“If you limit your choice only to what seems possible or reasonable, you disconnect yourself from what you truly want, and all that is left is a compromise.” – Robert Fritz, The Path of Least Resistance
By Ian Hardie
Frequently I talk to golfers who are discouraged with their game
Because of they are struggling with something
It may be a hole or group of holes
That they are constantly messing up
A specific shot that they are struggling to play
A green they can’t hit no matter what they do
A hazard they continually hit balls into
The inability to either start or finish their game well
There are simply too many variations to list here
Basically though what the golfers are facing
Is their own unique and tough challenge
A big ‘golfing obstacle’ if you like
As regardless of exactly what it is or how long it has been there
It’s something that impedes, stands in the way of or holds up the progress of the golfer
No doubt it’s holding them back from really becoming
The golfer they know they should be
Interestingly enough
Most of them have a plan to conquer their obstacle
Well – sort of a plan – here it is;
Unfortunately, due to one of the most common human instincts we have
Their plan is usually one of taking the path of least resistance
Which means they will simply try to ignore, avoid or effectively skirt around their obstacle
Hoping that it will either just go away
Or that they can use the rest of their game or skills to smooth it all over
Does that sound familiar to you?
I know I have done it at various times over the years
But it never really solves the problem
As when the pressure of competition arrives
Or you are playing a game that is important to you for whatever reason
I’m pretty sure you know what happens…………..
The big question is how do we change this?
Firstly, we need to shift our mind set
The Zen proverb that is the title of this post is the key to changing
“The Obstacle is The Path”
The obstacle isn’t something standing in our way
So that we can continue to go around it
It keeps turning up in your game because
It’s what you need to face and deal with to move onto the next level as a golfer
Read that again – it was most definitely the important bit!
That might seem a bit new age and strange to you
So let’s take a look at a couple of examples from other areas of life;
Take a person that is shy and can’t meet people
This can be seen as an obstacle to being a social member of society
Or as a path for something to work with
Many people will avoid this obstacle of shyness by staying at home avoiding any socializing
Instead, if they made the decision to go towards this shyness and explore it
Find out what it is they are afraid of and work to overcome that fear
They would get better at handling the fear
Possibly even letting go of it
At which point it would no longer stand in their way
Getting the idea?
Let’s take a writer who is struggling with writing
Their human nature will most probably mean that results in them procrastinating
Procrastination is clearly only a symptom of the problem
But it also serves to illuminate the path they need to take
They are dreading something about the writing and as a result shying away from the discomfort they feel
Maybe they are afraid of the writing or what will happen when they publish the final product
To get past it they need to work with that dread
Go past the discomfort
Conquer the fear
Once they face up to it
They will be stronger for having done that
As you can imagine, I could go on providing examples for a long time
However the principle is clear
When there’s an obstacle in your golf
Instead of going around it
Hoping it will just go away
Or running from it
Go into it
Work with it
Explore it
Learn how to be with it and deal with it
Once you have
You’ll have that skill for life
What’s more
You will no longer be limited by obstacles in your golf
As you will know they serve to show you the path
I’m going to give you some ideas of just how you can start in ‘The Obstacle is the Path – part two’
Until then
Play well
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