Yesterday's sports section of the Washington Post contained a powerful business lesson that we should all take to heart.

Writer Dave Sheinin interviewed reigning NL MVP Jimmy Rollins of the Philadelphia Phillies about "when it clicked" for him, the epiphany that transformed Rollins into a superstar. Here's what Rollins said:

"We were playing the New York Mets...Bases loaded. I think we're down by one. [A] 3-2 pitch. Mike Stanton on the mound. And I kind of — I had a little doubt. I knew what I was going to get. [It's] like: They're going to throw me a high fastball. Don't swing at it.' I mean, I already knew. Before I walked into the box, I knew what was going to happen

Sure enough, they throw me a high fastball. I swing at it — strike three. We ended up losing the game by one. After that game, I'm on the bus with [teamate] Marlon Byrd, in the back. And it's kind of like anything [else] — you have to hit bottom before you realize: 'You know what? This is not the way to go. This isn't it.' And I was just upset with myself — not for the fact that I failed, but for the fact that I didn't believe and trust in what I knew was going to happen, and [in] having the ability to say, 'I'm not going to give in.'

I turned to Byrd and said: 'That's it. I'm not making another out.' And he looked at me like, 'huh?' It's like, 'I'm not making another out the rest of this year.' I'm like: 'I might GET out. But I'm not making an out. They're going to have to catch the ball. They're going to have to trick me or something. But I'm not making another out.'

So here I was in a situation where my career could go this way [points to the ground] or go that way [points to the ceiling]. And obviously, it turned out for the better. But it was just that mind-set that, 'I'm not making an out' — meaning: 'I'm not giving away at-bats. I'm going to believe in myself and what I do and what I know.'

We have all kinds of videotape [of opposing pitchers]. The only thing they can do is trick you. There are no secrets. 'This is what he's done to me my whole career. If he does something different — bingo, you got me.' When you have the knowledge, and you're in a situation and you don't believe in what you already know — believe me that's a lonely place. That's a lonely place."

I've personally lived in that "lonely place" Jimmy Rollins refers to, longer than I'd like to admit.

About a year ago I concluded that I needed to raise funding to take my publishing company to the next level. I had never worked with an investment banks or pitched investors before, so this was truly a world I was unfamiliar with. The investment bank recommended we raise $1.8 million, though I felt we only needed about $500,000 (no shocker they get a bigger fee off the larger amount.) The whole thing didn't sit well with me for a number of reasons, including I didn't want to give up that much of my company. 

I ignored my feelings since I was new to this part of the business world and completely defered to the "experts". You can probably predict the outcome — the fundraising effort was a miserable failure. It didn't work. We weren't able to raise the money at the valuation we wanted. I was dejected and wondered what I had done wrong, so I consultant with an independent expert and was shocked at what he told me:

"I'm not surprised you weren't able to raise the money. $1.8 million is a stupid amount to try and raise. You're way to small for institutional investors and you're way to big for Angels. It has nothing to do with your business."

But it did have everything to do with trusting in myself. If I had trusted my gut, I wouldn't have wasted 9 months of my life. Now, thanks to the lesson of one of my favorite ball players, I won't ever make this mistake again.