When I was in Catholic grade school, the nuns were fond of saying how well I was doing academically, but still not living up to my potential.
As I advanced through high school, I realized that if I didn't get a subject easily, it probably wasn't worth much more effort. I graduated in the top 15% of my class, around 50th out of 300 or so. Fine.
In college, my GPA went up with the number of classes I missed and drugs I indulged in. Fewer classes, more drugs, higher GPA. Every semester for four years. I graduated cum laude, but the nun in the back of my brain (there's a scary image) knew that if I had made a bit more of an effort, it could've been magna cum laude. Or so I flattered myself to think.
Then I got into advertising. My first Creative Director said I was the greatest natural talent he'd ever seen. It became difficult to fit my head through doorways. I found that my initial take on most assignments was the best, and there was a point where it wasn't worth trying too hard. If it happened, it happened. It came from the subconscious, so forcing it wasn't going to do much good. With a little experience, I was able to churn out something acceptable, or better, on demand.
I did pretty well for about 40 years. Not great, but pretty well. And I never fulfilled my potential.
I'm probably wrong, but I think I understand Gary Sanchez. I was him in a parallel universe, minus the sports ability and Hispanic heritage. Sometimes I really buckled down and work very hard, but those times were relatively few. Mostly, it just came to me, and I was ultimately content to be good enough and not great. I could be better than a lot of people without trying too hard, or so it seemed, and never got fired or demoted. Never.
If that doesn't make sense out of what we see with Sanchez, I don't now what does.
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10 comments:
The Gary Sanchez of creativity!
I bow in your general direction, sir.
This is a terrible analogy. You succeed without really trying. Sanchez isn’t trying, that’s true... but he’s not succeeding either.
I've said this before, Gary's problems are located between the left and right ears.
If Gary was truly the baseball equivalent of JM's self description, he'd be hitting .220, 8 hrs, striking out a little too often, and letting one too many a game get by him.
If JM was truly the advertising equivalent of Gary, he would have been pitching Roseanne Barr and John Goodman to sell slimfast.
Lol!!!
I find my own trail looking much the same as JM's path; some of the circumstances were different but our feelings about our pasts seem about the same.
There's nothing wrong with trying your best. I don't think there's any reason to regret having kept your powder dry sometimes. JM's own words here prove my point.
There are worse ways to live than to back off a little from other peoples's (including you, looking on from some other time) expectations in one way so that you can shine in another, or at least attempt to. Maybe even wanting to counts. Who knows? I DO know JM makes me think and laugh on here-and JM is by no means alone. There are much bigger wastes of time than this.
Maybe this IS about Gary. Who knows? Anyway, JM, hang in there and keep failing if that's what's happening because in a lot of ways it seems to be working.
Mike
I really don't know how much effort any player gives. Save for Jose Canseco, who when he was in pinstripes seemed to openly not give a damn.
Sanchez may be trying as hard as he can. The problem is that the organization can't seem to get him going.
"Ya see, Bobs -- It's not that we're lazy, it's that we just don't care."
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