A good friend of mine brought up a great point in a discussion about giving a little extra to grow your business or in my case insurance agency. He is a big baseball fan and personally I’m a football fan. I am somewhat of a statistics geek so I do love his analogy. He brought up the difference between being a .250 hitter and a .300 hitter in Major League Baseball. It is only 5% difference, so why is that important? Let’s explore just how special 5% or a .300 hitter really is.
If you break down the statistics of Major League Baseball there have been just north of 15,000 players to have played in the MLB. For a professional baseball player the batting average is about .250 or out of every 100 times at bat they get a base hit 25 times. A .300 hitter would get 30 base hits out of every 100 times at bat. So, a .300 hitter reaches base 5 times more than an average player for every 100 at bats. This is a very valuable trait in Major League Baseball. When you are considering over a players career who’s had thousands of at bats and can retire from the game with over a .300 batting average, that is exceptional. In fact there have only been 183 players to have a batting average over .300 in MLB history to date. That is about 1% of every player that has played in Major League Baseball. That is a very elite group of men.
Giving just 5% more effort than your competition can project your business or insurance agency into the top 1% status as well. What is 5% more effort to a business? If you work 60 hours in your business on an average week add 3 hours or 5% per week. If you make 20 sales calls on insurance clients add just 1 more or 5%. If you spend $500 per week on marketing your business then spend an extra $25 per week or 5%. See the difference between a .250 hitter and a .300 hitter was not about abilities, it is about commitment. That .300 hitter gave more of themselves and their time to master their craft and be an elite baseball player. They stayed after team practice to practice batting. They counseled with experts on batting. They worked on the smallest of details like stance, batting gripes, and body language to the opposing pitchers. If you want more than just to succeed you must be willing to do the 5% more than any of your competitors. Be a student of your business and your industry. Learn new things daily, push past the obstacles that others fail to conquer. Then and only then will you reach the elite top 1% of your industry. Strive to be a .300 hitter.
“Charlie Gehringer is in a rut. He hits .350 on opening day and stays there all season.”—Lefty Gomez
“Baseball is ninety percent mental. The other half is physical.”—Yogi Berra
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Tim Wilhoit is owner/principal of Your Friend 4 Life Insurance Agency in Nashville, TN. He is a family man, father of 3, entrepreneur, insurance agent, life insurance broker, salesman, sales trainer, recruiter, public speaker, blogger and team leader with over 25 years of experience in sales and marketing in the insurance and beverage industries.
Successful people will always do the things that unsuccessful people will not. I totally agree with you and have always found that doing just that little bit more in every company I have been with has put me at the top very quickly. Kudos to you for bringing up this subject Tim. Now if only everyone would read it and apply it.
Lynn,
Thank you for your kind words and feedback. I know you reading this blog is preaching to the choir as successful as you are. I appreciate your connection on LinkedIn. I wish you continued success because you are an above .300 hitter!
Tim, I believe this is why I was given the opportunity to become a state trainer and have done many, many national trainings. I see the difference someone can make by inspiring others to reach for the things they want in life and not just take what is given. Thank you for your inspiration.
You never fail to ignite a spark with your post Tim ! This is very important. Have you read a book titled the slight edge or heard of the slight edge principle ? The 5% is the slight edge at work ! The subtle differences compounded over a period of time make ALL the difference !!
Hasan, thank you for the comments. I have not read that book. Who is the author? I would be very interested in picking it up. Thank you!
Tim, you’re very welcome. The author is Jeff Olson, and it’s a great read ! Also a great book for anybody who wants to be successful. It truly explains how important that 5% as you were saying either works for you or against you as it is compounded over time !
Hasan, great choice of book. It has been one of my favorites for years. I usually buy 100 copies and give them out as gifts. Have done this for 8 years. Two years ago I was called by someone and told that I was in the book The Slight Edge. They took my story and published it. I am actually in there in the new revised edition. The author is Jeff Olson and the book can be bought online.
Thank you both, I will be ordering the book today. Amazon here I come!
Lynn, wow ! It is a pleasure to have you as a contact. That’s great ! The Slight Edge principle is simple, but powerful !!
Great replies Hasan and Tim. Keep the great topics coming
Tim, you will not be disappointed ! It’s well worth the investment. Lynn, I will definitely do that and you do the same, let’s all grow together !