Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Golf's Big Lessons

Golf, like life, is not a fair game. Just when you think you have it made, adversity strikes. If you keep your composure, maintain your positive thinking, good things will turn your game around.

In recent years, I found that concentration and a relaxed swing were the two most important keys to a good result. A relaxed swing depends upon you feeling comfortable with your swing, having confidence. Confidence comes from practice. Practice is a repeated pattern of trying and failing and trying some more until you become more successful by learning from your mistakes and changing how you swing the club. Mistakes are a critical aspect of success. If you don't try, you'll never succeed. As Tom Watson recently remarked, quoting the immortal Bobby Jones, "You learn from defeat, not victory."

Golf is largely a mental game. What amateur player doesn't struggle mightily after spending time with a professional who "corrects" their swing? Perhaps mechanically, you have a better swing, but it just doesn't feel quite right. So you have two choices. Believe in the professional's guidance or go back to what never worked quite well enough all your golfing life. Many will go back to their old swing because it is more comfortable. The results are predictable.

Yet, like life, we can make a better choice. We can pay attention to the good advice and do the things that are uncomfortable, the things we need to do to be successful in our "game." We need to take more bad swings to learn to make good swings. And eventually the new swing will become comfortable and familiar and will deliver better results.

Recently, at age 55, I opened my own law practice. I'm scared to death of failure. I have felt anxieties that I haven't experienced for years. But I feel positive nonetheless. I will make a lot of mistakes. I have made a few already. For two weeks, I have fallen into the very trap my counselor told me to be wary of. I have resolved to practice the uncomfortable swing he taught me; to fail repeatedly until I get my swing right. In the end, the results will be postive.

1 comment:

bww said...

glad to see the positive waves are back.

Good analogy, sure enough you think things in life are going great and you end up in the sand. I kinda feel like I'm walking in the tall stuff searching for my ball right now in life.

keep swinging, and as long as you have a cigar or a brew during the round you'll always feel good.