When was the last time you were out of your comfort zone and allowed yourself to “struggle” in order to grow? You may be thinking why would you ever want to struggle; it’s uncomfortable and can be very distressing. But struggles and getting out of your comfort zone within reason is a great way to learn how to adapt in order to be resilient. I swear I learn so much from the girls that I coach without them even realizing it. But over the weekend during our small group practices, I had placed them in unfamiliar drills and positions with specific goals in order to improve their hitting and fielding. At first they thought it was stupid and some had some dramatic “falls” to let me know that they were not finding this helpful. But once we shut down the drama and really had the girls focus on the intended goal, you could see them light up when they were successful. This single event is virtually insignificant regarding the span of their entire lives, however, this one practice helped them learn how to problem solve by adapting to a new environment and building new connections in their brain. This allows their nervous system to be resilient and stronger in the future. So this week, try to put yourself in an unfamiliar situation or out of your comfort zone (within reason) and see what you learn. I will report back next week as well!