This post was contributed by Candace Conradi, a longtime Hera Hub member and founder of Writers Inner Circle, whose aim is to help authors create their best work. 

golf-552906_1920It’s National Golf Month. There are some who might consider GOLF a four letter word and wonder “Why on earth would anyone every dedicated an entire month to such a silly, useless game?”

If you have never played golf, I can understand how that might be a wondering. If you have played and found it to be frustrating and aggravating, I am quite sure that GOLF was added to your taboo library of other unutterable four letter words!

I qualify in both categories. But after 37 years my lifelong love affair I find myself in the position to be golf’s most dedicated (and humbly grateful) student. When all is said and done, I am a sucker for a good teacher and mentor. I bow before GOLF and humbly accept it’s unending wisdom and unending tutelage.

For those unfamiliar with the sport, golf consists of 18 holes, each hole differing in yard length. A par means you have managed to swing a stick well enough to move a little dimpled white ball into the hole “so many” yards away…and do it efficiently. To be precise, there are 3-par, 4-par and 5-par holes and a regulation course can be up to 7200 yards long. To “par” a course, in most cases, means you end your round with a score of 72.

I shoot in the low 100’s. In the beginning I shot double par which when translated means around 120-135. Golfing is not EASY. In the same way that Josh Groban singing or Fred Astair dancing looks easy, so goes the professional golfer. I am not a professional golfer. But I am a professional student of the game. AND

AND

This is what I know for sure. When I am worrying about getting the ball in the hole I barely pay attention to the ball sitting at my feet. I look up and miss the ball all together or dribble it down the fairway or into the woods or sand. If I worry about my score I always do poorly. If I am worrying about what others think I always do poorly. If I think I should do better, I rarely do.

But when I focus on the ball that is before me; when I pay attention to my mechanics and align myself with the ball and the target; when I envision how I want my arms to move until I make contact with that little white ball; when I NEVER (and I mean NEVER) take my eyes off the ball; when I am fully present and I am paying attention to what is in front of me … I hit the most amazing shot. And sometimes, sometimes, I even make it into the hole in less strokes than par.

As entrepreneurs, every day is like a day on the golf course. Some days are better than others. If we are not present with the project we are working on (you know…that little white ball); if we are thinking about the making a “ship load” of money; if we are worrying about what others think or how we will collect our “academy award” when we sink that putt; if we are terrified of making mistakes … then there is no power in our movement or our action and we end up dribbling or shooting into hazards.

We all play on that virtual golf course, moving from one hole to another, throughout our entrepreneurial life. Yes, golf has taught me more than how to challenge the distance from “tee” to “green.” It has taught me the most important lesson of all. I’ll never finish the game if I give it up too soon, no matter how frustrating it can be.

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CC_400x400Candace George Conradi is a bestselling author with four published books. She continues to be passionate about her work as an author while at the same time creating a successful coaching program for fellow writers and authors. Her signature style has inspired writers to connect to their work, remain dedicated, engaged and focused on their passion, as they move from self-doubt to published.

For more information about Candace, the author, visit her official website at www.candaceconradi.com. For information about her writing programs, visit her website for authors at www.writersinnercircle.com.