A Positive Perspective for Recreation Leaders

Rusty Vineyard shares the concept of a new, positive perspective after reading the book, “The Energy Bus.”

One of the chapters in “The Energy Bus” talks about the “One Great Golf Shot Theory.” And if you have played golf, you know what this is referencing. We never talk about all the bad shots, how many times we took a mulligan or used our foot wedge. Instead, we remember that one good shot, the one that keeps us coming back. This is why so many of us get addicted to golf.

The book contrasted this theory with life and how we often go to bed thinking about all the things that went wrong when instead, we should apply the “One Great Golf Shot Theory” and think about the one great thing that happened during the day.

Sounds easy, right? I have thought about this, and frankly, I struggle with this concept. For me, the word “great” was throwing me for a loop. I find myself wondering what did I do “great” today? Am I putting too high of a value on the word itself, thinking something extraordinary had to happen in my day for it to stand out?

After finishing the book, it was clear I needed to redefine what great meant to me, and you will have to define what it means to you as well. It might be one conversation or interaction, or a particular moment that will inspire you to look forward to creating more of those moments the next day.

I challenge you to find those great moments in your day and see if you can develop a new, positive perspective. Then reflect on those moments and ask others, your family, spouse, partner or co-workers, what successes or great moments they’ve had in their day and end your day focusing more on the positive instead of the negative.

Remember when we golf, the shot or putt that keeps up coming back doesn’t have to be extraordinary, it just has to make us smile.