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As a newcomer to the game of golf, I’m hardly qualified to give advice of any sort that pertains to the actual playing of the game. Those few balls that navigate their way down the fairway without assaulting any trees or innocent bystanders along the way hardly constitute a score worth keeping, and yet I’m completely and utterly addicted to the sport.
One of the things I love about golf is that it serves as a brilliant metaphor for life. While it can be difficult and challenging at times, it can also be fun and extremely rewarding. What I love about golf is the same thing I love about life. No matter how much I think I’ve learned, there are an infinite number of things left undiscovered. Every time I play, I learn something new.
Incidentally, what I struggle with in golf is the same thing I struggle with in life. Whenever I think I’m starting to get good, the swing I thought I’d mastered becomes inconsistent and ineffective. When my ego is engaged, my game begins to suffer immediately.
In the 3 years I’ve been playing golf, there’s one piece of advice that’s made a monumental difference in the consistency and improvement of my game. It can be said in many ways. Ease up and don’t swing so hard. Relax your grip. Let the club head fall naturally through your swing.
This is some of the most profound and spiritual teaching I’ve ever heard. What’s most profound about it, in my experience, is how counterintuitive it is. When I’m out to produce a result that’s both far-reaching and accurate in aim, my first inclination is to wind up and swing with as much force as possible.
Ironically, this almost never produces the intended result. When I relax, limit the height of my back swing, and allow the club head to fall naturally in a gentle and controlled arc toward the ball, I get better distance and accuracy than I can imagine or understand.
Here’s to a life of ease, where producing extraordinary results is no more difficult than letting the correct path unfold naturally.
Possibly related:
A great little book about golf is Zen Golf, by Joseph Parent. I often think about Parent’s suggestion of visualizing where you want the ball to land, knowing full well that wherever it lands will be OK. I hold onto the thought that I am resilient and can recover. That’s power. However, when I think the thought, “Please don’t go into the trap” when I’m on the tee, guess where the ball will go? Trap! Excellent reminder about how what’s top of mind influences us. Parent has a new book which I’ve not read, but I’ll bet it would be a good one — Zen Putting. Now, the green is a place for a peaceful warrior if there ever was one!
[…] Erek Ostrowski presents Ease Up and Don?t Swing So Hard! posted at Verve Coaching, saying, “When I’m out to produce a result that’s both far-reaching and accurate in aim, my first inclination is to wind up and swing with as much force as possible. Ironically, this almost never produces the intended result.” […]
[…] The New Chestnut is a collection of unique blogs. Erek Ostrowski likens the game of life to golf in Ease up And Don’t Swing So Hard. Debra Moorhead goes on a rampage, literally, in her article about increasing the blessings in one’s life in On a Rampage. […]
Thanks for this post. I don’t know anything about golf but I was intrigued (and relaxed) just by reading the header.
I’ll definitely bear this in mind next time I’m getting hung up on things. Just ease up and don’t swing so hard…
Joanna
[…] another great article by erek ostrowski, ease up and don’t swing so hard! at verve coaching, talks about golfing as a metaphor for life: “one of the things i love about golf is that it serves as a brilliant metaphor for life. while it can be difficult and challenging at times, it can also be fun and extremely rewarding. what i love about golf is the same thing i love about life. no matter how much i think i’ve learned, there are an infinite number of things left undiscovered.” […]
[…] Erek Ostrowski presents Ease Up and Don?t Swing So Hard! posted at Verve Coaching, […]
[…] Another great article I read this week was by Erek Ostrowski titled Ease Up and Don’t Swing So Hard! posted at his blog Verve Coaching. It’s a short little piece, but as Erek says “This is some of the most profound and spiritual teaching I’ve ever heard. What’s most profound about it, in my experience, is how counterintuitive it is.” Check it out. […]
[…] Erek Ostrowski presents Ease Up and Don?t Swing So Hard! posted at Verve Coaching. […]
I love the golf life metaphor! Greetings from Scotland. Love the blog.
Hi Erek,
Great post, and a point that I still need work on (not trying so hard). Thank you!
All the best,
JoLynn
[…] Erek Ostrowski presents Ease Up and Don?t Swing So Hard! posted at Verve Coaching, saying, “When I’m out to produce a result that’s both far-reaching and accurate in aim, my first inclination is to wind up and swing with as much force as possible. Ironically, this almost never produces the intended result.” […]
Ease Up and Don’t Swing So Hard!
A wonderful article about how “producing extraordinary results is no more difficult than letting the correct path unfold naturally”.
Hey Erek,
I just found your site today - I really like it. I enjoyed reading this post. I had a very similar experience actually. I am also a golf novice and went to the driving range one day with a friend who is considerably more skilled. He observed me hacking at the ball on every attempt only to watch each one slice or shank off to the side. Finally, he said to me, “Hey man, stop trying to kill it. Just hit the ball first. Swing the club only enough to make contact with the ball, that’s it.” I tried it his way a few times and it was stunning. I was hitting the ball almost as far as I was before, but now every shot was going straight through the middle of the driving range, perfectly centered. I was impressed and inquired a little more. I asked him, “So how did you get your swing?” He said, “Just keep doing it like that for a while until you can hit the ball straight consistently, then as you get comfortable, you can learn how to add more force to drive the ball further.” I was intrigued. As you mentioned in your post - it seems very counterintuitive, but it works.
Your post also reminds me of the concept of “wu wei” from Lao-tzu’s Tao Te Ching. The Chinese word “wu” means “not.” And their word “wei” means “forcing.” So, this is the concept of not forcing things. It is the idea of using the natural strength, energy and tendencies of things to your advantage instead of forcing those things to go against their nature. For example, drop your axe blade down on a piece of wood along the grain and it will split easily for you. If you chop against the grain you will have a long fight ahead of you.
Back to golf with this idea: I was given this piece of advice from my stepdad when I first started golf: “Let the club head do the work - if you hit the ball in the right spot with the club head, it will literally fly off of it all by itself.” So, should we swing really hard at the golf ball and try to force it to go far, or should we figure out, gently and easily, how to hit it so that it will use its own force and energy to jump off the club and fly on it own? You have already provided our answer in a very eloquent way in this post. Thanks!
Sorry for being verbose.
Chris614
Ease Up and Don’t Swing So Hard! at Verve Coaching:: Life, Growth and Leadership, Boston MA
A wonderful post about not trying so hard in life, illustrated through the game of golf.
[…] Ease Up and Don’t Swing So Hard! at Verve Coaching […]
[…] Erek Ostrowski presents Ease Up and Don’t Swing So Hard! posted at Verve Coaching:: Life, Growth and Leadership, Boston MA. cdd This entry is filed under Personal Power, Self Help, Blog Carnval on Personal Power. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. Leave a Reply […]