Learning a new skill? It takes as long as it takes...

In working with some young fastpitch players on their pitching and hitting recently (pitching drills, hitting mechanics, etc.) , it had me thinking how the mind can sometimes play tricks on us and even hold us back as we're learning new skills. For some, thoughts along the lines of "I should be getting this faster" or "I should already know this, everyone else does" can be pervasive.

By training the mind we are able to understand that these are just automatic thought patterns in the mind that we don't have to take as truth. The truth is that everyone starts from a different spot as far as ability and experience. This isn't good or bad, it just is.

By buying in and believing these "should" statements that just adds resistance in the mind. When we learn to notice and let go of these thoughts and come back to what we can control, we realize that we'll learn the skills as fast as we learn them and that forcing things will just get us in our own way.