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New Release
The Fairway Of Life
Simple Secrets To Playing Better Golf By Going With The Flow ~
Rand Scott Marquardt
Life & Mental Golf Performance Coach 
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FacebookPractice Visualization
It takes zero effort when visualizing upon your hearts desire, and your natural state of being. It’s completely natural and effortless when you simply allow yourself to be who you really are. The only thing in your own way is you. On the course if you let results get in the way, embarrassment issues get the best of you, believe you can’t, or any number of other foolish self-sabotaging, limited beliefs run your life then you will absolutely draw more of those unwanted experiences into your life on the golf course.
Instead visualize upon every shot, meditate and set intentions before every round, let joy be your new measure of success and let your imagination become your most familiar vibration. Focus upon what you want, upon what you prefer. Dream and you will gravitate towards the picture you are painting. Stop looking at “what is” and start looking at what you “prefer.”
“Imagine your ideal future. Your imagination is your preview to life’s coming attractions.”
—Albert Einstein
I invite you to visualize and imagine more and therefore look around less. Focus on what you prefer, visualize where you see the ball going. Most are looking around and responding to what they are seeing, i.e. bad shots, trouble on the course, embarrassment of looking bad, fear of playing bad, scared of losing, bogeys and worse, missed putts, all taking you on a downward spiral. Many do not like what they are seeing, which only draws more of those kinds of thoughts – I want that not…I don’t like that…I hate missing that putt…I suck. We get caught in the proverbial catch 22 and there is no place to run, and no place to hide. Visualization upon what you prefer helps pave the way in being your best.
Look, it takes zero effort to feel compassion for a loved one with a health issue. It takes zero effort to feel romantic with a loved one watching a romantic movie. It takes zero effort to play your best golf because it’s outrageously fun.
Therefore, instead of looking at “what is” turn your attention to “what you prefer.” Visualization is the key to playing your best golf. “I never stroked a putt that I hadn’t already made in my mind,” Jack Nicklaus. What’s that called? Visualization! Get yourself into that state of being and you will find yourself in The Zone more often than ever before. You will ultimately play better golf when you let it happen versus trying too hard to make it happen.
Jack Nicklaus pre-shot routine
1. I never hit a golf shot without having a sharp picture of it in my head.
2. First, I “see” where I want the ball to finish.
3. Then I “see” it going there, it’s trajectory and landing.
4. The next “scene” shows me making the swing that will turn the previous images into reality.
Simple Secret Reminder: The shot produces the swing, not the other way around. Most will have a hard time letting go of this trying to control the shot versus just letting it happen…naturally, less arduously, and with zero effort. Visualize, visualize, visualize!
Becoming a Better Golfer By David Zmikly
Hi Rand, I’m excited to share a breakthrough I’ve recently experienced. First, thank you for your commitment to yourself, the game of golf, and to this amazing website…I am inspired and it’s time for a change!
My game has been the same for 10 years or more, as you know, pretty stagnant. Sure, I’ve had a few decent rounds, but for the most part I’ve hovered around the low to mid 90’s. Through your guidance however, I’ve chosen to step out of myself to observe who and how I’ve been being, on and off the course. Like most, I’ve always wanted to score better, but I can see now that my approach to the game is what has hindered me. Every time I’ve played in the past, I’ve gone to the course carrying my baggage (not my golf bag); fear, doubt, worry and pride. “What if I play bad? I don’t want to lose money! Will people get upset if I suck?” Sometimes I could hide these inevitable landmines, and begin with a couple pars, possibly even a birdie, but sooner than later the demons would surface and get the best of me…all because of my ‘concern’ of being able (or not) to shoot a low score. The focus of my game was always the score, never on really enjoying myself, the comradery of friends and being grateful for the beautiful surroundings. Even when I tried to tell myself to relax and enjoy, my subconscious was constantly talking about score, score, score! I had to ‘look good’ and thought I could only be happy if I played well. Consequently, every bad shot, bad hole and bad round left me disappointed, again.
I remember playing an outing with 8-10 guys at Pine Knob, and being so disgusted with my game that afterward I got in my car and left without a word to anyone…what a loser! Another round I threw my 4-iron into a 40 ft. pine tree surrounded by junipers, and never found it. I couldn’t have been a good sport if I tried.
The last couple years though I’ve found peace with letting go of worrying about the outcome, even when I knew I wanted to ‘look good’ but couldn’t. My mind was made up that “My score is my score, so I’ll just accept it.” This did give me relief, although it didn’t lower my score. I simply resigned myself to the fact that I sucked no matter how hard I tried, so I might as well get used to it and enjoy myself anyway I decided to just give up on even trying as soon as my game went to hell (which was ususally on the front nine), and drink away my misery on the back.
That was then, this is now. As we talked about last night, I’ve never been so inspired and excited about my game. Your guidance and wisdom hit me like a brick Rand, and I got it. I got that ‘Going With the Flow’ means going with the flow of life, realizing and understanding that we are all connected to the omnipotent Energy of the Universe/God, and by virtue of the Law of Attraction and Deliberate Creation, we are creating our own reality every day! Our thoughts, words, feelings and emotions are all energy, so that which we radiate draws back to us an equal energy in response. So, I get now how I can harness this amazing power that we all have, and use it to my advantage in my golf game, as well as in life. I’m vibating like crazy, knowing now that I can go out to the course with confidence, and play a game with myself, inside of my game and actually have fun
I heard Jack Nicklaus say during an event a few weeks ago something I had never considered in my 25 years of playing, something you’ve also suggested. He always first visualized the end result of every shot, and then the flight or roll of the shot, and then let the picture create the swing. Wow, what a concept. I’ve felt that my visualization was good, but I never let go and surrendered my swing. I always tried to control it, and there in fact was the problem.
I had an epiphany, in realizing the problem and understanding the power of the solution. Never before have I had the genuine confidence to say that I could break 80, and now I know that I can and I will, this summer. The idea for me is to play a game with myself, within my game. I’m excited knowing that all I have to do is let go of the ’score’ and trust that my visualization and alignment with Well-Being will lead the way. In this knowing, I accept that I will have good shots and bad, I am where I am and it will take time to improve…and I will! So each round will be a game for me to become aware and observe myself in action, focus on each shot (not even the hole), accept the outcome without attachment and practice being grateful, for my friends, the surroundings and my growth. Feeling good and accepting the results will naturally lead to a better game, and the better it gets the better it gets. I already know it’s going to work because I remember clearly instances in the past when I called shots beforehand (being cocky), and to my amazement they manifested…instantly! Had I only understood the power that’s been harnessed and patiently awaiting to assist…but that’s okay, I’m perfectly fine with it. I’ve come to the realization that being happy is more important than being a ‘low score’ whether I accomplish it or not, so my key to enjoying golf and life, is to unconditionally accept my game exactly as it is, and exactly as it is not. And for that, I am grateful.
Thanks my Friend, you’re the best!
David Zmikly
“The will is greater than the skill!”
How To Change The Things I Want To Change
The Serenity Prayer – “God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things that I can, and the wisdom to know the difference,” Dr. Reinhold Niebuhr.
First, you must understand which of these three life principles fit your situation. You must ask yourself with sincere honesty if you have control over the only corner of the universe you can control – yourself. If you can change, then welcome courage into your life. It takes courage to step outside the confines of your own self-induced comfort zone. Yes, growth can be and usually is messy. With ease and grace you can move through what at times may seem like the valley of death or the roar of the lion.
The simplest and most direct method to change is acknowledged and felt within the concept of the Nike slogan…Just Do It! It is called having heart and desire; a one-minded focus and a definiteness of purpose; having a dream, and keeping on! Others would say never give up. I prefer keeping on keeping on. Always reminding your self to keep on.
Sometimes your dream may feel like a million miles away just a day or two before it actually manifests. Very often you are less than 3 feet from gold. Keep digging…keep on moving forward. Keeping on in the direction of your hearts desire is what really makes our heart sing. Just remember who you really are – a brilliant and magnificent human being…a spiritual being living a physical existence…a leading edge extension of Source Energy. It’s about feeling worthy, because you are born worthy. It’s about feeling deserving, because you are born deserving. It’s about being born of pure love and pure joy, because you are pure love and pure joy.
Love is all there is. I’m just reminding you until you remember. It’s our dance-with-life to be in vibrational harmony with this understanding…believing in our selves, loving our selves, allowing the Well-Being in, feeling outrageous joy, and knowing it! Jack Nicklaus and other great champions knew in their minds they would hit a great shot before they actually did it. You can too! It’s called being in The Zone – pure positive energy going with the flow ~. Our work therefore is to keep on reaching for more of these good feeling thoughts – the best feeling thoughts we can at this moment in time. Allow the spiral to move us upward ever enhancing more and more of the good stuff that life is serving up. Pretty soon we end resonating in these good feeling spaces more often than not. And when we’re a tad off we can embrace it that much better than before.
If by chance you’re feeling stuck, confused, upset, angry, disconnected, out of alignment, frustration and if by chance you’re “…repeating the same behaviors over and over again expecting different results,” Einstein’s definition of insanity, then you’ve got to change the way you think. Thinking about always choking, always getting nervous over an “important” putt, that you’re never going to get any better, that the demons or golf gods are getting the best of you, that you’re not that good, not that worthy, not that deserving, that you can’t, that you’re embarrassed or worried about looking good or pleasing others, that you’re playing against another opponent will only keep on drawing more of those experiences into your game. You cannot deactivate a negative belief in order to get better…it only draws more of the same experience into your life. Sure once you make the commitment to be something new there will appear to be obstacles or set backs or ridicule that lie in the way. These are all illusions. And you can find a way to move around them, over them, or through them. For the truth of the matter is, you can be, do, or have whatever your heart desires. And if you don’t know that, then that’s the problem.
In all of these incidences above where you find yourself struggling you are quite literally paddling against the current. You’re resisting the natural flow. The first place to begin is to stop paddling so hard, stop trying so hard to figure this out…find some relief. Here’s the deal: you’ve got to find a way to feel good without having “that” condition change. Your dream will arrive that much quicker if you can first be happy without it. Because just the thought of not having it is a form of limited belief, which keeps you stuck in a lack mentality. So, what do I do if I have thought some of these kinds of thoughts that have not been in my best interest?
· I’m afraid
· I’m worried
· I judge myself too harshly
· I beat myself up
· I get mad at myself too often
· I choke
· I suck
· I have negative thoughts that get the best of me
· I think I can’t
· I’m scared
· I don’t want to hold another back…by looking for my lost ball all the time
· I get the yips
· I get ahead of myself
· I lose focus
· I’m trying
· I hold on to past failures
· I get result oriented
· Sometimes I’m just not having any fun
· I’m supposed to be better
· I don’t want to embarrass myself
· I’m not worthy, not deserving
· I want to win so badly that I’m feeling the lack of winning
· Yeah but, if only, it’s someone else’s fault, it’s a bad lie, etc., etc., etc.
· Poor me
So, these are the kinds of thoughts that are currently out of wack with our desire that are holding us back from living the life of our dreams.
Let’s acknowledge the fact, that we’ve thought some thoughts are hindering us. And some of the things we have allowed to be part of our experience are not easy to change; otherwise we would have done so by now. We’re kind of lost and we’re asking for some kind of relief, some kind of help, some kind of guidance and understanding into the mystery of life on and off the golf course. We’re looking for some kind of courage to change the things we can. Ask.
You’ve asked and now it is given. It’s time to take that leap of faith and just do it! You’ve got your dream; now take some action. The how’s will begin to present them selves through your commitment. You will be shown the way through providence or divine inspiration. It is as simple and as complex as that!
Understand this – the way you are feeling before the golf shot is an exact match to what you will get. If you keep thinking what you’ve always thought, then you will always get what you’ve always gotten. Hmmm…change the way you think and feel and you will change what you will get…brilliant deduction Einstein.
What’s the solution? You’ve got to start training your subconscious mind to think like a champion.
You’ve got to start activating more beneficial beliefs. You’ve got to give more “airtime” upon what you want. You’ve got to point yourself into the direction of your desires, or what you prefer. In the moment you understand that I’m not there yet, but I’m at least pointed toward it. In other words, I am where I am. This is the literal and vibrational understanding of what it means to be at peace with your self – both on and off the golf course.
Pretty soon old beliefs will fade away so far, so fast that you have a hard time even remembering what it was like before. Pretty soon you’ll end up creating the life of your dreams. Our purpose in life is to create our purpose. It’s why we have a vision, desire, dreams, intuition, intention, and visualization. It’s the quickest way to get from where we are to where we want to be next. The same works for each golf shot as well. Paint the picture and gravitate towards it.
You Say You Want To Become a Better Golfer?
…what are you more committed too?
You say you want to become a better golfer? Have you asked to become a better golfer? You have haven’t you? Do you really, really want it? Is thinking about it kind of scary, wondering if you really could improve? How much time, effort, and energy are you putting into it? Are you visualizing on a daily basis? Are you focusing upon what you prefer? Are you working on those areas you can improve upon? Have you set an intention? Do you have a dream? What are you more committed too? In other words, what are you really doing with your time? And I’m just not talking about your work, your family, your home, etc. I’m talking about those free moments where you could be practicing more mental techniques, more putting exercises, more visualizations, more alignment with good feeling thoughts. How committed are you? Or are you just venting?
Most likely we will find that we really aren’t as committed as we thought we were. Most likely we find that we are just venting our own frustrations with our own poor me self-judgment about ourselves. Perhaps we somehow thought we could fool ourselves? Perhaps we thought if I can only understand my swing…then perhaps I would improve? Look, it’s not my job to give you advice…I’m here to inspire and remind you that the answer and wisdom, lies within you. What do you think it takes to improve, to become better, to be what you desire to be? Here’s what I think: it takes commitment 24/7 training our subconscious minds into becoming the champion we all know ourselves to be, to keep on reaching for better feeling thoughts giving our focus and energy upon what we prefer. And this work that we do to ourselves can really be an enjoyable experience…and it’s supposed to be fun. Life and golf are supposed to be fun. Now if you are happy with where you are then so be it. Just remember nothing stays the same and becoming better, becoming what you desire to be next begins just outside the confines of our own limited and self-imposed comfort zone. We’ve settled for less. Most of us have settled for mediocrity. Ouch!
Now, if you truly desire to become a better golfer…you will be shown the way. You’ve just got to make that inspired commitment…and if your goals don’t scare you, then they are not big enough. The three steps to this process are: 1) You ask, 2) Source Energy (God) / the universe answers, and 3) You align vibrationally with your asking allowing it in and expecting it to happen. Ask and it is given…expect it to be so. You act as if it is so. It’s your work to clear the doubts, the yeah buts, ifs, and I can’t. These kinds of negative programming kill the whole deal. The way we clear our negative programming is to think new thoughts that are in alignment with what we desire - giving more airtime on this…gradually the negative will begin to fade. It’s why the Dalai Lama says, “It is essential to think strongly and forcefully, I can do it,” without boasting or fretting.
The universe always hears our asking, always answers and yes God does work in mysterious ways…most often we will be shown the awareness of the opposite of what we desire to be first. Just remember that in order to understand being calm and relaxed we must first experience being tense and uptight first. In order to understand being with an acceptable and embracing mental mindset attitude we first experience being frustrated and impatient. In order to understand joy and going with the flow, we first experience anger and struggle. How do we go about this business of changing the way we see ourselves? Life is always showing us about life itself. Are you open to hearing the message knocking on your door? The best place to begin is exactly where you are right now. Surrender to this voice, this Source Energy, God within, and let go, allow it to be, just be your self and let it be. This is the moment where things begin shifting. It’s what many spiritual beings call a paradigm shift – you see life through a new lens. The moment you understand that I’m not there yet, but I am at least pointed toward it…I am where I am…is the moment you make peace with yourself and begin your new journey of living the life of your dreams.
The formula is to first have a dream, then you take action, next you will be shown how, then you’re on your way to living the life of your dreams…from ambition and desire to meaning and manifestation. It all starts with your surrendering to your God Source within and in your commitment to playing full out. It’s really about allowing the Well-Being in, being connected, and going with the flow instead of resisting, being out of alignment, and paddling against the current. All emotion is about where you are standing in the stream of life. You are either allowing the Well-Being in or you are resisting it. It’s as simple and as complex as that!
What this takes is an awakening, an appreciation and a connection with your higher (authentic) Self. Connecting with your higher Self is what all champion’s eventually come to grips with. It’s about becoming who you really are. It’s about connecting with this incredible being that your soul already knows itself to be. It’s about getting yourself up to speed with who you are now becoming. Golf and life takes on a whole new perspective and paradigm shift once we awaken and connect more fully to this incredible power within. What is your soul after? What the soul is after is the highest expression of who you really are.
What are you more committed too? Isn’t it about time to get back in the game? I invite you to enjoy the gap from exactly where you are right now eagerly anticipating where you are going next? Begin closing that gap all the while embracing and being happy now. Reach for the best feeling thoughts you can and with enthusiasm and passion desiring to become better than you used to be. It’s about feeling good. The sooner you start feeling good without trying to control all of those exterior circumstances outside of your self, the sooner you will be on your way. So, go ahead and start feeling good right now before you even play…and all the good things in life will come into your experience. Most think that they will feel good when they play well. It doesn’t work that way. You’ve got to feel good no matter what. Soon the better it gets…the better it gets. It’s why champions are tuned in, turned on, and tapped in more often than they used to be. Be a champion! You too are meant to win just like Tiger!
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