Time to hit the REFRESH button on attitude

I love to play golf. My scores don't reflect my passion for the sport or the enjoyment I get from it; but I love it! Each spring, once the weather and the ground warms I can't wait to break out my clubs, call my friends and head out to play.

 Usually, the first time I pick up the clubs I have been on a break from them for 4-5 months, maybe longer. One might expect that my game would be "rusty" or that I would play stiff and need to work all the kinks out of my swing and timing. It is exactly the opposite. My scores for my first few rounds each year are usually among the best I have all year. For years I kept asking myself why that was. I thought about it for a while and came to realize that after taking a break from the game I had forgotten all the bad habits I had worked myself into during the previous season. I didn't rush my swing or grip the club too tightly, or look up to quickly. My swing was relaxed, my timing good, and my enjoyment level high.

 Wouldn't it be great if we could just walk away from things in life we are finding difficult, reset our minds and go back in and be successful where before we'd experienced failure and frustration?

 It's easy to develop bad habits in business too, except you can't just walk away from sales and expect that the business will be there when you return and feel up to it again... A friend reminded me of a quote earlier today; Mohandas Gandhi is quoted as saying, “Keep your thoughts positive because your thoughts become your words. Keep your words positive because your words become your behavior. Keep your behavior positive because your behavior becomes your habits. Keep your habits positive because your habits become your values. Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny.” - thanks for that reminder Ken, the past few years have been very tough in business - sales are hard to come by, profit margins low, client demands higher than ever. It has been easy to develop some bad habits to cope with all the adjustments necessary to keep cash flowing and clients happy. I immediately took this quote by Gandhi and set to work following it's instruction.

 I hit the REFRESH button on my attitude and will let the new year and new outlook trickle down into my words and actions. I do have high expectations for this year and am looking forward to meeting new clients, designing new projects and enjoying what I do. I'll encourage each of you to do the same and to make this year a great year!