My friend Nicole has been playing golf for two years now. Her husband gave her an old set of clubs that he had shortened to fit her height. I could tell that Nicole’s clubs were pretty stiff and heavy, so I suggested she buy a set tailored to her needs; Clubs that would help me, help her, and improve.
Both Nicole and her husband backed out. They explain that Nicole has made a deal with herself – she will buy the clubs when her golfing improves. Conventional wisdom would say they were right because Nicole’s skill level does not guarantee suitable clubs.
On the other hand, I couldn’t help it get better when golf clubs looked like sledgehammers. It was impossible to teach Nicole to swing her husband’s heavy hand with any dexterity or control. Since I wasn’t confident that the equipped clubs would translate into immediate improvement, I stuck with their strategy. As a science-trained golf instructor, I didn’t want to be that professional in the field selling snake oil.
In my experience, Nicole’s mentality is typical. You will only make a fin…