Following a career in which he played 2,632 straight games, it’s fair to say Cal Ripken Jr. knows a bit about perseverance. But how does the baseball Hall of Famer compare perseverance on the field with perseverance in business? The similarities are greater than you might think.

Podcast

In this podcast, baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr. discusses the mindset that enabled him to set baseball’s record with 2,632 consecutive games played.

“It starts with having the right approach and the right attitude,” said Ripken, a 19-time All-Star and two-time American League Most Valuable Player. “It’s also about passion – the love for what you do. Passion brings you back when times are tough.”

Ripken, who spoke in front of a rapt crowd at ASI Orlando, shared several other tips that allowed him to enjoy the record-breaking longevity that no other player achieved. For example, Ripken hammered home why it’s critical to compete against yourself.

“You need to set goals, but you also need to be honest, look in the mirror, and be willing to practice what your weaknesses are. I saw so many players who only wanted to practice their strengths and I guess they were embarrassed to work on their weaknesses in front of everybody else,” Ripken said. “I always worked on things because I wanted to get better.”

Known as baseball’s “Iron Man,” playing more consecutive games than anyone in the game’s history, Ripken amassed 3,184 hits, 431 home runs and 1,695 RBIs during his 21-year career. He admitted there’s no one secret to his success, but said he took great strides to remain consistent and that determination gave him a clear edge. “You can’t always get the game-winning hit or make the game-winning catch,” Ripken said. “But all the things you do on a daily basis will make you irreplaceable.”

During his 45-minute keynote, Ripken wove in stories from his career, as well. In one, he explained how he came to call pitches from shortstop to help out his teammates. “I remember going to a meeting on the mound one time,” Ripken said. “Ben McDonald was pitching and Chris Hoiles was catching. And they said to me ‘it’s big moment in the game and we don’t know what to do.’ So I told them this guy at the plate is a dead-red fastball hitter. So start him out with a curveball. After one pitch, he won’t change his approach, so throw him another curveball after that. Then, when you have two strikes on him, he’s going to spread out and he’ll be vulnerable to a fastball inside.”

It turned out the at-bat went right as Ripken said it would. After the hitter struck out on an inside fastball, McDonald looked back at Ripken “like I was the smartest guy on the planet.” After a pause, Ripken joked: “Because I was.”

Soon, with McDonald having a great year, Hoiles and Ripken developed a system of signs, so whenever the catcher was unsure what to call, the shortstop could send him pitch selection from the infield. If Ripken tugged on his left pant leg, for instance, he was calling for the pitcher to throw an outside fastball. “Before long, I was calling every one of the pitches,” Ripken said. “Nobody was ever looking at the shortstop.”

Ripken offered up a couple other keys that businesspeople can emulate: the importance of detailed mental preparation and managing your life. “Nothing replaces your preparation,” he said. “Prepare for everything that can happen on a sales call, so you’ll be ready for anything. There are no shortcuts. The more you prepare and think, the more chances you have.”

"You need to set goals, but you also need to be honest, look in the mirror, and be willing to practice what your weaknesses are." Cal Ripken Jr.

On management, Ripken said “you can bring control over things in your life that you don’t think you can control.” For example, every spring training when he had a new manager, Ripken walked in his skipper’s office, congratulated him on his new job, and asked: “How do you see my spring training unfolding?” The manager would then ask Ripken, an established player, how he thought it should go, and told him to give it some thought. The next day, without fail, Ripken would bring back a one-page schedule. They would “manage me from that piece of paper. I could plan in ways that were productive to me.”

Ripken, who retired in 2001 and now owns several minor league teams, left the audience with this advice, based on a quote from Teddy Roosevelt that he always carried with him. Ripken said: “You can’t accomplish anything from the sidelines. You have to have the courage to stay in the game.”