Ok, now that I have your attention, I don’t hate golf. It is, however, a game I love to hate. Yesterday I made my first birdie (for those non-golfers, birdies are coveted). That alone will bring me back to the course where I will once again attempt to outdo my previous game.
Recently I took a golf lesson with the seasoned golf pro at a local resort. I told him my golf woes, including my not always flexible lower back. He stepped back and told me to take a few swings. Then he switched my clubs and told me to take a few more swings. Then he gave me his analysis. He said, “you have a great swing, and I wouldn’t change a thing with your swing. I want you to move just a smidgen closer to the ball.” I did, and the ball not only went up in the air, but it also went far.
Why did I seek out a golf coach? If I could have tweaked my golf swing with a slight adjustment, I would have done it long ago. I needed someone other than myself to look through a different lens and help me maintain what is working, and consider a small change to gain remarkable results.
Playing golf is a combination of weather, attitude, physics, course conditions, etc. I know that I will not hit the ball purely and accurately every time. I expect my improvement to be gradual with frustrations and missed strokes along the way.
It is that simple, and it is that difficult. Reminds me of leadership where sometimes you get the gift of a simple and solvable problem. Most of the time, however, leaders are untangling complexity, considering multiple options and managing polarities (2 or more right answers to the same issue).
Coaching as a professional option is a great decision, even when you are doing well, perhaps especially then. Quantum leaps rarely happen in leadership. Purposeful leadership demands essential conversations. Conversation relies on trust (Goldsmith & Lyons, 2006, p. 60). Who do you rely on for your essential conversation? Thinking of a coach, contact me at 802-258-8182.
