Ozzie's Blog

All of us are biased. It is not what we see but what we want to see. This is a fact. There is no discussion about it. Proof is that most people will have different reads for the same situation based on the colouring of their own personalities.

The Sugar Coat



Once I met this guy who annoyed me. I was curious as to why he had such power over me. I couldn’t control myself. This guy would see everything as a plus. He would talk positive all the time and seemed to be happy all the time like T.R. on steroids. It repulsed me. If he missed his plane, he would say: “I will find something to do while I wait for the next. I will answer my mail”. If I missed a plane, I created all kinds of drama and felt miserable until the next plane arrived.

I couldn’t do what he did because we had different reads on a situation. In my case, I couldn’t see the positive in a negative situation. He could or wanted to see only the positive in a negative situation.

We were bound to clash.

I avoided him on purpose. I couldn’t take his unflinching enthusiasm. I thought he was a retard.

Why This Happens

People biased towards problem-solving (logical) spot problems everywhere. They rarely see opportunity.

I was a problem solver, a realist. My annoying friend was opportunity-minded.

It is 2 entirely different mindsets. One – the problem solver- walks around with the world on his shoulders trying to find a fix for all things crooked, while the opportunity-oriented guy walks calmly with no burdens to carry. He just travels through life effortlessly bent on the positive, never on the negative.

We are toilet-trained to find loopholes and fix them from the day we are born. It is hard to shed this “fixer upper” mentality. It actually turns into a drag as we grow up. Why? Because there is always something to fix. The old “whack-a-mole” game is a good metaphor to describe this state of mind.



No matter how many mole heads you hit, there are more coming up and sooner rather than later you will be sent into a frenzy trying to hit mole heads that keep popping up.

Growing Problems

The more you bend yourself on fixing a problem in your personality, the more it grows and becomes bigger.

You play to your strengths, never to your weaknesses. When you are in the middle of the action, there is no time for fixing. You got to play. I remember this little short stop, David Eckstein, who used to play for the Anaheim Angels. He was short and kind of weak for a steroid filled game. I think he got some kind of record for being hit by pitches. He would crowd the plate and let himself be hit by the pitcher and so he gained lots of bases in this fashion - he was not a good hitter. He found his strength in the middle of his weakness. Opportunity-minded. How can you fix the problem of “being small”? You can’t really. He was a crucial part of his team’s 2002 World Series success. Watch him in action.



His bunts sacrifices and hit-by-pitches were instrumental in his team’s success.

It is not what you got but what you do with it.

DAVID ECKSTEIN’S CREDO

1. Take whatever you can out there and turn it into an opportunity even being hit in the head by 95 mile-an-hour fast ball.
2. Use body to crowd plate.
3. Squat as much as possible so strike zone gets smaller for pitcher.
4. Being small is an advantage, not a disadvantage

As a result of his hardcore credo, here are his credentials:

Career highlights

• 2006 Holiday Inn Look Again Player of the Year
• 2-time World Series Champion (2002 Anaheim Angels, 2006 St. Louis Cardinals)
• 2006 World Series MVP
• 2-time All-Star (2005, 2006)
• Babe Ruth Award winner (2006)
• Inaugural winner of the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association's Heart & Hustle Award in 2005.

Not bad for a midget player. Many guys including Barry Fucking Bonds don’t have a World Series Ring on their finger.

In What Ways You Are Like David Eckstein. In What Ways You Are Not

I ask you: “Can you learn from bad nights too?” Your true colours will be revealed by adversity, not by success. Can you go back in your head and find the good things you did on a so-called “bad night” in a club? I am sure you can. It is going to be hard because all you want to do is go back and “fix it” but you can’t. Night is over. Can you remember the things you did well? Can you focus on opportunity?

But how can I improve if I don’t correct myself? How can I fix my problems if I don’t spot them?

Remember that there is a difference between fixing a problem and “fixing” yourself. Don’t be problem-minded, be opportunity-minded. You will travel lighter and better.