Me being Mr. Business Golf, I naturally have met with a lot of people and written a lot about how golf is a great business tool. As a reminder, here are 5 Reason Golf is Good for Business.
1. Provides a Chance to Bond:
Golf can provide the player with an opportunity to build lifelong friendships. It’s something people can form a common interest in while providing a platform to share time and enjoy a common experience–all of which bonds people together.
2. Learn About Your Clients:
Golf is a game that provides ample opportunities for the player to demonstrate wonderful or dubious character behavior.
A missed shot or inconvenient bounce or roll provides the occasion for the golfer to act out, sulk and even cheat. Observing someone in the midst of playing can tell you a lot about the person that you’re playing with.
Take clients out and watch how they behave. If they cheat at golf, they probably will cheat in business.
If they throw clubs and stomp around after a bad shot, they may be prone to temper tantrums at work. But, on the other hand, if they can keep themselves under control and count every stroke, chances are they’ll handle adversity in stride and be honest and forthright in the work setting.
3. Provides Outlet for Stress:
While golf can be the most frustrating thing that you’ll ever learn to love, it can become a terrific outlet for you to handle your work-related stress. In order to become proficient requires lots of practice and tremendous focus. You can’t be rehashing a sour meeting while you’re trying to sink a 10-foot putt. So, playing gets you out of your work mindset and into your golfing frame of mind.
4. Learn About Yourself:
Observing your own behavior on the course may shed light on your business tendencies, too. If you’re the type that never putts out, you may be the type of person that cuts corners at work, too. If you take a lot of risky shots on the course, you may be a risk-taker on the job. Paying attention to how you play the game, can help you to recognize some of your own blind spots.
5. Opportunity to sell:
Unfortunately, a typical round of golf requires 5 to 6 hours to complete which provides a wonderful opportunity to sell your goods and services to your golf partner for the round. BUT…Be careful! Not only is this a benefit of golf it also could be a huge turnoff to a potential client. There is nothing worse than having your ear bent for 6 hours about a product or service you have no interest in.
It would be best to keep the selling until you are off the golf course.
Golf doesn’t have to be boring…make it a conversation.
And let me know how I can help.
