Insight in a bagel

Realizations are like lightning strikes, they tend to be sporadic and can be intense.  Unfortunately, though, they do not always come as often as lightning, which on average hits the planet 3.1 billion times a year, or 8.5 million times a day.  Quite shocking that number, no pun intended of course

This morning I had a realization while jelly-ing a bagel.  I was holding the bagel with one hand and the jam was starting to slip off of one side, in my other hand I held a knife, which was itself covered in Strawberry preserves.  In that split second, I had to make the choice of either trying to catch the little bit of jam before it slips onto the floor or to keep my cool let it fall and focus on the larger amount of red fruit still on the knife.  On one hand, if you let the jam fall from the side of the bagel you know the consequences are limited to a drop or two, but if you overreact and try to catch it you risk all of the jam on the knife falling as well..  So, what do you do?  Let it fall or try to catch it all and risk the potentially larger mess?

This is a bit of a stretch, but I found the situation very analogous to playing a round of golf.  There are always shots that verge on the brink of disaster and when these happen you have a choice to make.  Do you overreact and go for the one-in-a-million type shot, or do you lay up and take the one stroke as a lesson?  In the past, I’ve always been one who tended towards overreaction, trying to fix problems with grand swoops that often turn out worse then the original issue at hand.  But, through The Dan Plan and golf, I’m learning that a cool head and a safe play are the better ways to get yourself out of a sticky situation.

Surprisingly or not, this is a very big life lesson for me.  Psychologically in golf, and in life, minimizing the inevitable bad shot is crucial in the ability to move forward.  If you are the type to go all in after a potential mistake, perhaps metaphorically just let that jelly hit the floor next time and lay up.  On the other hand, if you tend to always play it safe, then try to go for it, whether it is the bagel analogy or asking out someone you’ve had a crush on or hitting a five-iron from the fairway bunker 160 yards with a fade around an oak tree to the green.  Try to see things from either angle and think about what the outcomes could be depending on your next move.  Once you’ve done that and know your potential in both situations, for better or worse, then you will know your abilities and have a firmer understanding of where your reactions to any situation will take you.