While I admittedly do not follow Major League Baseball, I understand that Lenny Harris currently holds the record for most pinch hit at-bats (804) and the most career pinch hits (212). The pinch hitter in baseball is a substitute batter who replaces a starting player because of a higher likelihood of reaching base or helping other runners to score. Pinch hitters often replace pitchers in the middle or late innings of a game.
The term is also used informally to denote a substitute of any kind. The term came to mind as I was sitting at our reception desk yesterday, manning the phones as a pinch hitter for our A-Team as a result of an unusually generous (for these parts) snow and ice storm.
Pinch hitting in the corporate setting is one of my favorite activities. It allows you to see the organization from a new perspective and in this case I had a chance to interact with clients – taking orders, connecting them to the appropriate resources, etc. – in ways that I don’t typically get to in my role as CEO. One client remarked after I helped her place an order that she would “put in a good word for me” as she had never spoken with me and well, I was honored!
A generous attitude, made available only as there is a truly open mind and heart, is vital to approaching any new or unexpected thing. If you come to savor the unexpected, you’ll find that whether the task is more or less restrictive than that to which you are accustomed, it will still be enjoyable, if not fulfilling.
Some people balk when asked to do a large job while others pull their hair out when asked to do something supposedly “beneath them.” But why? It makes more sense to me to make the best of anything that comes your way, for the seeds you sow in the harvest you’re handling will affect much more than your immediate circumstances. Add to that the fact that nothing ever stays the same and you have a recipe for a rich, dynamic and fun-filled life!
Small businesses thrive when the A-team is backed (and composed of) record-breaking pinch hitters, if the bench is that deep! Employees who prefer to work within the confines of rigidly determined roles that cannot be modified come hell or high water are better off working in a large organization. Small businesses survive – especially in times like these – when they are flexible and capable of turning on a dime. Pinch hitters are essential to a growing small business as they facilitate the exploration of new avenues of growth and service.
The next time you are asked to pinch hit, give it all you’ve got. Pay no attention to the task at hand, as it matters not if you are mucking a stall, labeling files, packing orders or running a make-shift division to quickly penetrate an uncharted market. Don’t bog the process down with unnecessary questions, don’t pout, doubt or peacock around. Just do it! And do it to the very best of your abilities.
What do you have to lose?
Gregory Hake 
I like doing this too. Especially in a small business, why
not do what needs to be done to move the whole thing forward? There
are so many things you can learn when you do something that you
don’t do all of the time. Also, as far as I’m concerned, there is
no job that is “beneath” anyone. Every thing we do is an
opportunity.
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I remember my father saying to me at times when I was grumbling about the nature of a job I had to do – “Any fool can be miserable!” Not wanting to reside among the class of miserable fools I quickly made the attitude adjustment. The best opportunity anyone has is always right under their own feet so put your best effort and best attitude into it!
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Sounds like you had fun. Doing someone elses job can broaden your horizons or at the least let you appreciate your coworkers anew.
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Great story and excellent advice that I will certainly
remember the next time an opportunity comes my way, and, who knows,
maybe it will be today!
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Great way to look at it. I’ll remember the pinch hitter
analogy – it adds a sense of excitement and ‘glamour’ to any job
one may be needed to handle!
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