Reverse every natural instinct and do the opposite of what you are inclined to do, and you will probably come very close to having a perfect golf game. –Ben Hogan
Golf, like life, is not always intuitive. Our instincts will betray us. We will decide to play a shot safely only to end up in an unforeseen hazard. Or decide to blast through a tree (90 percent air!) only to squarely find that 10% of bark! But the longer we play, the more we realize that golf is a mindset. And any little tip or trick that gives us confidence, no matter how insignificant, incrementally helps our game.
It was in playing a round of golf with the fabulous Geimer Brothers that I received one such piece of advice. Their father, Bill Geimer, Sr., was an avid golfer possessing a love-hate relationship with the game (don’t we all!) But he had all sorts of insightful wisdom accumulated from the thousands of rounds played over the years.
One such golden nugget involved advice on where to line up on the tee box when facing an intimidating hazard. If, for instance, there was a huge lake immediately to the right of the tee box, the golfer’s natural inclination would be to put the tee in the ground as far to the left as possible. Why flirt with disaster? But Mr. Geimer had the opposite notion. He would counsel you to place the ball, in this case, as far to the right as possible.
“Stare down the intimidating hazard. And embrace the danger off the tee!”
Thank you, Mr. Geimer! We can’t pretend the hazard isn’t there. We need to meet it head on! It is great advice for the game of golf. And it is even better advice for our work and personal lives.
Address the Blind Spots
In our work lives, how many times do we shy away from a potentially intimidating or uncomfortable situation? We need to have an tough conversation with a colleague or direct report but avoid them for a few days. We face major heat from a competitor so we give up prospecting in that patch and seek opportunities in a tangential market. We know our sales are declining but we fill up our days with busy work. We can’t pretend the danger isn’t out there. We have to line up on the right side of the tee box and swing away!
Bad news doesn’t age well. If we need to have an uncomfortable conversation, we need to have it today! If we abandon our target market, the competition will smell blood in the water and take the rest of what we own! There is a time and place for busy work. But it doesn’t fill the pipeline. We need to get on those calls. It will not be easy. We will be uncomfortable and things will look scary at first. But the only way to have success is to stare down our hazards and embrace the danger!
The Future is Now
And the same is true in our personal lives. How often do we avoid a tense family situation? How many times have we put off a looming financial discussion? When was the last time we told someone how much we appreciate them in the moment? It is easier to put off the inevitable and turn a blind eye to the issues. We can always get serious tomorrow! But does that sound like the recipe for a resilient life?
There is nothing more important than family. Address any issues head on! Putting a Band-Aid on our financial problems will not stem the bleeding. Line up and face that surgery. Appreciation is not something we can put off until tomorrow. Right now is the only time that matters. Set up next to the hazard and stripe one down the fairway!
Line Up and Swing Away
But what happens when we embrace the hazard and end up in the bottom of the lake? The competition grabs our market share. Our business fails. A tough conversation turns adversarial. The financial tsunami washes over us. No one escapes life without a bogey. Staring down our problems can still be painful and uncomfortable. Eventually, we all spend time in the teeth of the hazard. But addressing our issues head on increases our chance for success and builds our resiliency. And that is how we eventually win.
We can’t avoid the hazards forever. Lining up next to the water does not guarantee success. But it is the only way to play the game! We need to swing away and stare down the danger off the tee!