Barry Bonds is so close, yet so far away.The single season home run king is just one swing away from the Sultan of Swat, Babe Ruth, yet it's taking forever to catch the long dead giant of baseball.This isn't a typical slump because Barry has been hitting the ball, scoring and driving in runs, helping his team to win.This drought seems more psychological, as if, lurking beneath Barry's famous body armor, tough guy, what-me-care? attitude is a soul that is just a wee bit afraid of success.Fear of Success is a syndrome well known to shrinks.
It arises from the concern that you might succeed today, but then expectations will increase for your future performance, and you doubt your long-term ability to deliver.That saying, "Watch out what you wish for; you just might get it!" could have been coined by someone fearful of success.For Barry, it's not about the Babe.
The bambino will surely be caught and passed.More likely, it's about Henry Aaron's all time home run mark of 755.Does Barry have enough gas in the tank to make it one, or possibly two more seasons, injury and steroids free, to topple Hank's record?.Is Barry afraid that his number 714 or 756 will be wiped from the record books because of his purported misdeeds?.Is he feeling guilty?.(He says he's not sleeping at night.
).When all of this is settled someone may write a doctoral dissertation on Barry's torments, and they won't call it The Curse of The Bambino.More likely, it will be The Curse of The Barry.
.Dr. Gary S.Goodman, President of http://www.Customersatisfaction.com, is a popular keynote speaker, management consultant, and seminar leader and the best-selling author of 12 books, including Reach Out & Sell Someone and Monitoring, Measuring & Managing Customer Service, and the audio program, "The Law of Large Numbers: How To Make Success Inevitable," published by Nightingale-Conant.
He is a frequent guest on radio and television, worldwide. A Ph.D. from USC's Annenberg School, a Loyola lawyer, and an MBA from the Peter F.
Drucker School at Claremont Graduate University, Gary offers programs through UCLA Extension and numerous universities, trade associations, and other organizations from Santa Monica to South Africa. He holds the rank of Shodan, 1st Degree Black Belt in Kenpo Karate. He is headquartered in Glendale, California, and he can be reached at (818) 243-7338 or at: gary@customersatisfaction.com.For information about coaching, consulting, training, books, videos and audios, please go to http://www.
customersatisfaction.com.
By: Dr. Gary S. Goodman