During the last couple of weeks I have had the pleasure of working with a young golfer that was completely new to the sport.
Now some of you may think that I should be teaching the child, which obviously I was but this child also taught me a very important lesson and one that I will share with you in this article.
The most amazing thing about this young child was their passion for a sport which they had only ever seen on TV. It was intoxicating, an energy that I have never seen with adult clients.
After the wonderful lessons, I got to thinking about what this young child brought to the lessons, but even more I got to thinking about the enormous difference between the way an adult and a child approaches a situation whether it be new or old.
A child is open to new ideas, learning new methods, and whilst they are not as mature and independent as an adult they soak up information like a sponge, they have few if any pre-conceptions about what may or may not happen in the lesson, they are there to learn a new skill, develop and most importantly have fun.
It is this attitude towards the lesson process that all adults should try to adopt.
I have spoken about goal setting and this is something that for a child, is difficult as they don´t realy have the understanding to set the desired goals, they have a goal of hitting the ball better, but the process to achieving this is down to the parents and the coach.
Adults come to lessons with the soul aim of improvement, they are not interested in the “fun” aspect of learning a new method or skill, they are hell bent on creating a golf swing that will result in better results.
But I believe that is this mind-set that is creating the barriers to actually achieving those goals.
Adults are so consumed in the outcome, they forget that the process itself can be highly rewarding, and if they can put results to one-side for the short term, the results in the long-term will be far more to their liking.
With my clients I am always trying to make lessons both enjoyable and also informative, with the aim of achieving the goals that we have set out, but the key to successfully reaching those goals is the element of keeping lessons interesting and dynamic. Just as I would for children.
Giving lessons is a passion of mine, and I cannot imagine giving a lesson that is based purely on the technical aspects of the golf swing, the lesson has to be dynamic, fun and challenging to engage the mind.
I have often seen golfers taking lessons from other professionals looking absolutely miserable, and this is something that I hope my clients would never feel or say. I want you to remember why you began playing this wonderful game. It wouldn´t surprise me if your answer was similar to:
“to have fun”
And that is the element that is missing from so many adults playing the game. You get to go and play golf, it is not a chore.
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