4 Lessons From a Baseball Trailblazer

When our opportunities are extremely limited, sometimes we just have to take whatever we can find.

Apr 19

She had four years of Division 1 playing experience, a Master’s degree and six different baseball internships, but as Rachel Balkovec looked for professional coaching opportunities, her many strengths seemed to be overlooked.

New York Post @nypost

Yankees' Rachel Balkovec talks leadership, responds to the haters, NFL dream trib.al/R77TQeT

Nearly a decade later, Balkovec is now the manager of a minor league team affiliated with the New York Yankees — the first woman to ever hold the position — and her journey to this point has some key reminders for us.

1. The first steps are often the toughest. Take what’s available

Despite her many qualifications, Balkovec really struggled to get her foot in the door in pro baseball. She began her career with the Johnson City Cardinals as a temporary strength and conditioning coach, which eventually turned into a full-time position.

Since then, she’s worked for the Houston Astros as their Latin strength and conditioning coach, as a hitting coach with a team in the Netherlands, and with an Australian professional baseball team.

Balkovec was seemingly over-qualified for just about all of these positions, and it would’ve been hard to fault her if she turned some of them down. But she recognized that she couldn’t afford to be picky, and her willingness to go to any corner of the globe led her to the position she’s in now. It’s a great reminder to us that when our opportunities are extremely limited, there is no perfect job or situation. Sometimes, we just have to take whatever we can find.

2. True self-belief comes from our work

As a female in a male-dominated sport, Balkovec has struggled with confidence and performance anxiety. But instead of allowing insecurities to hinder her, she has used them to her advantage, outworking and outsmarting her competitors.

“Confidence comes from preparation. I know that I prepared myself to be in this role, and even if I’m not prepared, I’m gonna be the hardest worker in the room.”

3. Internal motivation

On her Instagram page, Balkovec posts various quotes and sayings to serve as reminders of the hardships she has overcome. These refrains include:

“If there isn’t a road build one. Things you’ll need: Lots of equipment, lots of help, fury.”
“Find a way or fade away.”
“Excellence is the best deterrent to racism or sexism.”

Sometimes, navigating difficult paths comes down to finding a few landmarks to help reassure us that we’re going in the right direction. For Balkovec, these short phrases are a bit of extra incentive and some key reminders of the inevitable turbulence on her journey. But they’re part of what help her stay the course.

4. Create the vision, then pursue it with everything

Balkovec has multiple Master’s degrees, has worked all over the world, and has put together a truly impressive résumé that could earn her lots of career opportunities.

But her love is baseball, and for the better part of a decade now, she has been determined to find a career in the sport despite the odds. She has likely encountered plenty of people who have tried to dissuade her from going down this path, but Balkovec knows baseball is her calling and has done everything to make her long-time dream a reality.