"I think you will find as we go along that much of what I have to say about hitting is self-education—thinking it out, learning the situations, knowing your opponent, and most important, knowing yourself. Lefty O'Doul was a great hitter, one of the prettiest I ever saw, and he always said that most hitting faults came from a lack of knowledge, uncertainty, and fear—and that boils down to knowing yourself. You, the hitter, are the greatest variable in this game, because to know yourself takes dedication." - Ted Williams
A strange thing happens sometimes when you release your writing into the world. You might summon what feels to you like this immense force of cerebral energy to create it. It can feel as though its influence should bend steel or rattle the highest, darkest rafters of the universe. Instead, in the immediate aftermath, you might receive a dozen “likes” digitally or “good jobs” in-person or several hundred “impressions” on social media; but you don't get a real sense of whether your writing fundamentally changed the thing you were trying to alter.
If you’re like me, you try to remember that sometimes the best and truest feedback is delayed. And you also remember Warren Buffett’s advice: When playing the game of life, it’s better to prioritize your inner scorecard over outer ones. So you pat yourself on the back for what felt like a good swing of the bat and the contact you made, and you set up for the next good ball to come your way; you promise yourself to swing with more intent and to hit harder, unaware the echo might be taking its time to reach you and you might have just hit the rafters.