Eyes On The Ball
Thoughts about vision. Nothing about golf.
‘Insanity is doing the same thing over and over again
and expecting different results.’
Albert Einstein
What was your plan for yesterday?
I knew mine, at least for mid-morning.
I played nine holes, 9:56 am tee time.
I had a vision for how it would go
Three stableford points, every hole.
In my mind’s eye, I played the first hole just like this:
A few stretches and practice swings to limber up. Walk up to the tee box. Place my tee on a level patch between the white markers. Look at the flag, 340 metres away.
Address the ball, club handle pointing to belly button, vertical line of sight, inside left foot in line with ball. Look up at the flag, look back at the ball. All my attention on the front of the ball, that’s where I want to club to swing through.
Club face straight. Swing back, left elbow straight. Release.
And, whack! Party time. That perfect ping sound. The ball launches, heading straight down the middle of the fairway. Comes to rest 150 metres from the pin. Then a six iron to chipping distance, a wedge onto the green, two putts to finish it off, and I have my three stableford points.
It’s the same vision every time I play the first hole.
Here’s what happened instead
Same hole. Preparation perfect. Then I hit the ball.
I slice it into the trees lining the fairway. Two shots to get back on the fairway. I hit it thin, and the ball takes out a few worms as it skitters over the grass and rolls past the green. Three putts later, it’s in the hole. Seven shots and just one stableford point.
Did I fail? Don’t think so.
This article is not about golf
It’s about vision, and the importance of having a vision for your business.
Five takeaways:
Takeaway 1 - Vision Is mandatory
I expect three stableford points. That’s my vision for every hole. Without a vision I’m just a hacker with a set of cheap golf clubs and no respect for the game or my playing partners.
The lesson:
Same for business. Without a vision for your business, your business is simply a hobby. It’s directionless, wandering one way and another, day by day. You waste everyone’s time including your own.
Takeaway 2 - Vision is a stretch
I’ve played the first hole a hundred times and I’ve parred it nine times.
The ‘three points’ vision is not faulty. I’ve managed to exceed it nine times already. I know I’ll do it again, too.
But I don’t get there every time, only some of the time. This is the golf god telling me I don’t yet have the correct skill level. I’m not worthy.
It may take 10,000 hours, or 1,000 hours, or 100 hours more time on the course to build those skills.
But it’s definitely not 10 hours or 1 hour. It doesn’t come easy. Nor should it, for anything worth doing well.
The lesson:
Hard work, time, and discipline are inescapable. You have to get the reps in, even when it seems you’re not progressing. It’s like compound interest - the longer you stick with something, the better things get.
Takeaway 3 - Vision has boundaries
There are rules to golf. Things I can do and things I can’t. If I break the rules I’m a cheat, and I risk being ostracised or even expelled from my club.
In business too, there are rules. The formal ones are called laws. The informal ones are called societal expectations, industry protocols, and the ‘pub test.’ Break these and you risk your business, your assets, your house, and time in gaol.
The lesson:
Know the rules. Follow them. Sleep soundly.
Takeaway 4 - Vision is personal
Our club pro can play the first hole and par it pretty much every time. He plays off a plus four handicap, so he also needs to mix in some birdies during the round.
That’s his vision, not mine. I don’t have his skills (and likely never will) so my vision is different. It’s mine, alone.
The lesson:
Your business is a unique mix of people, products, processes and markets. Only you can define the vision for your business. What it should look like one, two, five and ten years from now.
Takeaway 5 - Your true vision stays hidden
For all I know, our club pro may want to be invited, one year, to play the US Open. That could be his private vision, the one he never shares with anyone. But still, it drives him.
Me? I’d be happy to play my age before I’m too old to do so.
It’s likely that as a business owner, you have a private vision that has nothing to do with the business itself. A level of personal wealth perhaps, a desire to travel in luxury, possessions like a nice house, car and boat. Proving a point to a dickhead neighbour. Whatever. You don’t have to justify it to anyone, and it doesn;t need to stand up to anyone’s scrutiny except your own.
The lesson:
Your true, private vision is what fires you up. It’s what gets you out of bed every morning, to suffer through the stress and pain of running a business.
