This book is challenging me.

Not emotionally.

Intellectually.

General Stanley McChrystal writes about conviction — not blind belief, not slogans, not tribal noise — but belief that has been examined, tested, and chosen.

When he was younger, philosophy intimidated him.

Big thinkers asking big questions about justice, virtue, mortality, responsibility.

Not practical in combat.
Not useful in the chaos of real life.

But as he aged, he realized something important:

Philosophy isn’t about quoting Aristotle.

It’s about asking better questions.

Who am I?
What do I stand for?
Why do I believe what I believe?

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McChrystal makes this clear:

Beliefs shape perception.
Beliefs shape bias.
Beliefs shape action.

Strong belief is powerful.

It can create:

Or it can fuel:

The difference?

How the belief was formed.

Blind belief is fragile.

Examined conviction is durable.

And when belief breaks, it’s very hard to rebuild.

He shares an image that stuck with me:

A seaworthy ship, fully outfitted with sails, but tied tightly to a dock, will not take to sea — no matter how strong the wind.

Instead, it will tear itself apart.

Power without direction.

Energy without clarity.

Talent without conviction.

That’s dangerous.

Conviction isn’t inherited.
It isn’t automatic.
It isn’t something we chant.

It must be defined.

Chosen.

Lived.

There are many things in life we’re told to believe.

Duty.
Honor.
Country.
Team.
Tradition.

But McChrystal admits it took him years to truly interpret what those words meant personally.

That hit me.

Because saying we believe in something
and actually understanding what it demands of us
are two different things.

Conviction sits above belief.

It’s what remains after you’ve questioned, tested, and committed.

It’s not foolproof.

But it’s necessary.

You can’t build character on slogans.

You build it by examining what you believe —
and then living it consistently.

Conviction before competition.
Clarity before chaos.
Identity before pressure.

Belief drives behavior.

And behavior builds results.

🧭⚾

The World Baseball Classic is still a month away.

I’m not watching games yet.

I’m studying the build.

This week I’ve been watching documentaries and interviews on YouTube — especially conversations with Pavel Chadim, my former teammate at Draci Brno and now manager of the Czech National Team.

And it’s personal.

In 1996, I came to Europe from Milwaukee Brewers extended Spring Training as one of the early imports into Czech baseball.

Back then?

Czech baseball was climbing.

Now?

They’re stepping into another World Baseball Classic.

That’s not luck.

That’s trajectory.

Their roster is almost entirely developed inside their own system.

Day jobs:

Manager:
A neurologist.

No massive infrastructure.
No deep MLB pipeline.
No 100-year tradition.

But they built belief.

They qualified.
They earned global respect in 2023.
They’ve continued to develop players into NPB and upper Minor League systems.
They’ve won European medals.

That’s not hype.

That’s structure.

When I watch Pavel speak, I’m not watching as a fan.

I’m scouting culture.

I’m asking:

What standards did they refuse to lower?
How did they build belief before they had proof?
How did they create alignment inside a small baseball nation?

Because small nations don’t rise by accident.

They rise through conviction.

Through:

That’s what I’m studying before the WBC even begins.

Austria doesn’t need to copy Czechia.

But we would be foolish not to study them.

Because 25+ years ago, I saw the early grind in Czech baseball.

Now I’m watching what sustained conviction looks like decades later.

If we want to compete consistently at the top level in Europe — and beyond — we don’t need hype.

We need identity.

Before validation.

Before rankings.

Before tournaments.

It’s easy to watch the stage.

It’s smarter to study the build.

The World Baseball Classic is a month away.

I’m preparing to watch it with different eyes.

Because success leaves clues.

The question is:

Are we disciplined enough to learn from them? 🧭⚾

It’s tested at home.

This week I had to confront something uncomfortable — not as a coach, but as a dad.

My 10-year-old struggles when she loses.

Competitive.
Emotional.
Big reactions.

And my first instinct?

Escalate.

Threaten.
Control.
Shut it down.

It works in the moment.

But here’s what I realized:

Compliance is not resilience.

And conviction without consistency is just talk.

When she loses:

Her brain reads it as a threat.

Amygdala hijacks.
Thinking brain goes offline.
Negativity becomes protection.

She’s not choosing disrespect.

She’s overwhelmed.

And if I introduce fear, I get behavior suppression — not emotional regulation.

That’s not different from baseball.

When a player melts down after a strikeout, you don’t scream mechanics at him.

You train the reset.

This hit me hard.

I talk about identity.
I talk about process.
I talk about discipline under pressure.

So what do we stand for in this family?

We built a simple code:

We compete.
We respect.
We reset.
We grow.

Before games, we set the agreement.

During escalation, we use one cue:

“Pause. Reset.”

No lecture.
No raised voice.

Just structure.

Afterwards?

We debrief like adults.

What happened inside you?
What story did your brain tell you?
What would strong look like next time?

That’s skill building.

That’s identity building.

Conviction isn’t loud.

It’s deliberate.

It’s choosing calm authority over emotional reaction.
It’s modeling the behavior you demand.
It’s aligning your house with your philosophy.

Because here’s the truth:

If I teach my athletes process under pressure
but abandon it when I’m uncomfortable at home…

That’s not conviction.

That’s convenience.

As we build toward 2027,
as we talk identity for Austrian baseball,
as we study Czech conviction,
as we preach process over outcome…

It has to show up in the smallest arenas first.

Character scales.

If it works at home,
it works in the clubhouse.

If it breaks at home,
it will break under lights.

You don’t build conviction in championships.

You build it in living rooms.

Discipline without calm isn’t strength.
Authority without modeling isn’t leadership.

Conviction means the standard applies everywhere.

Especially when nobody is watching.

🧭⚾

The Beginning of Our Movement Pathway (12U → Senior) 🧭⚾

I’ve started building something that will shape the next decade of Austrian baseball.

Not a drill package.
Not a seasonal program.
Not a mechanical checklist.

A movement pathway.

From 12U
to 15U
to 18U
to 23U
to Senior National Team.

Because here’s what I’m convicted about:

If we don’t build elite movers early,
we will spend years trying to fix what we restricted.

Too often in baseball development we:

Isolate parts.
Chase mechanics.
Correct positions.
Over-coach aesthetics.

And unintentionally…

We coach athleticism out of players.

Movement gets compartmentalized.
Feel gets stiff.
Adaptability shrinks.

By the time players reach senior level,
they’re thinking about positions instead of reacting with rhythm.

That’s backwards.

I’ve been studying Dr. Ismael Gallo’s Global Pattern Screening closely.

Not to copy it.
But to understand the philosophy behind it.

His work emphasizes screening the movement system as a whole — not isolated joints or muscles — identifying global inefficiencies, rhythm breakdowns, and neurological patterns that limit athletic expression.

That idea resonates deeply with me.

So as we build our Austrian pathway, we are patterning our movement evaluation philosophy after that integrated approach.

Not as a medical checklist.

As a developmental compass.

Because if you can see the global pattern early,
you can guide development intentionally.

Here’s the principle:

We will not rush mechanics before movement.

We will not sacrifice flow for aesthetics.

We will build movers first.

If Austria wants sustained success — not moments — we must build systems that outlast cycles.

That means:

Clear identity.
Conviction in development.
Long-term discipline.

We’re not trying to look elite.

We’re building elite movers.

From the ground up.

Talent is common.

Organized movement is rare.

If we build the movement system right,
skill sticks.
Confidence holds.
Pressure doesn’t tighten us.

This is the beginning.

Not of a season.

Of a standard.

🧭⚾