COMMITMENT

One of my favorite stories I give during my speeches goes like this:

A chicken and a pig were walking down the road and they see a sign at a diner that says, "Ham & Eggs Special--$1 .99." Upon seeing that, the chicken said in a haughty manner, "Do they know what kind of sacrifice I make for my eggs?"

To which the pig responded, "For you it is a sacrifice.

For me it is total commitment!"

This silly story, dating back to Vaudeville days, highlights the point that there is

no such thing as semi-commitment or kind of committed. Commitment is total--pure and simple.

So many golfers have good intentions about improving their games, but they often don't follow through on these intentions. The road to

consistently disappointing rounds is filled with good intentions. Wishing and hoping does not make good golf swings. Commitment does.

The great speaker and writ, Tony Robbins says that there is something empowering about the process of making conscious decisions.

The same applies to commitments. If you take the time and energy to identify something you wish to improve and consciously commit yourself to achieving it, you have already set the mental wheels in motion down the path to realizing it.

What many people do not know is that making a commitment and implementing it are two separate and distinct processes. Just because you have committed yourself to, say, eliminating your slice, does not mean that it will immediately disappear. You have to live with your commitment and this means prioritizing it into the rest of your life.

Like many of you, I spend most of my week on the road. Typically, whenever I have the opportunity for golf I usually play instead of practice. The effects of these decisions eventually catches up with me. I know I need to practice, but it seems a better use of my limited time to play.

My major golfing goal for the last couple of years was to practice as much as I played. I committed myself to it, but living with this commitment was challenging. There always seemed to be present the temptation to play. It took me relatively long into my life to understand that saying "no" to an opportunity that was not in my priorities was really saying "yes" to living with my priorities.

Part of prioritizing is fitting them into one's plans. So I put practice into my calendar. Beyond that, I put practice into my thinking.

I learned to love practice and looked forward to those sessions. Since I made these priorities I have stuck with my commitment and have seen some very positive results.

Great golfers are not born, but self-made. This is a constant evolutionary process based on a spiraling series of commitments. So have your dreams and establish your goals, but remember they will only be realized when they are coupled with a commitment that is implemented.

As with our friend the pig, you should never say or think the word "commitment" without the word "total" preceding it. Total commitment is an active process that involves making the goals a priority in your life.

Remember, it is one thing to make a commitment; it is quite another thing to live with it. Just as your golf ball goes awry without a full follow through, so do your commitments. Make active decisions, prioritize your commitments, and follow through. These are the routines to stay on the fairways of life.

Cheers!

Tom

Dr. Tom Kubistant, sports psychologist has worked with world-class athletes since 1971. He is one of the most prolific writers and speakers on the mental game of golf on the planet. To take advantage of his decades of golf wizardry, visit Mind Links

Author of "Performing Your Best, Links Golf, Mind Pump: The Psychology of Body Building, business and sales training audios, over 280 articles for magazines and now.........Mind Links - The Psychology of Golf.

In 1971, after working in private psychotherapy practice he dove headfirst into Human Performance and Achievement and became one of the pioneers of modern sports psychology. His own athletic prowess as a tennis pro and accomplished golfer spurred him on. If that isn't enough, he maintains the complete "Bibliography On The Psychology Of Golf;" everything ever written on the mental game of golf. And HE HAS READ EVERYTHING IN IT!