“C-E-A”
On March 17, 2024, at The Player’s Championship golf tournament in Florida, U.S. golfer Xander Schauffele had a one-shot lead heading into the final round and was still in the lead at the 14th hole.
Then it came a little undone. He missed a six-foot putt on the 17th hole and a birdie opportunity eluded him on 18 that would have forced a playoff.
He finished second by one stroke and the disappointment was visible on his face. Golf can be a cruel sport; many hearts have been broken out on the golf course.
The winner, Scottie Scheffler, pocketed $4.5M for the win. Xander tied with two other golfers for second and they each received just over $1.8M. The missed 6-foot birdie on 17 was very costly; $2.7M costly (had he won).
In an interview with CBC Sports following his second-place finish, Xander said, “My dad told me a long time ago to commit, execute and accept. I’m swallowing a heavy dose of acceptance right now. I tried to commit, I executed poorly on some shots, and here I am accepting it.” https://www.cbc.ca/sports/golf/2024-players-championship-march-17-1.7146502
Xander’s comments resonated with me. From 2021 to 2024 I competed in seven Toastmasters speech contests, winning at the Division level each time and proceeded to the District contests. There were ups and downs during those two-and-a-half years and the most memorable disappointment came in the spring of 2023.
It was the International Speech Contest and I aspired to make it to the Toastmasters World Championship of Public Speaking. I had done everything possible to prepare. I had a world class coach. I had revised my speech twenty-three times. I had crossed every “t” and dotted every “i.” I was committed and when my turn to speak came, I executed my speech to the best of my ability.
Then came the results. 3rd place – wasn’t me. 2nd place – wasn’t me. 1st place – wasn’t me. Like Xander, I felt disappointed and was left swallowing a heavy dose of acceptance. Like golf, hearts can be broken on the speech contest circuit.
When was the last time you had a goal that was very important to you, and you failed to reach it? Were you committed? How well did you execute? What was the result you had to swallow? Was your heart broken “out on course?” It’s hard to accept a result you didn’t want, but whenever you have a goal, there is a chance you may not reach it and that is part of the journey. It happens to all of us. From there we can move on to the next goal and commit, execute and accept once again.
What goal are you facing right now?
Are you ready to commit, execute and accept?
Recommended Resources
- Article by Keely Levins – “Do You Have Commitment Issues?” - https://www.golfdigest.com/story/do-you-have-commitment-issues
Monthly Challenge
- Take a piece of paper and draw four columns: one for your goals and one column each for commit, execute and accept. Track each of the goals for a one month. How did you commit? How well did you execute? What was the result?