I read an article recently that said a professional golfer is happy with their round if they hit five to ten shots they consider “perfect.”

Let that sink in for a moment.

That means even at the highest level of the game, pro golfers, feel they execute exactly as planned only about 7-13% of the time. In other words, 87-93% of the time, they believe they are falling short of their ideal performance.

And yet, of the millions of golfers in the world, only 125 hold a PGA Tour card at any given time. These are the best of the best. Elite performers. Professionals.

Still imperfect. Most of the time.

Any golfer will tell you that success is not determined by your last shot. It is determined by how you respond on your next shot.

If you are a recovering perfectionist, those numbers probably hit close to home.

We train, practice, and prepare to perform at our best in business and in life. And yet things rarely go exactly as planned. Sometimes they go the opposite of perfect. What separates high performers from everyone else is not perfection. It is how they respond when things do not go perfectly.

Think about the last accomplishment you were truly proud of.
Did everything go according to plan?
Where did you have to course correct or adapt?
What lessons did you learn along the way?

Here is the hard truth that may be comforting to you.

You are not paid for perfection. You are paid for results.

Your business and your life can at times be messy. When you or your team achieve a good result, even imperfectly, resist the need to beat yourself up or overanalyze what should have happened. Stop shoulding all over yourself and instead ask “What did I learn?” Then apply the learning and focus on the next move.

Golf is a game that cannot be won. It can only be played.
Some days you hit the fairway. Some days the ball sails out of bounds.

The goal is simple. Keep moving the ball forward.

One imperfect Quarter Turn at a time.

“There is a crack in everything, that’s how the light gets in.” –Leonard Cohen

“Imperfections are not inadequacies; they are reminders that we’re all in this together.”
–Brené Brown

“They tell you nobody’s perfect. Then they say practice makes perfect. I wish they would make up their minds” –Winston Churchill

Looking forward to our next connection