Parnell’s wisdom.
Month:March 2018
The story behind The Puddle Club – Part 6 – PERSONAL PAR
One of the big ideas we present to readers in The Puddle Club is something called “Personal Par”
Most folks understand what par means in golf — Par is the number of strokes (hits) it should take you to get your ball from the tee box into the hole. Each tee box has a marker nearby that tells you what the par is. A par 4 means it should take 4 hits, par 3 means 3 hits, etc. Par is the same for every golfer and never changes. The only thing that is variable is the tee box itself. Most golf courses have three that are set at different distances from the hole. The par remains the same.
Personal Par is a little different. Personal Par is the number of tries it takes you to reach a goal in life. You’ve set the goal, now you must work towards that goal. Someone who reaches the goal quickly has a low personal par for that achievement. Someone who takes more time and has a longer journey has a high personal par.
A high personal par is not negative!
Instead it just means the journey may take longer and be more interesting. The real important part to remember is that the journey is what matters most, not the result. You will win some and lose some but nothing happens if you don’t get moving towards your goal.
Every human being has a fluctuating personal par that is low or high, depending on the situation, skill set and obstacles. The exciting thing is that over time you can bring your personal par down by mastering the skills needed to reach your goal.
So what are you waiting for?
Set goals and begin your journey because winning and losing are just PAR FOR THE COURSE in the game of life.
The story behind The Puddle Club – Part 5 – Game Of Life First
Today I’m going to go over the underlying theme of The Puddle Club and briefly examine why the book is resonating so deeply with readers of all ages.
How many times have you heard the expression “life is just a game”? I’m guessing quite a few, because it’s one of the truest of truisms that everyone hears but few adhere to.
Instead, most folks adhere to Practiceopolis, which coaxes one into a perpetual training-mode for the game of life, while masquerading as the playing field itself. Practiceopolis is a defeatest state-of-mind and entire industries have been created to cater to those under it’s spell.
This is a trap. It removes the danger and dangles the life-changing journey before you like a carrot on a stick. Someday you’ll be ready…but not now, so why try?
The true game of life is played out on the wide-open fairways of possibility, the rolling hills of uncertainty, the sandy pits of doom and the seemingly dead-end of losing it all.
Sometimes losing it all is what it takes to make you see clearly again.
The fundamental key to the game of life is simply to play though every situation as the temporary challenge that it is. Move from one hole to the next. It matters more that you dig in and play than if you win. Winning is a symptom of playing with a purpose and always giving your best effort.
Folks who are in this “fully alive” state, all know the game, their purpose, and most importantly, how to play through to the best of their own abilities. The other part of maintaining this positive state-of-mind is to always be on the lookout for your inner Gollum. The temptation to stop playing and instead protect your “precious” is ever present and removes one from the game entirely.
This theme of knowing yourself and playing through accordingly is what makes The Puddle Club the enduring book that it is becoming.
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