Hey there,

I’ve been thinking a lot lately about how the little things really do become the big things. In baseball. In life. In everything.

A few months ago, my father-in-law, Jack, passed away. This past weekend we celebrated his life with family and friends, and I had the honor of giving his eulogy. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but also one of the most meaningful.

I want to share a small piece of what I said that day, because it ties directly into what I try to teach every young athlete who walks through the doors at Paradigm Sport:

“As a coach of young baseball players and as a dad raising two boys of my own, I’m in the business of building men. Men who can go out into the world and not just survive, but thrive.

I believe that becoming a man isn’t something that just happens with age. It’s something you earn through discipline, ownership, courage, and a commitment to doing hard things even when it’s uncomfortable.

I do my best to teach my boys and the boys I coach the importance of doing their best. I talk to them about the value of hard work, about being accountable, about integrity, and that doing the right thing and doing what you say you’re going to do matters.

Jack was everything we try to teach our players to be. He was resilient. He was steady. He never complained. He never played the victim. Even in the face of challenges most of us can’t imagine, he smiled. He laughed. He showed up. He lived.”

That was Jack.

He didn’t give speeches about character or discipline. He just lived it. You knew who he was by the way he carried himself, the way he treated people, and the way he faced tough situations.

In 2000, Jack was diagnosed with a grade IV glioblastoma, an aggressive brain tumor. The surgery to remove it saved his life, but it also left him paralyzed on his right side and without the ability to verbally communicate.

Before that, Jack was a dynamic man. A husband, a father, and an entrepreneur. Losing so much of what defined him would have broken most people. But Jack didn’t fold. He found a way to live with purpose and humor and love. He smiled. He laughed. He showed up for his family and his friends.

He showed us all that strength isn’t about how loud you are or how much you can lift. It’s about how steady you stay when life hits you hard.

And it got me thinking about how much of life, and baseball, is built on those same little daily decisions.

The Problem: We Focus on the Big Stuff

Everyone wants to talk about the big moments. The home runs. The championships. The scholarships. The highlight-reel plays.

But what gets lost is that those big moments are built on a mountain of small, boring, unglamorous moments.

The 6am alarms.
The extra reps after practice.
The courage to take ownership when you mess up.
The choice to show up with a good attitude when you don’t feel like it.

Those little things add up. They always do.

When we skip the small stuff and only focus on results, we rob ourselves (and our kids) of the chance to actually grow.

The Cost: You Can’t Fake the Foundation

I see it all the time in baseball and in life. Players who look the part, but when adversity hits, they crumble.

That’s not a skill problem. That’s a foundation problem.

If you don’t build your character through small, consistent acts of focus, courage, and accountability, the big moments will expose you.

When you’ve done the work day in and day out, those big moments become easier. They’re still intense, but you’re not pretending to be ready. You are ready.

That’s why I tell our players:

• Every rep matters.

• Every practice matters.

• Every conversation matters.

Because you’re either building good habits or you’re building excuses.

The Solution: Do the Little Things Right Every Day

Here are three ways you can start doing this, whether you’re a player, a parent, or just someone trying to get a little better every day.

1. Focus on showing up, not showing off.

You don’t have to crush every workout or hit every goal right away. Just show up and do the work. Be where your feet are. The consistent act of showing up, especially on the days you don’t want to, is where growth happens.

2. Choose courage over comfort.

Courage isn’t some huge Hollywood moment. It’s often quiet. It’s choosing to take the hard route when the easy one is right there. It’s saying “my bad” when you make a mistake. It’s keeping your head up after a bad game and showing up to work the next day.

3. Be grateful, especially when it’s hard.

Jack taught me this one. Even when he was going through brutal health battles, he stayed grateful. He found joy in small things: a laugh, a smile, time with family. Gratitude doesn’t just make you feel better. It makes you tougher. It keeps you grounded.

How This Skill Scales as You Grow

When our players are young, learning to focus, being accountable, and staying positive might seem like just “team rules.” But these are life skills that scale.

The same discipline it takes to show up to practice becomes the discipline to show up for work or your family later in life. The same courage it takes to face a 3-2 count in a pressure situation becomes the courage to take a risk, start a business, or stand up for what’s right. The same mental toughness it takes to grind through a tough season becomes the mental toughness you need when life doesn’t go as planned.

These are the things that last.

If you can learn to master the little things now, you’ll be ready for the big moments later.

That’s the real win.

Why This Matters

At the end of the day, the little things are what define us.

It’s not the big moments that shape who we are. It’s the daily habits, choices, and attitudes that nobody sees.

That’s what I want for every player I coach and for my own two boys: to grow into men who do the little things well.

Because the little things become the big things. Always.

Take a minute today and think about where you can do one small thing a little better. Maybe it’s in your training. Maybe it’s in your parenting. Maybe it’s just in the way you treat people.

Start small. Stay consistent. Watch how the big things start to take care of themselves.

See you at the gym,
Joey

P.S. If your son (or daughter) wants to start working on the little things that make a big difference in performance, come train with us. Your first week of unlimited Performance Training is totally free. No pressure, no strings. Just show up, put in the work, and see what happens.

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