As I was away this past weekend playing golf I was reminded of a powerful lesson I learned from a golf tournament: never give up.
After hitting my first drive into the water and the second shot into the woods, I picked up my ball (something I never do) and took the maximum number of strokes. I was playing with two men and I didn’t want to slow down the foursome behind us.
After this ominous start I thought it was going to be a long, painful and awful round. As it turns out I shot my best round ever on that course. I was on fire after the disastrous first hole and carried my teammates as the day progressed.
As a leader it is imperative to never give up on yourself or your team. Every shot, just like every situation, is different and gives you a fresh start. Even when you are frustrated, there is always an opportunity. You just have to trust and believe in yourself and your team.
As it turns out, our team won first place. More importantly, I was reminded to never predict an outcome based on the outset.