There are so many life lessons that you can learn from playing golf

“Golf is the closest game to the game we call life. You get bad breaks from good shots; you get good breaks from bad shots — but you have to play the ball where it lies.”-Bobby Jones

Regardless of what field you're in, what dreams you have, and what life you're living -- we all have the power to focus on what's directly in front of us. Fear is something we can never completely silence. We will come face to face with it daily. But as I also learned from golf, you must take 100 percent responsibility for your life. Golf can teach its players many life lessons.

Don’t stress about what has already happened

We all make mistakes. This sport teaches us that one or two bad shots aren’t going to ruin an entire round of golf. Learn to forgive yourself and move on. The best approach is to laugh at your bad shots and try again.

Concentration and focus are important

Golf isn’t a game where you can multitask. It requires an immense amount of focus and concentration in order to improve your skills. Maintaining your attentiveness for 18 holes is something that’s also useful for life in general, as focusing on any task at hand until it’s complete can help you be a more productive person. In life you need to have a goal just like in a round of golf, you have to complete 18 holes, but learn to divide that larger goal into smaller(current hole) and even smaller(current shot) goals.

You control what you think. Don't get stuck in your head.

In the event of a bad shot, you can say things like: "Interesting... It's unlike me to shoot that way." By not reacting to any "failure," you'll keep your center in check and avoid sabotaging the shots you have ahead.

Use problem-solving techniques

Succeeding at golf is often about strategy. You find yourself in a certain spot, and you know where you want to end up. The question is, how do you get there? This can manifest itself in many ways. Maybe you need to learn to navigate the course on a windy day, or you need to plan your attack for a series of shots. Whatever it may be, golf teaches you how to solve problems effectively, and this skill is applicable to life in general.

Patience is necessary

Golf teaches its players how to have patience, and if you’re not a patient person, you can learn how to be through playing golf. You can’t win by getting ahead of yourself — you have to take one shot at a time. Patience is a virtue when it comes to both life and golf.

Quiet environments can be beneficial

In order to be productive, most people need a certain level of quiet, just like on the golf course, where there is a certain level of respect players and spectators have for the people around them since the game requires such a high level of focus.

Be honest

Maintaining honesty and integrity is important in our relationships or work tasks, and golf is also a game of honesty. You are your own rules official on the golf course — no one is watching your every shot. Sometimes you may be forced to apply a penalty to yourself, and this can be hard to do, but in the end, those are the rules and you have to follow them. Just as you can’t get ahead in life by cheating, you can’t be the best golf player by being dishonest.

“Golf is so like life in general. You rarely get what you want. You have to work hard for everything. And you have to believe in yourself and what you are doing.” - Matthew Southgate

That's it for this blog post and if you feel that you've something to add to this or you have a different perspective then share it and discuss it on r/StoicHuman or go to the Reddit discussion post for this blog post linked down below.

Stay healthy, Stay safe!

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