As I’m sure you already know, we are at a very busy time of the year.

The school year is almost over, so teachers are diligently working to cram everything they were require to teach but haven’t so far into these last few weeks before the final bell rings for the summer. School, park district, and private organizations are preparing to put on their spring plays/musical recitals or concerts, dance recitals, science fairs, art fairs, and other events.

On top of which rec leagues are launching, travel teams are gearing up for the long summer, and many high schools and colleges are getting ready for their playoffs.

With so much going on it’s understandable that fastpitch softball players might say, “I just don’t have the time” when it comes to the extra work required to help them level up their play. And in many respects they’re right.

But here’s the reality: if leveling up is important to you, somehow you will make the time. If it’s really not, you’ll make excuses.

Take the photo of Madi shown here for example. She has one of the best built-in excuses for not practicing you could have: her left foot is in a boot due to a broken toe.

But instead of saying, “Oh well, if I can’t pitch full-out I can’t pitch” she kept every lesson and worked on what she WAS able to do to help herself get better.

Or how about this Maddy? She could barely walk in the door under her own power due to nerve damage in her leg from taking a couple of hard line drives to the same spot in her shin.

Did she let that stop her? No! We pulled up a stool and she worked on what she could so that when she was able to walk normally again she’d be better than she was before the injuries.

Those are a couple of extreme examples for sure. And their issue was injury, not time-based, so maybe you don’t think it’s quite the same.

The mindset is the same, however, i.e., I’m not going to let anything stop me from getting better.

If your issue is not enough time, then perhaps it’s time to put on your thinking cap and get creative.

One way to do that is to look for short opportunities instead of thinking practice has to be a half hour or an hour. For example, if you have a lot of homework, research shows that taking breaks of 5 to 60 minutes helps keep your mind fresh so you learn better.

Instead of hopping on social media (which doesn’t give your mind the proper break anyway) why not take some practice swings or throw a rolled up pair of socks into a mirror for 10 minutes? The physical activity will help rejuvenate your brain while also helping you improve your softball skills. Three breaks like that and you’ve put in 30 minutes without even thinking about it (pun intended).

Or let’s say your high school team’s practice doesn’t allot enough (or any) time for you to practice a specific skill. When practice is over, hang out a little longer while you’re still warmed up and in softball mode to do a few reps of whatever you need to work on.

What if you’re in the school play? I did those when I was young and I know how much standing around time there is during rehearsals, especially if you’re not the lead.

Go find a corner somewhere and go through whatever mechanics you need to work on, or your band work or other exercises. In most cases you don’t need much more than about a 10′ x 10′ area, or a convenient hallway.

You can even get a little practice time in when you’re standing in line for the school cafeteria or the grocery store with your parents. If you’re a pitcher, work on getting faster, looser pronation at the finish. If you’re a hitter, work on using your hips more effectively.

There are lots of fairly subtle things you can do to make use of the fact that you’re not doing anything else. Sure, people might stare at your funny. But those stares will turn into looks of admiration when you’re out-performing your opponents on the softball field.

The key is to think about practice not in the traditional large block of time way but in smaller bites that you can execute whenever you have a few minutes, or need a few minutes to yourself. Know specifically what you need to work on most, and then make the time to work on it.

All those little on-the-fly practice sessions will quickly add up to the types of big improvements that will help you achieve your goals.

Don’t talk yourself out of greatness. Remember that the best make time and the rest make excuses. Choose which group you want to be a part of.