Matt Kata (@MattK8A) is a former Major League Baseball player and the Cleveland Guardians Manager of Youth Baseball Development & Initiatives. Kata graduated from St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland, Ohio. In this video from PCA-Cleveland’s August Breakfast with the Indians, Kata joined President of Baseball Operations Chris Antonetti (@IndiansGM) and Director of Player Development, Carter Hawkins to discuss how powerful it is to praise process, not just outcomes.

In this video, Kata discusses how parents and coaches can redefine success with their youth athletes, suggesting that they define success as the achievement of process. By achievement of process, Kata means that athletes should be rewarded for their effort in the process, whether that be mechanics or the intent with which they hit the ball. He explains that it is natural as a parent and coach to go crazy when a kid achieves an outcome (hits a ball far), but in order to truly facilitate a growth mindset, it is important to praise the effort and the process, not just the results of the process. Focusing on the process does not only help players improve more quickly, but also helps remove pressure, as there are plenty of times where kids may not succeed in their outcome, but may have used the correct process.