This weekend, I had a friend staying and we didn’t have any firm plans in place as to what we were going to do. For us it doesn’t really matter what we do as long as we can chat and catch up. We decided it would be fun to do crazy golf, so off we went, booked two games, one for the indoor course and one for the outdoor 18 hole course.
Picking up our clubs, balls and scorecard, we did the outdoor course first as it was a bit cold, windy and we thought rain was coming. We made our way around the course, with some holes taking us a bit longer than others. Depending on how many hills or bumps there were meant we often took a lot more shots than we thought we would. Most holes took about 3-5 shots each to complete. We had a lot of laughs along the way as well a celebratory arms in the air to celebrate when we did finally pot the ball.
Although we were keeping score, it was more about the fun challenge and entertainment than who won. (Ok, so I lost both games).
Moving to the indoor course, we surveyed the land and got stuck in. This course was less in my favour than the last, however I did get a few hole in ones so there were a few more celebrations.
A hole in one is unusual as is getting something right first time. If I had gone into the game expecting to do take only one shot each hole, I’d have been disappointed. If I was a professional mini golfer (is there such a thing?) then I would expect to be getting holes in one much more, but realistically, it would be highly unlikely to go round the course putting it in first time every time. If it was that easy, then where is the challenge or the satisfaction.
Practice, practice, practice and mistake, mistake, mistake, this is often what you need to do in order to get the results you need and want. It won’t happen over night and it requires time and patience regardless if you are playing mini golf or are working on a presentation or are practising yoga. It will take a good number of tries before you get the results you are looking for or get close to it.
Think of Downward Facing Dog in Yoga as an example, you always see the instructors with their heels planted firmly on the ground. My heels come nowhere close, but over the years, I have noticed them drop so are not as high as they originally were. I would have been very disappointed had I expected them to reach the ground from day one or even in the first year of practicing, it take time.
Below are five points to note when trying to reach your goals and strive for goal completion:
- What are your goals – be clear on these so you know what you are working towards. Have a think about it and make sure you understand what results are you are looking to get. Make sure you put in mini goals, this helps to split the main goal into manageable chunks and will feel less overwhelming. Some goals may not need to be split as there isn’t much you can do out with the main goal, whereas others can and it can help check your progress.
- Is it realistic and can it be done – are you setting yourself up for success or failure? Is the goal realistic – getting a hole in one in every single hole will likely be impossible given the different kinds of terrain on the course or getting your heels down to the floor may be impossible for your body. Set realistic goals so you are not disappointed. If a goal is realistic, you will get satisfaction when you achieve, however, if it isn’t and you find yourself taking much longer than you originally planned or feel like you are getting nowhere you will feel nothing but disappointment and will give up. So be sure your goal is possible for you.
- Mistakes are key – It is ok to make mistakes, this will help you learn, grow and find out what works and what doesn’t. If you can get a hole in one or get your heels down first time, amazing, but don’t get your heart set on it as being realistic. You will make mistakes as you try things out and see what happens, don’t feel bad if it doesn’t work, know you are a step closer with every mistake. You learn as you go and adapt and flex to find the best way to help you achieve your goal.
- Know when good is good enough – perfection is not realistic and as I have said many times before, good can be enough and perfection can cause problems. You don’t want to stress yourself out or burnout striving for perfection. Be kind to you and be accepting of good. If you are unsure if you have reached your goal to a good standard, ask yourself ‘could I improve on this or is what I have now acceptable’.
- Celebrate – once you have achieved either a mini goal or the overall goal, celebrate. Do it your way, from dancing around the room to popping some fizz. Do what feels right to acknowledge your achievement and pat yourself on your back.
We would all love to get a hole in one and achieve our goals as quickly as possible, however, practicing and making mistakes is key. So what are you looking to achieve?
Have a great week, enjoy and look after you.
Love Emma xx
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