What 9 Holes of Golf Taught Me
It’s funny how simple things, like 9 holes of golf, can expose my priorities and create an opportunity to renew my heart and mind. Yesterday was a good example. I pulled up to play a round of golf and the back 9 was closed due to flooding. I immediately felt frustrated because this was not what I signed up for and it felt like my day was ruined. It quickly exposed two things to me.
· My priority was to validate and prove something with an official score (fixed mindset), rather than attempting to learn and get better (growth mindset)
· My focus was on winning, rather than connecting
It is amazing to me how many insignificant things I look to for value and meaning. Many times I have let an unmet expectation ruin my day. Although, this time I was encouraged by being able to course correct. Letting go of my expectations, I decided to practice and for the first time I can remember I did not write down a score, even dropping a few extra balls and trying different clubs than I normally would. I looked to connect and see how others were doing rather than being focused on my performance. It turned out to be a great day even though I didn't have an official score to determine if I succeeded. Even better, when I got home the renewed perspective and additional time allowed me to spend the afternoon in the pool with my daughter. I couldn’t have planned a better day and I was close to throwing it all away because it was not going the way I wanted it to.
This is just one small example of what renewing heart and mind means to me.
Do you have an example to share? I think it is great when we encourage each other on our journey.
Serial Entrepreneur | Retired Business Partner @ SafeStreets USA | Public Speaker | Sales & Business Consulting | Success Coach
4 年Joe it’s funny how we try to sabotage the flow of our life. You signed up but never verified that all18 were open. You almost allowed, something that clearly wasn’t as important as you wanted to believe it was, to ruin your day. I am certain you didn’t ask ,”hey are all 18 open?” because that’s the most important thing. No you expected it to and when it wasn’t that’s when you really decided it was most important. Smooth seas don’t make great sailors! You have to adjust and that’s what you did. Great message Joe!
Vice President, Competence Development
4 年Having played with you numerous times, Joe, I know that your reported change in perspective was a major win for you. I’m happy to see you growing in that way, my friend. Let go and let God!
Vice President
4 年I love this post Joe. It reminds me of the early days playing golf and growing in our careers.
Founding Principal @ PPL Coach, LLC | Activating the Human Edge in a Tech-Driven World | Co-Founder of HitRefresh
4 年What a valuable lesson for all of us Joseph L. Milton, PMP, CSM, SAFe4, PMI-ACP. I am glad you did not let the 'unscripted' world ruin your day but instead, made it a memorable one. This reminds me of one my own life experiences that I captured in an article I called - Delusion of Control in an Unscripted World: "Be open to the extra-ordinary. When navigating the unscripted world, have a healthy sense of wonder. When life shows up unscripted (as it?always?does), how you respond can make all the difference. So the next time things don’t go according to script, remember you have a choice. You can choose to get frustrated, anxious, and annoyed or you can be open, curious, and challenged with a sense of genuine wonder."