is you want. No one can hit their target with their eyes closed.”

Who’s your favorite MLB hitter?

Mine is Mookie Betts. Standing at 5 feet 9 inches tall, he is arguably the greatest offensive threat in the Major Leagues.

I’ve played professional baseball and I have coached more than 40 MLB hitters, and I can tell you that Mookie seems to play the entire MLB season in maintenance mode.

I have four phases of development that my amateur hitters navigate through in order to become Major League hitters and May through July is the maintenance phase.

It takes about three months for amateurs to do what could be done in three days to three weeks for Major Leaguers. The difference is that pros rely on skills, while amateurs rely on talent.

Talent is doing things well. A habit is doing things well repeatedly without thought. Skills is doing things well without thought while under stress.

People with skills welcome adversity while amateurs run from it. People with skills can name specific problems they are experiencing and claim responsibility for their failure, while amateurs often complain and blame.

Do you have hitting skills?
How did you develop them?
What do you do to maintain them?

For more information, visit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth today. Also, check out our Digital Magazine.

Blackballs, Curveballs, and Black Boys?

June 6, 2022 by C.J. Stewart

Tilling, planting and harvesting the seeds you sow

June 1, 2022 by C.J. Stewart

Robert Louis Stevenson once said, “Don’t judge each day by the harvest you reap but by the seeds that you plant.”

May through July are the months my hitters focus on maintaining skills. These months are harvesting time. Before you can reap a harvest, you must first till the ground, plant the seeds and nurture the crops for weeds.

The calendar year starts in August and ends in July. This is the time we try new things to determine what doesn’t work and what does work.

November-January is when we build strength and habits based on what works.

February-April is the conversion phase converting habits to skills.

How do you define skills?

Talent is doing things well. A habit is doing things well repeatedly without thought. Skills are doing things well without thought while under stress.

If you are not playing under cruise control this summer, you need to reevaluate your development strategy so that you can experience the joy of reaping what you sow.

To help keep your skills sharp, we have introduced a new type of Skill Build—our Virtual Skill Build—where I can help you develop hitting skills anytime, anywhere using anything.

Remember: Intelligence tops being smart.

For more information, visit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth today. Also, check out our Digital Magazine.

Your guide to success and significance

May 25, 2022 by C.J. Stewart

What do you dream about?

What do you worry about?

What do you cry about?

What brings your joy?

When I was a child, I dreamed of becoming a Major League Baseball Player for the Chicago Cubs. I watched a lot of Cubs games with my grandfather during the summertime in the ’80s.

Playing baseball was the one thing that brought me the most joy when I watched it on TV, as well as when I played. I was fortunate to be drafted twice by the Chicago Cubs and played two years professionally in the Cubs minor leagues.

I was born and raised in Atlanta, where Hank Aaron was one of my favorite players. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was born and raised in Atlanta like me. As a child, I was drawn to his tireless fight for the rights of Black people.

At age 46, I am a Major League Citizen because I am willing and able to use my success to serve others. Because of my time in baseball, I still use the life lessons I learned on the baseball field to empower an at-risk generation to lead and transform their City of Atlanta. I use the sport of baseball to teach them how to overcome the three curveballs that threaten their success: crime, poverty and racism.

My wife, Kelli, and I also own Diamond Directors, which provides a blueprint of success for diamond sport athletes.

As I have alluded in the past, maybe’s are used to indicate uncertainty or possibility. Use these final days of May to answer the four questions I mentioned above and use your answers as a guide to success and significance.

Success is what you get. Significance is what you give.

For more information, visit L.E.A.D. Center for Youth today. Also, check out our Digital Magazine.

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