Clubs around the country are developing new amenities to meet the needs and expectations of the next generation of members.
An astute and forward-thinking move. But can they afford it?
GGA Partner and Head of Transaction Advisory, Craig Johnston, spells out the importance of capital planning and the need to assess what your current assets cost to maintain (and will cost) before planning to invest in new ones.
As environmental consciousness continues to rise across the world, GGA Partner and Chairman of the Board of Directors for Audubon International, Henry DeLozier, identifies the three starting points for clubs looking to make the shift towards a greener future.
Americans are more concerned about climate change than ever before. According to a recent Pew Research Center Survey, “About two-thirds of U.S. adults (67%) say the federal government is doing too little to reduce the effects of climate change, and similar shares say the same about government efforts to protect air (67%) and water quality (68%)…”
The study also found that concern over the state of the environment is more than a national interest or partisan issue, with the majority indicating that climate change is affecting their daily lives, “Most Americans today (62%) say that climate change is affecting their local community either a great deal or some.”
Does the same sentiment exist in golf? Since 2017, managers have reported to GGA that their clubs are under the microscope in some areas, receiving provocation from local municipalities and increased pressure to comply with local rules and environmental regulations. These pressures have led to the need for clubs to increase their ‘green’ efforts in education, labor and training inputs, as well as governmental reporting.
Whether it’s a case of compliance or the desire to develop a greater sense of environmental stewardship and eco-friendly operations, it can often be difficult to know how and where to start. To ease this process, here are three starting points for clubs looking to make the shift towards a greener future.
1. Assess current levels of resource utilization
Understanding how much your club is using, in what areas, from which sources, and at what price is an essential first step.
This will allow you to develop a baseline for evaluation, and measure these against performance goals.
In need of a helping hand to get started? A number of associations and organizations have developed intuitive and informed tools to enable clubs to conduct these evaluations in-house.
2. Develop an environmental policy.
“Putting your golf course, community or resort on the path to sustainability may seem overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be,” Audubon International CEO Christine Kane says. “We suggest starting by establishing an environmental policy that will guide your operations. This will bring your employees and members onboard and pave the way for incorporating topics such as water conservation, IPM or wildlife management into your budget, marketing and maintenance processes.”
3. Seek a certification program and pursue recognition.
Establishing a reputation for environmental stewardship in the public eye – that is, from the viewpoint of your current and potential future members – is a valuable business marketing tool for clubs to wield. Pursuing formal recognition and certification for the club’s commitment to “green” operating practices can grow its market share and build loyalty among the power-spending generations of the future.
If your club is looking to bolster its environmental credentials, here are some awards and programs to consider:
Golf facilities and clubs also benefit from sustainability’s halo effect. Many members today expect greater levels of environmental stewardship from businesses and other organizations with which they are associated. In addition to its environmental impacts, sound resource management and recognition through certification has taken on a good-for-business shine as well.
Research points out that sound environmental stewardship matters to women and millennials especially. While sentiments diverge along lines of on geographic location and political affiliation, it is apparent in the Pew Research study that women and young adults (e.g. Millennials and Generation Z) exhibit a higher propensity to regard climate change as a serious issue which affects them personally.
The bottom line is that that these groups represent the next generation of members and they are both concerned about sound environmental practices and are receptive to learning how club managers are caring for Mother Earth. Clubs and courses seeking to attract younger members would do well to take a responsible approach to environmentalism.
While directors carry ultimate responsibility for the financial resources of a club, it’s the relationship between the board of directors and club manager that can often determine just how well managed the finances actually are.
Bobby Crifasi, General Manager of New Orleans Country Club, reveals the formula which keeps his club on a sound, sustainable financial footing.
A mismanaged and uninformed approach to financial management can seriously damage a club’s ability to make sound business decisions.
And as the buck stops with the board of directors, it is they who must carefully measure the future financial needs of their club, plan for the sources and uses of funds, and ensure the economic sustainability of the club. Doing so is no small challenge and requires:
As one of several duties, that can be a lot to ask of volunteer board members. This is where top-performing club managers step in. The more they can equip their board of directors with the information they need to fulfill their duties, the greater the guarantee of them making the soundest possible business decisions.
Bobby Crifasi manages New Orleans Country Club (NOCC) with style and grace that belies a savvy financial manager. First educated and trained as a certified public accountant, during his time Bobby has seen the Club through a natural disaster in Hurricane Katrina which led to $5 million in unplanned renovations. On a day-to-day basis, Bobby ensures that the Club remains on solid financial ground by keeping his board fully informed on the Club’s financial facts.
“All of our financial information is sent to the board in advance of the board meeting,” explains Crifasi. “I receive our financial reports by the 10th of each month and that allows a week or so to investigate any variances before the financial information is sent with the board package. If there was anything of significance that I thought the board should know sooner rather than later, I would report on it at the House Committee meeting or email the board directly.”
Keeping the board informed of financial performance metrics is a key for Crifasi and his team, “What we do is provide a lot of financial data comparing this-month to this-month-last-year and year-to-date-this-year to year-to-date-last-year comparatives on a monthly basis. We do good, old-fashioned spreadsheets with all this information monthly.”
Among the keys that are faithfully tracked at NOCC, Crifasi emphasizes the mission-critical factors in the balance sheet and income statements, “On a monthly basis we focus on key balance sheet items like cash, notes payable, and any other balance sheet items that may have changed significantly during the month. In addition, we look at our Statement of Income and Expenses and talk about any variances during the month and the factors that may have caused that. We track initiation fees and dues to ensure we are on budget with those as they represent such a large part of the financial picture.”
On a practical level, NOCC uses a rolling budget process to enable adjustments as conditions require, “We have a rolling budget for the food and beverage operation which is adjusted each month to reflect additions or deletions to the banquet business as well as current forecasts for our restaurant business.”
Given the significant impact of rising labor costs in private clubs, Crifasi adds, “We also look at labor in each department to ensure it is tracking as projected.” GGA observes that labor expenses are typically the largest category of expenses for facility operators, with benchmarks generally ranging from 52-58% of total expenses for public, semi-private, and resort facilities and slightly higher at 55-62% for private member clubs.
Astute financial management starts with the key information boards require to make sound decisions. Crifasi’s meticulous approach and proactive relationship with his board has helped to simplify an area that other managers can often find complex, providing a financial foundation for the long-term success and stability of NOCC.
If you want to follow in the footsteps of this top-performing manager, four-point approach to financial interaction with board members will provide an invaluable process to work from:
There’s an old saying about plans – more specifically about the lack of a plan: “Without a plan, any path will get you there.” We wholeheartedly agree with that adage, but acknowledge a flip side that raises a question that many diligent planners confront: How to effectively integrate multiple plans into one comprehensive and cohesive plan that guides your overall operation?
The analogy that comes to mind is the challenge facing airlines with thousands of passengers on any given day, each trying to get to his or her destination. The airline has flight plans for hundreds of aircraft and tries to mesh all of those planes and flights into a fairly seamless plan to get you where you want to go. Most days it works, but not without a lot of coordination.
There are three stumbling blocks that derail effective planning efforts: 1) lack of coordination among stakeholders and contributors, 2) poor scheduling and time management for due diligence and preparing materials, and 3) confused or confusing desired results. These three project killers diminish the quality of the overall plan and undermine the credibility of the planning team.
For golf course and facility leaders, the challenge is considering the information gathered through market analysis, financial evaluation and board input alongside the plans of superintendents and those managing food and beverage, membership and financial operations. And then bringing all the information, insights, recommendations and plans together to support the club’s or facility’s objectives. For managers of each of these functions, the same challenges exist, if only on a smaller scale.
If you’re currently in your planning cycle, and charged with pulling discrete plans and input together so the end product doesn’t feel disjointed, consider these five steps:
1. Sync every plan to the vision.
No matter which area of the club or facility the plan is focused on, it should clearly map to the overall vision – the club or facility’s long-term, forward-looking aspiration, what we like to think of as an organization’s North Star. You should be able to see this in the plan’s objectives and priorities. With multiple workflows, the project leader must maintain an overall understanding of the project and ensure all plans are headed for the same airport, even if they’re taking different runways.
2. Outline specific steps along the way.
Define project milestones, the steps that will help you get there at a predetermined time and those responsible. Schedule regular check-in meetings to make sure all pilots have their planes headed in the same direction. It’s much easier to make mid-course corrections than to wait until all planes have landed and plans submitted.
3. Designate one holding place for project inputs and research.
See that all team members participating in the project planning process have transparent access to information and a full understanding of progress. Lacking a central repository of project information, important pieces of information can be misplaced, overlooked or lost. This also helps projects from getting siloed and managers feeling isolated.
4. Prioritize workflow.
On expansive projects or ones that involve multiple contributors, establish which components are most critical to the overall project plan. This step enables effective planners to allocate time, financial and human resources. Sequential planning guides the team in accomplishing mission-critical tasks and components.
5. Maximize productivity through careful scheduling.
If a golf course superintendent is preparing an agronomic plan, for example, it is important to make sure each assistant and technical expert is scheduled to deliver information in a timely manner. Stagger the timelines, monitor the cross-disciplinary dependencies, and eliminate duplications and redundant production.
Most managers have broad responsibilities and must combine resources to produce comprehensive and workable plans. Developing a disciplined process for research, input and development is the key to successfully landing all of your plans and making sure they support the same vision and goals.
This article was authored by GGA Partner Henry DeLozier for Golf Course Industry Magazine.
TORONTO, Ontario – Global Golf Advisors (GGA) – the leading authority on successful ownership and management practices for golf, private club, resort, and residential real estate businesses – has announced that respected club, resort, and branding executive, Murray Blair, has joined the firm’s Canadian office as a Director.
As a Director with GGA, Murray specializes in club and resort strategy, operations, brand building, transformation and performance monitoring. “The reimagination of club and resort businesses is in full swing with strategically crafted and nurtured brands driving value creation for savvy owners and operators,” explained Blair. “We at GGA are proud to support superior clubs and resorts around the world in developing and implementing the very best strategy and brand position in order to maximize club investment and lifestyle objectives.”
Murray will continue building upon GGA’s market-leading strategy and operations consulting services and leverage the firm’s robust research and analytics offerings to help clients transform their businesses and implement a game plan for long-term success and sustainability.
Derek Johnston, a partner in GGA’s Toronto office, provided insight into how the firm’s expanding team enhances its commitment to client success, “GGA’s mission is to help our clients solve their toughest problems. We are increasingly asked to remain involved in our club client’s projects on an ongoing basis; to monitor progress and, when needed, effectively evolve strategy to truly maximize performance over the long-term. Murray’s club leadership experience, history of managing premium brands, and dynamic charisma are perfectly aligned to deliver on these services. He is an incredible addition to our team and an invaluable resource for clients.”
Murray rejoins GGA after a successful eight-year stint leading transformations for a large retail brand and one of the top private clubs in the Greater Toronto Area.
“I am eager to rejoin the GGA family,” said Murray Blair, “I have remained in close contact with the GGA team during my time in club management and operations, and have enjoyed watching the firm grow and prosper. I have particularly enjoyed seeing GGA’s younger team members grow into industry leaders. I am thrilled to have the opportunity to work alongside such a dedicated and capable group again and contribute to the firm’s continued growth.”
Murray joins GGA to expand on what has already been a multifaceted career in the club and resort industries. Most recently, Murray was the General Manager at Granite Golf Club, one of Canada’s most innovative private family golf clubs, successfully rejuvenating the club’s brand and membership.
Prior to joining Granite Golf Club, Murray spent three years as Vice President at Joe Boxer, modernizing the garment brand for the Caulfield Apparel Group and leading Joe Boxer through an award-winning rebranding process that revitalized the brand, ultimately earning a 2014 Cassies Bronze medal.
Over the course of his career, Murray has also worked for the TPC organization as part of the opening team at TPC Scottsdale; spent four years with Marriott hotels in Arizona and Napa, California; ten years running the golf division for Fairmont Hotels, during which time he was ranked as one of the top 25 most influential people in Canadian Golf; and three years as a Vice President with ClubLink before his initial four years of consulting with Global Golf Advisors.
Through these experiences, Murray has been involved in the development and restoration of a number of great golf courses in North America including Banff Springs, Jasper Park Lodge, The Algonquin Resort, and Mayakoba in Mexico. Murray is active across the club industry serving on a number of advisory boards, including the Golf Ontario board, and delivers education sessions at various industry conferences.
About GGA
Global Golf Advisors (GGA) has provided industry-leading advisory services to more than 3,000 clients worldwide including private clubs, hotels, resorts, residential golf communities, developers, homebuilders, government agencies and municipalities, financial institutions, investors and lenders. Operating out of three global offices in Toronto, Phoenix, and Dublin, GGA is a highly specialized consulting firm focused on club and leisure related assets with a professional services heritage as the KPMG Golf Industry Practice. The firm’s expertise lies in its ability to effectively meld club management and operational expertise with highly capable professional strategists and experienced business analysts. GGA personnel include former club managers with experience leading exceptional clubs, along with alumni of Deloitte, Fairmont, KPMG, Marriott, Pulte Homes, PwC, and Scotia Capital. For more information, please visit www.globalgolfadvisors.com.
Media Contact
Derek Johnston, Partner at Global Golf Advisors
djohnston@globalgolfadvisors.com
905-726-0701
Murray Blair, Director at Global Golf Advisors
mblair@globalgolfadvisors.com
416-728-4186
This article is written and produced by Sue Shapcott, PhD. Sue is the founder of Change Golf Instruction, a golf coaching business that partners with public golf courses, and Sports Query, a consulting business that assists sports organizations incorporate social science into their policies and practices. Sue is based in Madison, WI.
Club staff, including managers and coaching professionals can, over time, become immunized to the customer experience and the various touch points that form it. Guest writer, Sue Shapcott, reveals how clubs should take the time to understand this experience – and why it’s crucial when it comes to attracting women, minorities and families.
Without knowing it, club staff can be reinforcing an experience that is off-putting and unwelcoming to prospective members and (current) minority groups.
In a male-dominated sport such as golf, gender stereotypes play a significant role in shaping and affirming people’s views of a club – particularly women.
Think about it: walking in to see a large group of men congregated at the bar, being greeted with a wall of products for men in the golf shop, clubhouse walls adorned with pictures of men in quintessential golfing attire. All of these cues serve to induce stereotype threat. Stereotype threat, by definition, is the demotivation someone may feel when they identify with a negatively stereotyped social group. The traditional golf environment, unfortunately, is likely to induce stereotype threat in women, children and minorities because it underscores who is, and who isn’t a typical golfer.
As well as inducing stereotype threat, the golf club environment will also impact the sense of belonging women and minority groups experience in traditional golf clubs. Conforming to a club’s traditions means accepting this ecosystem which may feel unfair, unbalanced, and ‘just the way it is (and has always been)’.
But importantly for clubs seeking new members, these groups are making a choice based on their experience at that club. Is this somewhere they visualize spending time (with their family)? Do they want to spend time here? Does it have the potential to become a core part of their life or lifestyle?
If they feel forced to conform, and conforming means signing up to an experience that will not enhance their lifestyle, then, simply put, they will not.
Why does it matter?
Removing stereotype threat experienced by women and minority golfers can be a difficult challenge for many clubs out there. It can mean unpicking a culture which, understandably, takes time.
But allowing the cycle to continue will restrict growth and diversity in your current membership base, as well as your prospective target markets – especially at a time when we know younger generations value family time together. So much so they will base purchasing decisions on how these will enhance their collective lifestyle.
Where to start
Shifting the culture starts by seeing the world through the eyes of women and minority groups.
Accompany existing and prospective members on a customer walkthrough and all of a sudden, things will become more apparent. You’ll quickly see what and why things need to change. For example, does your leadership team look like the face of golf’s past, or future? Does the club have photos that celebrate both men and women players?
Unite all the club staff around this process. Educate them on the prevalence of stereotypes, and their effect. You can then arm staff with the knowledge they need to neutralize the environment. Tackling the issue in unison will ensure that staff are conscious and aware, and there are no gaps in the club’s approach.
What areas can you expect to confront and overcome stereotype threat typically experienced by women and minority golfers? Here are some areas which are common, yet often overlooked:
Marketing – if you market to the spouses of existing members what images and/or videos are you choosing to include? What is that telling them about the club? Chances are, you could be confirming stereotypes without realizing it. It’s not about provisioning certain types of images and videos ‘because it’s the right thing to do’. It’s about doing it because clubs need to understand their influence and not inadvertently confirm certain stereotypes – especially when it will harm their goals in the long run.
Coaching – coaches should make it clear to women that they have a high expectation of their ability and performance (dispelling the stereotype that women are somehow not as strong in their ability).
Clubhouse – a contemporary environment which suits the needs of all members is what clubs should strive for. Remove unnecessary imagery which serves to reaffirm certain stereotypes and make it a place where all profiles of member can enjoy, relax and spend time.
Golf Shop – being greeted by rows of hardware, mainly for men, can be a daunting experience – especially so for women new to the game. Make service your priority, and dispel any fears minority groups may have by handing them the knowledge they need to make informed purchasing decisions.
On the course – tees labelled by gender are extremely commonplace, yet are a constant reminder that women don’t hit the ball as far and that this somehow makes their ability inferior. By changing your tees to difficulty-based rather than gender-based creates more of a level playing field and removes the gender factor and associated stereotype threat.
A rallying call
Change at clubs is always difficult when there’s a threat of alienating a certain group – in this case the core membership. But this is where it’s important to take a step back and assess the fork in the road in which we find ourselves:
Road A: We do the same thing. Members age, member numbers recede, and the cycle of stereotype threat experienced by women and minorities continue.
Road B: We open up, we see our club differently, we remove stereotype threats and create an environment a more diverse range of prospects want to be a part of.
As a stakeholder in this industry, I know which future I would rather be a part of.
Women are widely regarded as connectors, more likely to invite family members and friends to join them in activities and pursuits than their male counterparts. With that in mind, GGA’s Linda Dillenbeck explores ways in which clubs can increase their appeal to women and unlock new customers in the process.
You have probably read articles encouraging clubs to increase their efforts to attract women and families as a strategy to improve long-term private club sustainability. Most articles focus on amenities clubs may choose to add or expand, such as adding swimming pools, more casual dining options, or even introducing other sports, such as tennis.
Although the amenity package offered will certainly be a part of a prospect’s decision-making process, equally important, if not more so, is the atmosphere and ambiance a prospect will experience while visiting the club.
Make perception reflect reality
Let’s start with a simple sobering fact; your perception of your club is probably not most people’s reality. To gain a clear picture of how your club is perceived by women and families, you first need to understand what’s important to them and the type of experience they expect.
Conducting a walk-through with different profiles of female and family customers can provide invaluable insights. It’s something all club leaders should be encouraged to do.
To supplement individual club efforts, and help operational teams understand and improve methods of providing a welcoming experience to women and families, I interviewed a number of private club members and club professionals across North America, with some interesting feedback.
“Women are more social then men,” commented Teresa S. “They want to find a connection beyond business or golf, and really get to know someone. If those opportunities are provided through club events, women will bring their family and friends to share in the experience,” she added.
The vast majority of women play golf to have fun and socialize, rather than to post a score. As Kathy G. outlined: “Staff should encourage women and families to play the game as they wish, as long as it doesn’t impede others.”
Comments from several women players related to tee sheet access and were summarized by what Tiffany N. shared. “The times ladies are allowed to play, typically on Tuesday or Wednesday morning, are not conducive to those of us who have careers. Until private clubs open up their tee sheets, it will be difficult to attract more play for business and pleasure,” she said.
“I always find it interesting when I approach the first tee and meet the starter,” stated Paula F. “They think they are being helpful by telling me where the forward tees are located. They make that statement based on gender, not skill. My advice to any course operator is to instruct their starters to remember this thought: ‘If you wouldn’t say it to a male golfer, don’t say it to a female golfer’.”
Create fun and relaxing events
Keeping two thoughts in mind – women value social experiences and enjoy connecting with family and friends while having fun – will help staff understand the elements your club should focus upon when planning events. To help you get started, here are some examples of events designed to gather women, their families and friends at the club.
Know your audience
Women I know do not believe they deserve special treatment because of their gender. Rather, they simply want to have the opportunity to share experiences with friends and family in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere, where the goal is having fun and creating some lasting memories of time spent together.
When you provide a relaxed and friendly club atmosphere as a stage, where women can accomplish this goal, they will be your most loyal recruiters, spreading positive word-of-mouth advertising and peer-to-peer reviews across their social networks, encouraging family and friends to connect through your club.
Member surveys are not as clear cut as simply gauging satisfaction or opinion of members. GGA’s Andrew Milne explains how, by reaching out to include spouses or family in club surveys, you can gain invaluable insights on how your club is viewed in the context of modern family life.
Renewing a club membership used to be a straightforward matter. The member receives dues notification, pays a subscription, and club life continues. But as much as club managers may want that to be the case, increasingly, it simply is not.
The perfect storm of increased time, family and economic pressures for members means leisure outings are more heavily scrutinized and, occasionally, result in the end of membership and/or the club’s prominence in an individual’s day-to-day life.
Rather than having these decisions debated behind closed doors, with no prior knowledge that they even exist, clubs do have a vital tool at their disposal, in extending a bespoke member survey to spouses and family members.
Branching out
GGA spouse and family member surveys were introduced nearly a decade ago and what we have learned during that time unambiguously supports their role in helping club leaders develop a product and service that is relevant to the whole family.
Among the headline findings collated from across North America, we found:
A club for the entire family
Identifying the importance of both spouses and families is one thing, making changes to the club operation to increase their satisfaction levels (alongside those of primary members) is another.
Do the benefits outweigh the time and resource investment?
If it’s about an underlying connection, then yes. More interaction with spouses and family members will inevitably put the club more front-and-center in their minds, and help clarify its attributes and future role among these individuals.
There are more reasons to engage this audience too:
Moving out of the comfort zone
It may seem counter-intuitive to develop a future vision for your club formed from the views of those who may appear not to spend a great deal of time there.
However, across the world we are witnessing clubs making moves towards developing amenities and services which appeal to the entire family and encourage them to spend more time there. These are the clubs already profiting from family and spousal survey insights, building out the core of their membership to now include spouses and family members, and simultaneously becoming a more appealing destination to prospects.
Taking the first steps are difficult, but by seeking a wider base of opinions you might be surprised by what you learn and the future opportunities that arise.
GGA Partner Henry DeLozier highlights 5 key attributes to help golf course leaders achieve recognition for their talents and efforts.
We all want to be recognized for our talents and efforts. In fact, in a world where we take more than 93 million selfies a day, being ignored is certainly one of life’s biggest disappointments. One long-held suggestion to avoid being overlooked or taken for granted is this one: “Be so good they can’t ignore you.”
It’s advice offered by comedian Steve Martin, author Cal Newport (in a book with the same title) and printed on T-shirts and wall posters that adorn corporate breakrooms across our country. No matter our objective – recognition that leads to a promotion or simply the satisfaction that comes from a boss’s or colleague’s “good job” – excellence that demands attention seems a logical and valuable strategy.
Here are five attributes that can make you so good that you cannot be ignored:
1. Great attitude is a key factor in your success and ability to be noticed, whether you’re a golf course superintendent, golf professional or club manager.
Savvy employers hire for attitude above other attributes. Stated in the negative, no one needs a grumpy or uncooperative manager leading today’s work force. There is enough friction in getting operational teams to perform at the high end of their capabilities without someone with a negative attitude pulling us down.
According to author Emily Smykal, whose findings were part of a CareerBuilder study by Harris Poll, nearly three in four employees (72 percent) spoke to the power of a positive attitude. “Positivity leads to a more productive workday and creates a better environment for fellow employees,” she writes. “Great employees consistently stand out for their upbeat attitudes and earn positive reputations for themselves.”
Building and keeping an attitude that leads others toward common goals requires a comprehensive understanding of the job’s requirements and a willingness to teach others to work harder, better and smarter. What’s more, great attitudes are contagious.
2. Eager learning keeps everyone involved sharp.
Constant learners tend to be open, creative and receptive to new or different ideas – even if they’re someone else’s. Heather Huhman wrote on Glassdoor that an eagerness to learn shows openness to new ideas, willingness to think beyond today’s facts and invaluable curiosity.
Robert Half, a specialist in recruitment and employment services, recommends that every resume show an eagerness to learn. This trait adds value for the employer and expands the performance potential of the employee. When you’re learning and growing, you are becoming a more valuable employee and one whose contributions are easily recognized.
3. Trustworthy teammates, especially in troubled times, are valued for their consistency, stability and integrity.
Difficult and exigent circumstances reveal those who can stand tall and steady in crisis. One’s day-to-day commitment to being a trusted and respected teammate is manifested in a thousand acts. Ensuring that your actions match your words is an important trust-builder, as are genuine eye contact, thoughtful interactions, an openness to criticism, and the willingness to express oneself openly and with trust.
The world champion sprinter Carmelita Jeter breathlessly testified to the power of trusting teammates at the 2012 London Olympics when – after running the anchor leg on the women’s 4×100-meter relay team, she said: “I knew they trusted me like I trusted them. And I would not let them down.” Jeter and her trusting teammates bested a world record in the event that had stood for 27 years.
4. Mental toughness is critical when we encounter adversity, in life and on the job.
Are you resilient and persistent enough to overcome challenging circumstances? According to Inc. magazine, qualities that make you mentally tougher are patience, perspective, focus (on priorities) and the willingness to confront adversity. The mentally tough understand that criticism or adversity is often not of a personal nature and see it as an opportunity to keep pushing toward their goal.
5. Careful planning – Planning is critical to sustained success. Managers who take a focused approach to plans and planning outperform their club’s budget. Advance planning reduces risk as managers identify potential threats and opportunities. Established, well-stated goals and objectives simplify and clarify your intentions.
This article was authored by GGA Partner Henry DeLozier for Golf Course Industry Magazine.
Global Golf Advisors (“GGA”) is expanding and we are looking for a highly motivated associate to join our firm and grow with our team.
Working alongside fellow Associates, and reporting to GGA’s Managers and Senior Leadership team, you will perform specialized research and advisory tasks as described below:
The successful candidate will be hard-working with a high attention to detail and a passion for research and analytics.
Start Date: As soon as possible.
Salary: Commensurate with experience.
Location: Toronto, Canada
All qualified applicants should apply to info@globalgolfadvisors.com with relevant applicant materials.
