The Pressure Cooker

A pressure cooker is a sealed pot with a valve that controls the steam pressure inside. As the pot heats up, the liquid inside forms steam, this raises the pressure in the pot. A pressure cooker works on a simple principle: Steam pressure. A sealed pot, with a lot of steam inside, builds up high pressure, which helps food cook faster.

The term pressure cooker is used many times as a metaphor for being in a pressurized situation. It could be a pressure coming from any type of situation such as marriage, family, job, financial, or just life in general. But anything that brings extreme pressure to you can put you in the pressure cooker.

One of the things that I do apart from my normal responsibilities as a leader is that I am an AHSAA (Alabama High School Athletic Association) girl’s fast pitch umpire. I have been doing this for about seven years. It’s fun and very exciting. However, it has its pressurized games, moments, and situations. We call these being “in the pressure cooker.”

I learned firsthand what it’s like to be in the pressure cooker at this year’s 2015 Regional Softball Tournament in Tuscaloosa. The Regionals decides which two teams from each classification advance to the State Tournament with a chance to win a state championship. It is an honor for a team to make it to the Regionals. It is also an honor for an umpire to be chosen to umpire in the Regionals. Umpires are chosen based upon their grading during the regular season and area playoff tournament. Therefore, to make the Regionals means that you have been one of the best umpires during the season.

I was chosen by my district director to umpire in the Regionals. One of the things that I discovered at the Regionals is that everything is turned up a notch. Due to the fact that the season is on the line for teams and some player’s high school careers being extended or ending is on the line also. Every pitch, every play, and every call is scrutinized more than normal. Coaches are more intense, the players play with more passion, and the fans are all roused up, therefore it puts and extreme amount of pressure on us as umpires.

In one of my games the two teams playing were ranked number two and number five in the 5A classification. It was a very close and intense game. I was behind the plate. I could feel the pressure. I was just hoping that I would not make a bad call. In the bottom of the fifth inning I made a judgment call on a play that would have great bearing on the outcome of the game. When I made the call the fans jumped all over me and the coach of the team who the call went against came and said to me, “Blue, that was a bad call you might have just cost us a chance to win.” I felt real bad because it was a call that could have went either way. I was rattled for a moment, as the fans stayed on me and the coach constantly staring me down. After the inning my partner who was a very seasoned umpire who had been to the Regionals and State several times came up to me and said, “You made the right call.” Then he said, “Welcome to the pressure cooker.”

Leaders are often thrown into the pressure cooker. Danny Cox wrote a book about this entitled, “Leadership When The Heat Is On.” Leaders must learn to manage high-pressure situations. There is no teacher better than experience in regards to learning how to lead under pressure. The experience that I learned umpiring at the Regionals has prepared me to handle any umpiring situation. The pressure cooker is the pressure cooker; it doesn’t matter if it is in softball or leading people. There is pressure either way. The things that I learned in the pressure cooker during the Regionals have helped me in my leadership role when I have to lead when the heat is on. When properly applied I believe they will help you as a leader. They are;

Know the situation you are dealing with – I knew going in that the games in the Regionals would be different from any other game I had called. I had talked to umpires who had done Regionals before to get all the info I could, going in. In pressurized leadership situations, you must do the same. Talk to other leaders who have dealt with the pressure you are under.

Stay Calm – Going into the Regionals I was nervous and uptight. In this state of mind, I was not prepared to make good calls. I had to relax and treat it like just another game. Once I got an inning or two under my belt, I began to calm down and was able to call a good game. In leadership, you have to stay calm so that you can lead effectively through the pressure. Those following will remain calm if they see you calm. You can lead better and make good decisions when you calm down.

Trust your training and instincts – I had to realize that I was there because I earned the right to be there. I had worked hard starting with the pre-season camps, scrimmages, and then through the regular season. I had reread my rule book. Therefore, I was not going to see much that I had not been trained to handle. This boosted my confidence level. As a leader you have been trained to do what you are doing. You earned the right to lead. So realize you are adequately trained to handle the situations you are facing.

Let mistakes go – Because we are human mistakes are inevitable. As an umpire when I make a bad call I do not dwell on it for the rest of the game. If I did it would affect my ability to make good calls. I determine to let it go and to get the next call right. I let it go because I cannot undo it. Leaders must take the same posture. Don’t let your mistakes totally consume you. Recognize what you did wrong, learn from it and move on. Regroup and stay in the game. Keep leading.

Trust your partner – When my partner told me that I had made the right call, it was refreshing to me. He was another set of eyes with a view different from the one that I had. He saw what I could not see. Leaders must learn to trust those in partnership with him or her. Allow them to give you different points of view and perspectives on the situations and pressure that you are facing.

The pressure cooker is not necessarily a fun place because of all that is on the line. Pressure is an inevitable part of leadership. It is not an issue of if the pressure will come but rather when the pressure comes. However, there are lessons that are learned and experience that one gains in the pressure cooker that are invaluable to a leader. If you are a leader, brace yourself for the pressure cooker. You will be better coming out of it than when you went in.

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