My New Golf Habit

What is more important, having SMART Goals or developing effective systems to reach goals. If you had asked me this question a year ago, or even a few months ago, I would have unequivocally replied, having SMART goals. After all, it’s what we are told. It’s what I have said in previous posts. I was listening to Atomic Habits by James Clear this morning and a point he made stuck with me. In professional sports do the athletes that don’t win have different goals from the athletes that do? Do you think that the golfers who don’t win at The Masters go into those four rounds with a goal of not winning? Of course not, everyone who steps on the No.1 Tee box at Augusta has a goal of winning The Masters. For the people who fail to come in first place, the problem was not in poor goal setting, the problem was in the systems or habits they had in place to get them there.

On a personal golf note, I have a goal of some day being a scratch (0 handicap) golfer. It’s a goal many golfers have, and many golfers attain. And yet, I have had a 25-stroke handicap for the better part of two decades. The goal has not changed in those two decades, but clearly having the goal is not working. And its not working because I have not developed effective habits for improving my golf game.

I find it interesting that, as a professional musician and music educator, I had not come to this realization earlier. It is the same reason that the “think system” Professor Harold Hill touted in “The Music Man” doesn’t work. You can’t just think about playing the Minuet in G and then expect to pick up the horn and play it. You must have a system of practice that allows you to develop the skills needed to play the song. You must practice making sound on the instrument, practice reading the notes on the page or practice hearing the song and repeating it on the instrument. It’s the habits of practice that lead you to perform the song, not the goal of performing the song.

Bringing it back to my golf game, what systems or habits do I need to improve my golf game? In years past, if I was lucky, I would play 10 or 15 rounds throughout the season. This amounts to less than once a week. Habits are borne out of repetition and even if I manage to figure out ways to improve my swing, without a lot of repetition, those improvements won’t “stick.” As a result, this season I bought a golf membership. Rather than paying out of pocket for each game (which can get expensive), I paid once at the beginning of the season. This changed my number of repetitions in two important ways. First, it means that I can play any time I want because it has been pre-paid, so it removed the daily financial barrier. More importantly I think, because I spent that large chunk of money at the start of the season, I feel compelled to play so that I can get my moneys’ worth. As a result, I play two to three times a week and have been for two months. Now, going to play golf at 7:30am is part of my routine…it has become a habit.

As a side note, to commit to not spending any more money on golf, I also walk whenever I play, instead of paying for a cart. This has resulted in an improvement in my health…another important habit.

I am now swinging the club 200-300 times per week. I am learning how my swing works. I am learning how to aim better. I am learning how to judge distance. I am practicing how to “play smarter” instead of just grabbing the most powerful club and hoping for the best. The habit of playing regularly has led to several other habits that are slowly improving my game. When I started playing in April, I shot 53 for nine holes. This week, I averaged 48. I am hitting the fairway more consistently, but my short game is still problematic. The habits I am developing are slowly improving my game. I still have a long way to go, but that is just about developing other habits.

It would seem that it is far more important to have effective habits, rather than worrying about the goal. If the habits are effective, the goal will take care of itself. I can have a goal of being a millionaire, but until I get in the habit of spending less than I earn, I won’t get there.

Goals are still important, but only to focus on the habits needed to attain them. What are the goals you have for yourself? More importantly, what habits do you need to develop to achieve those goals? What steps can you take today to lead you down the path toward effective habits and attaining your goals?