After a full Sunday of baseball, I was talking with Kaden about something bigger than the game.
Your baseline becomes the expectation. Don’t expect a “great job” for doing the job you committed to do.
During my CrossFit career, I had a run where I won Regionals five years straight and qualified for the Games each time. One year in particular, I remember being mid-competition and looking around for validation. I wanted someone to say, “You’re crushing it. Great job.”
It didn’t come.
Not because I wasn’t performing well or because people didn’t care. But because the expectation was that I would perform well. That’s what I had trained for. That’s what I had proven I could do. That was my baseline.
It took some reflection to really understand that. I wasn’t doing anything extraordinary. I was doing my job. The standard had already been set.
And more importantly, I realized I shouldn’t have been looking outward for validation in the first place.
The work should speak for itself.
That’s what I was trying to explain to Kaden.
Catching a solid game, making the right plays, that’s becoming his baseline.
When you’ve done something well hundreds of times, you can’t rely on external praise every time to confirm it. You just have to know.
This goes far beyond sports:
Being a present dad.
Showing up as a husband.
Taking care of your responsibilities.
These shouldn’t be things we do occasionally and look for recognition. These should be the standard. The expectation. The baseline we commit to from the start.
Of course, it feels good to be recognized. Everyone appreciates a “great job.”
But if we need it every time just for showing up, we’ve missed the point. And validation certainly shouldn't be the only reason we are staying true to those commitments in the first place.
Set your baseline high. Then live up to it consistently, quietly, without needing the applause.
And if you want to be around other men doing the same, come join the TRAIN HARD community. That accountability and shared standard matters more than most people realize.
- Jason
