Sometimes getting a player to understand the value of practice can be difficult. Those who aren’t the most dedicated to fastpitch softball can find a hundred excuses not to practice.

So here’s a fun way of explaining how they will benefit. Whenever I start lessons with new students, toward the end I like to ask them if they know where New York City and Los Angeles are on a map.

Most the time they do – or at least say they do. I hear today’s students are a bit geography-challenged.

Anyway, once we’ve established they know where each is, I will ask them how many different ways there are to get from New York to LA. The student will then start naming off various modes of travel – plane, train, car, bicycle, jog, walk, etc. Some will even suggest a boat, which is possible but certainly not easy.