Sports and I have never had a good relationship. I tried volleyball, kickball and softball in school. Um, no. Ballet was about the only sport I could do because it was structured.
Enter golf. I would never have pictured myself whacking a ball again, let alone forcing it in the direction I wanted. At least the ball isn’t coming at me! But after dragging my hubby to the symphony multiple times, a few years ago, I decided to take golfing lessons to see if I liked it. Golf is his number one sport now, and for his sake, I thought it was only fair to give it a go.
After a few lessons, I bought my own clubs. Turns out, I enjoyed it. I would never admit my handicap (my husband’s is about 10). But it is something we can do together, and now I don’t feel as guilty dragging him to the symphony.
Golf is a sport that is especially favorable for women. Why?
Golf requires patience, focus, and discipline. It is a methodical sport. It requires vision (seeing the line that leads toward the hole), and strategy (technique and aim that lead toward the goal — landing in the hole). Of course, men are great at this too. But women tend to notice tiny details, they ask more questions, and they will take their time before making a decision. In this case, when and how to hit the ball.
Thank goodness my husband is patient.
Skills that help our writing
You may not play golf, or any other sport. But you might be involved in some hobby or activity that requires the techniques of golf, namely: patience, focus, discipline, practice, and methodology.
All of these techniques are needed as writers. We have to have patience with ourselves and our limitations. We focus on our work. We are disciplined in our writing, editing and meeting deadlines. No one holds our hand to get the copy written. Our writing craft requires years of practice to hone our skills, which means we again need patience since we are not incredible writers overnight. And we all have our methods in the way we work, but it is some sort of plan or strategy.
We write because, hopefully, we love it. We’re good at it because we’re disciplined and continue to work on our skills. We golf (or play any other sport) because we love it. We’re good at it because we practice, enhancing our skills.
And we’re reasonable and patient with ourselves because skill requires constant revision.
I want to know: do you play golf? Or what other sport do you enjoy?
Whether we play golf or any other sport or activity, the skills we learn are similar to what we need to be great writers. Patience, discipline, practice, and focus are among the skills needed to be the best we can be. And since we never stop learning, we continue to enhance our skills and get better.
My 2-Day VIP Writing Focus Workshop will help you improve your writing skills. Designed for busy staff — or individuals — who desire to write better and create engagement. Need more focused personal attention? Contact me for one-on-one coaching to improve your writing skills.
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