Be a Beginner

I’m playing in a golf scramble tomorrow. “Playing” is probably a generous term. This will be my third time participating in a golf scramble in the last two years but also my third time playing in my entire LIFE.

My husband enjoys golf and took me out to the driving range last night. I learned more about which clubs to use for what and which clubs I will likely never use, haha. He did an excellent job of teaching me about form from my hands to my arms to my feet and my eyes, it turns out, there’s a lot that goes into this game, and I truly had no idea and still only know just a little. That being said, Mario was very encouraging and offered just enough advice to help me participate without looking clueless.

He also celebrated little wins along the way which was very encouraging. He took videos at the start of our time together and then again at the end and pointed out improvements to my technique in that short time.

It’s amazing what a little encouragement and a low pressure environment can do for a novice. I didn’t need to be reminded of all of the things I was doing wrong…there were too many to count. What I really needed and what he offered was feedback about what was going right and how far I had come over a two hour period of time.

Equipped with just enough knowledge to get by, a cute outfit, and my very own set of women’s left-handed clubs, and I am about as ready as an inexperienced golfer can be.

It’s been humbling and somehow fun to be reminded of what it feels like to be a beginner in something. I’m not trying to make it to a PGA tour…I’m simply trying to keep up at an event tomorrow. Having a reason to learn something new pushed me to get outside of my comfort zone. With the stakes being pretty low for me other than my social “pride”, I’ve been able to simply enjoy the process of learning.

I think there are some lessons here for all of us especially those of us working with kids. If students are working on something brand new, it will be important to:

Start with only the most essential basics and allow them time to improve on those before moving forward.

Connect learning to things they already know or know how to do. It helps the brain make connections more quickly.

Keep the environment light-hearted and low pressure. If I was getting a grade yesterday, that would have stressed me out.

Celebrate the small victories along the way. They are reminders that our effort and behavior make a positive difference.

I hope you have an opportunity to be new to something this summer, and I hope you are able to enjoy the learning process along the way too. I believe new experiences have much to teach us and many of those experiences are transferable to the classroom.