Image Source: Ricardo Bernardo, Creative Commons
I know, I know, I haven’t posted a blog in forever. While that issue has been nagging at me for weeks it took the gentle reminder of a close friend that I had neglected this duty (thanks Armin).
Several things strike me about this situation:
1) I actually needed the reminder from a friend to respond to the nagging
2) For me, blogging is a difficult task that requires discipline to accomplish
3) I’m reminded almost every day from clients that time management is an issue
4) Even if doing something is enjoyable, you may not be good at it
Many years ago I was attending a professional golf tournament. At the time Tom Watson was at the peak of his career (which is interesting to say when he recently came within a stroke of winning the British Open (THE Open) even though he’s in his sixties). But, at that moment in time there was probably no one in the world who knew more about the game of golf and in particular his ability to play the game. However, as I watched Tom play that day, he began to have problems with his drive on the last several holes. He developed a draw which turned into a nasty hook. After his round I watched as he gathered his coach and headed for the practice range. Although I was out of hearing range, you could tell by the body language what was going on between Tom and his coach. Tom was animated and angry while his coach was trying to both listen and calm Tom down at the same time. Finally the coach asked Tom to hit a few balls while he watched. Tom’s first attempt delivered a severe hook that nearly missed the driving range on the left. Tom immediately reacted with animation and anger. Once again the coach tried to calm him down and asked him to make minor change in his stance. Tom acquiesced and addressed another ball. This time while the ball still faded to the left, it did not follow the path of the severe hook. Tom nodded and hit a few more balls which all followed the same path. The coach then suggested another slight change to Tom’s grip. The next shot was magnificent. The ball boomed off the club face, started out low and true and slowly climbed into the sky almost reaching the limits of sight. Tom simply turned and smiled at his coach. For the next half hour Tom launched ball after ball true and straight down the driving range.
Even the best in the world sometimes need that outside observer to slightly adjust their already plentiful skills to keep them tuned up and on the right path.
Do you have that trusted confident that will give you the feedback to keep your shots flying true and straight? We all need them.