"Success is the progressive realization of a worthy goal or ideal." Earl Nightingale
One of the great things about golf is that we can always learn to be better at part of the game. And just like anything else in life, improvement takes time and persistence. For those who stay to the task, the rewards of lower scores will come.
When I think about goals, I like to use the word dream for an acronym. I'll do the short version here and then go into depth a little more later.
- D - Dare to dream big. Most people settle for the things in life that come easy and give up on dreams. For the golfers who are reading this, set your goal to break a barrier whether it be 70, 80, 90, 100 or 120. And make sure that the goal is a little bit of a stretch. What makes golf a great game is that we can always strive for continual improvement, no matter what level we are at and no matter what age we are, we can still hit a great shot at least once a round.
- R - Be resourceful. Surround yourself with people that support your goals and especially those who can help you get there. In addition, if our goal is to become better golfers, our understanding needs to grow. More than ever before, there's never been a time when so much information and learning is available immediately at our fingertips from downloading books to videos on YouTube.
- E - Energy and Excitement is key. Any goal requires belief and desire to be excited about. The information and encouragement you received from your resources leads to belief. And belief feeds emotion. "What the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve." Napoleon Hill
- A - An attitude of Action. Every journey starts with a single step and the first step is always the hardest. Take the first step daily and track your progress towards your goal. If you falter a little get back up and continue on your path. Sometimes things don't always go right and this is the time you need to be especially excited about making your goal. "There is no failure, only learning." James Ray
- M - Mission. Every successful company has a mission statement. As individuals, we need one also to let ourselves know that we are "on a mission" to better things. For me personally, it is "to touch one life daily in a positive way". When it comes to my golf game and teaching, I try to learn one new thing daily so I have can always have something new to share with others. The important thing about a mission statement is that it has to more than just words on a wall. It needs to be something that burns deep down inside from your soul and fires you up as you inch closer to your goals and dreams.
In the next post, we will meet Keith Gockenbach. He is someone who represents the importance of chasing dreams.
