How to Hit a Curveball: Confront and Overcome the Unexpected in Business

by Scott R. Singer, Mark Levine (Contribution by)

"None of us knows what the future holds. But once you've learned how to confront and overcome the unexpected, this lack of knowledge will cease to make you anxious. Tomorrow will no longer be something to fear. And believe me, that's a great feeling"

As a professional, you want to be ready for anything. You'll spend hours, days, even years, perfecting your technique, studying the competition and stepping up to challenges in order to make yourself an all-star.

But at some point in your life, regardless of what you do or how far up the ladder you've climbed, you will be thrown a curveball-an unexpected challenge that comes at you quickly and without warning. The kind that forces you to rethink, well, everything.

Whether it's the loss of a job, a newly assigned responsibility at work, or a global recession that threatens your entire company or industry, an unanticipated change can knock even the most experienced among us off guard. So if you want to succeed in business-and in life-it's not enough to be the smartest in the room or even the hardest working; you have to be a great curveball hitter.

Investment banker Scott R. Singer learned this lesson the hard way. But after a series of career challenges and personal setbacks, he started to develop a new approach to dealing with unforeseen problems by adopting a new attitude toward life. He realized that curveballs are a part of the game and the greatest players know how to knock them out of the park.

Singer shares his personal story and insights as well as those of some prominent curveball hitters he interviewed, such as Leslie Moonves of CBS, Alan Schwartz of Bear Stearns, and actor Michael J. Fox. Singer's rules for surviving and thriving when faced with uncertainty
Step up to the Accept what's happened; don't fight it. Tell others right away, and let them help.
Be the batter, not the Don't let your imagination get the best of you. Be a realist, not a pessimist.
Keep your eye on the Focus on what you can do instead of worrying about what might happen or what's beyond your control.

This fun yet practical book is full of valuable advice and anecdotes that can help anyone avoid striking out at work (or at home) and maybe even turn those surprising challenges into tremendous opportunities.

Visit www.hitacurveball.com

256 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2010

Reviews

[Jen Lawrence · Rating 3 out of 5]

Scott Singer’s How to Hit A Curveball: Confront and Overcome the Unexpected in Business uses a baseball analogy and a nine-inning framework to discuss how to navigate obstacles in business and in life. He interviews an impressive array of people (Buzz Aldrin, Les Moonves, Jerry Levin, Alan Schwartz, Strauss Zelnick, and Michael J. Fox, among others) and has some interesting ideas for handling the unexpected. Especially useful were his suggestions for “out of the batter’s box thinking” using creativity tools such as brainstorming, Robert Eberle’s SCAMPER approach, Edward de Bonos’s concept fan idea, and Michael Morgan’s reframing matrix. It’s always nice to see the concepts we discuss in organizational development used in the real world.

Although much of the book is written for the individual — in fact, at many times, it reads more like a self-help book than a business book (not necessarily a criticism) — it does offer some good advice for creating a curveball-hitting culture within an organization. Singer emphasizes that “curveball hitters are made, not born” and many organization can help their people become more adept at handling unforeseen problems and opportunities.

For anyone going through change (especially the unwelcome variety) this book makes for an interesting read.

[Amanda Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

While the metaphor got old after awhile, it definitely works as a way to explain how one can best respond to the curveballs we all experience in work and life. The book explores how responding to the unexpected—whether it’s personal, like a job loss, or specific to the industry, like the impact of digitalization—creates specific outcomes. I particularly thought his examples and advice for those experiencing a job loss was really helpful and explained why reacting to the situation can end up haunting you later on.

The author shares his own experience as well as interviewing personalities like Michael J. Fox, CBS’s Les Moonves, and Alan Schwartz of Bear Stearns to get their tips on handling unforeseen problems.

Given our challenging times, this is a particularly relevant and practical read.

[Jonathan · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wow. First time I have been the first reviewer of a book. Quite an honor. Too bad I am not the type to give a detailed review.

The presentation of the books as a baseball game was unique and approachable. Being a huge baseball fan, I found the organizaiton of the book very logical. The concepts provided for dealing with "curveballs" were on the mark. I have already implemented with success in my own business group. My ony complaint is tha the anectdotes were too simplistic. They did not contribute to the story. More text from conversations with business executives might have been more informative.

Overall, the book gave me practical advice that I can apply to my professional career and personal life. The book is a fast read, so I would recommend it to others.

[Alexandra Konigsburg · Rating 2 out of 5]

There is nothing earth-shattering in here but that's fine. Instead, it is a well laid-out pep talk and a good book to pick up when you've been thrown (or are anticipating) a curveball because that's usually the time when you have trouble thinking clearly and logically. It's also a quick read, I finished it in an evening and an afternoon.