Cause and effect
'What happened.' 'Why.' 'What to do differently.'
Cause and effect, to me, is the assumption that makes the world readable at all—the belief that events don’t just happen, they flow from something. It’s the basic mechanism we use to move from “what happened” to “why,” and from “why” to “what to do differently.”
That’s the theory. In practice, cause and effect gets complicated when you’re dealing with people instead of physics.
A batter given out doesn’t experience the dismissal as a chain of causation—they experience the out as a feeling. If in doubt, don’t argue the facts. Look for the feelings. Everyone has their own, whether you agree with them or not. Validate the feelings, create connection. Trust allows both player and coach to look at the facts together, build a plan, and reset.
Sunday I experienced the conundrum firsthand.
We were running an indoor batting barn for the VIC U19s — a collection of skill challenges, from straightforward static ball-hitting to bowling-machine work. I spent most of my time around the machines. The boys' skill sets are varied and their execution wider still.
My first instinct was to jump to "why"—skipping straight to the second step. I missed "what happened." Not because I didn't see it—I only saw the poor execution, the inability to deal with a ball I thought should be fairly straightforward. It was a new group, mostly unfamiliar to us, and my empathy was off. First opinions formed immediately, without understanding what they were actually experiencing.
So I went back. What actually happened: a new group of boys, mostly unfamiliar to us, facing a drill that doesn't resemble their normal practice. Of course the execution was rough. They were likely nervous, wanting to impress, but vulnerable in their inability to deal with something foreign to their normal patterns.
I chose to park the third step, “what to do differently. There’s work to do before we get there, for both.
Nick
