You Can’t Buy A Swing

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While I’m sure most of you aren’t as obsessed with golf as I am, I hope you managed to watch some of The Masters yesterday.  Even if you don’t like golf, it was hard not to get caught up in the excitement of Phil, Tiger, Kenny Perry, Angel, and Chad.  Watching them it was interesting to notice how different each of their swings is and it brought to mind the golf truism that “you can’t buy a swing.”  Of course, there are supermarket-sized golf stores that cater to those who believe otherwise. The reality is that a repeatable, dependable golf swing comes in many variations and is the result of years of practice.  Just like business!
What I mean is that many managers think they can “buy a swing” somehow to fix what ails them.   While folks like me are hired to do just that, I think of consultants more as swing coaches.  Our job is to get you to find the natural swing you have, help you repeat it, and help you form a level of confidence in it that will help you hold up under pressure.

Bad golf coaches teach a single swing and try to change the golfer to swing their way. Great ones find the flaw in what you’re doing and help you correct it in a way that fits you, even if the result is something that doesn’t fit the classic mold.
What I’ve found is that every business is different.  While the goals and balance sheets may be similar to others, the management, the culture, and the specifics of their customer base require a unique solution for each one.
Jim Furyk‘s swing is wrong for Tiger even though they share the same goal – get the ball into hole with as few swings as possible.  In fact, there are those who say Furyk’s swing is just plain wrong.  Well, he’s won majors, he finishes high on the money list each year – how wrong can it be?
You can’t buy a swing but you can buy a good teacher. You’ll still have to do the work but at least you’ll have an extra set of eyes and ears to help you get in touch with the greatness that’s within.