Lesson from Dad #2: Don't back over the pitcher's mound

Am channeling my Dad again today with memories that spill over into life and business lessons to ponder. This one revolves around a memory of me at an early driving age, backing out of the garage, SOOOO very carefully (wouldn't want to scrape the Chrysler). All of a sudden he yells from the passenger seat... "Don't back over the pitcher's mound!!"

Let me explain. My dad loved baseball. But he loved just about any sport either of his kids chose to embrace. So, not only did he build a full size basketball court for my brother up in the haymow (our place was the most popular place for high school boys from miles around because no gyms were open on weekends for practice, so they all came to our farm for impromptu pick up games every Sunday afternoon)... he also built a full size baseball diamond on the yard of our farm. And the pitcher's mound was - yes - immediately in the path of any non-observant driver backing out of the garage. (Since I was not into team sports, during the winters while I was young, he flooded another part of the farm yard to create an ice skating rink for me for me).

Dad was incredibly committed to his kids and their passions. He used creative methods and devoted the resources to give us the tools we needed to ensure we could practice when we needed to, in order to perform well.

So.. life and business lesson? Make sure you give your kids, employees, others who depend upon you... the tools they need to do their job well. Don't just expect them to become a great pitcher, or ice skater. Or designer or web developer. Put the resources required into helping them grow and develop into being great. Or greater.