Stick with what works

While watching a baseball game tonight, I witnessed a sure victory nearly converted into a loss.

What changed?

The manager pulled the pitcher after the eighth inning, presumably due to a pitch count.

Aggravating! The starting pitcher had bewildered the opposition, taming their potent bats all night long. Why pull him?

Here’s why: because in professional baseball, conventional wisdom dictates that when a pitcher reaches a pre-determined pitch threshold, you remove said pitcher from the game.

I hate conventional whizdumb!

You can probably guess what happened next. The opposition jumped on the relief pitcher and put two runners on with nobody out. Suddenly, what was a sure thing, was cast into doubt. The nearly vanquished had new life.

Conventional wisdom be damned

Sometimes, you can strategize yourself right out of a victory.

This is true in sports and it’s a certainty in business. Stick with what’s working until market conditions demand a change.

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