Which Tee Box Are You Playing?
I love to play golf, although most of the time, golf plays me. Invariably, when you approach the first tee box to start your round, someone will ask, “What tees are we playing?” If you’re not a golfer, it’s probably easy to figure out that some tees make a course play longer than others. Women typically play from the reds (the shortest distance from tee to green), professionals play from the tips (the long tees) and seniors play from somewhere in-between. Many men will play from the whites (slightly longer than the reds) or the blues, depending on their skill and their appetite for challenge.
As you approach the tee, the question (and the answer) says something about you. How confident are you in your game? Are you a risk-taker? Are you more likely to protect yourself from embarrassment or to demonstrate your sense of adventure? Are you out to have fun, to win or to just get by? No matter your skill, Annika can likely beat you from any tee box. The Japanese almost always play from the tips. Why? Because the cost of golf is so high in Japan that they want the best value for their money. And although I’ve tried to negotiate often, my wife won’t let me play against her from the reds.
What about you? No, I’m not asking about golf. I’m asking whether you’re playing from the whites or the tips– in your work, in your play and in your life. Are you challenging yourself every day, or just getting by? Are you playing from where you’re least likely to get in trouble, or from where you can get the greatest satisfaction from your triumph? Are you playing to your ability, or are you stretching yourself– always pushing yourself to bigger and better things, and greater levels of achievement? Are you taking on the trees, bunkers and water from the tips, or are you taking them out of play from the whites?
Especially in tough times, we tend to focus on our weaknesses and not our strengths. We play from the whites, no matter our ability. It seems like a natural thing to do, simply because our weaknesses are so much more obvious in tough times. We give favor to our weaknesses to such an extent that we dilute our strengths. “How can we stop this, or that? How in the world did we not see that coming? Quickly, run to the bunker and let’s try our best to ride this one out!”
But in good times, we’re more likely to dare to play from the tips. We know our strengths, and we focus on them. We profit from them. We celebrate them. Knowing they exist gives us confidence, and a higher risk tolerance. The line between our normal play and risking embarrassment is more blurred. “I can hit from the tips today. If I’m in the woods, it’s a lateral hazard. I can drop a new ball and play from there! I can afford to make some mistakes, but I’ll still get closer to the green with each one. I can fail, but I have the courage to fail forward.”
How much stronger would we be in tough times if we focused on our strengths, not our weaknesses? It’s so easy to become mired in weakness that we forget how energizing strengths are! What if we did our best to neutralize our weaknesses at all times, so that in good times or bad, they’re not significant enough to sap the focus, passion and energy out of the company– so that only our strengths are left?
It’s true that golf is very much an individual sport, but how you approach the game says a lot to the people around you. So what are the people around you at work seeing (and sensing) from you? Are you on the tee box with a Rescue club, or do you have the Big Bertha driver in your hand? Are you going for the green, or laying up and playing it safe? What do you want the other people around you to do, and what kind of precedent are you setting for them?
Bobby Jones, the legendary golfer, said, “Competitive golf is played mainly on a five-and-a-half-inch course…the space between your ears.” And Jack Nicklaus said, “Focus on remedies, not faults.” I’m not a competitive golfer. In fact, it’s a stretch to call me a golfer. But I know what these quotes mean. Sure, they’re about golf, but they’re transferable to every other part of your life. Are you playing your strengths, or are you protecting yourself from your weaknesses? Are you projecting confidence to everyone around you? Are you mired in your faults, or concentrating on remedies? Are you just standing up to quickly whack the ball and hoping it works, or are you playing from your experience and always expecting the best from yourself and your equipment? Stop. Think. Plan. And then….swing!
And preparing for the shot is equally important to swinging the club. Although it’s true that the swing is what gets you to where you want to go, it’s also true that the wrong strategy, club or approach can mean the difference between sweet spot and a hazard. The same can be said for the attitude you have as you stand over the ball. When I play with the senior pastor from my church, I’m always amazed when he hits his second shot off the fairway with his driver. You’re not supposed to use the big boy that way! I’ve seen it work, though…a couple of times. We play together often, which says something about how special those couple of times are. But every time he pulls out that club, he expects it to work! Seeing his confidence, comfort and his fun-loving spirit as he approaches the ball, I expect it to work every time, as well.
One of my favorite quotes of all time was from a hockey player, not a golfer. The Great One, Wayne Gretzky said, “I miss one-hundred percent of the shots I never take.” Gretzky remains the most prolific goal-scorer in hockey history. But he also holds another important record– the greatest number of assists. That is, the number of times he passed the puck to someone who scored the goal. He knew when to shoot. He knew when to pass. And he always knew that he would accomplish very little if he didn’t move the puck down the ice…and do something with it.
Today, don’t be afraid to take the shot, or to pass off to someone. Focus on your strengths as a means to overcoming your weaknesses. Take some measured risk– move back to a more challenging tee box. Put the hazards in play and let them try to beat you today. Hit driver off the deck for a change. And with a great sense of pride and accomplishment…go ahead and yell, “Fore,” every-so-often.
