Living Life in the Zone
Whistling Straits Golf Club in Kohler, Wisconsin, played host to the 2004 PGA Championship. The signature holes of this intimidating and beautiful dunes course, built on the shores of Lake Michigan, were holes 15-18. They were reputed to be “the four hardest finishing holes in Major Championship history.” I was fortunate enough to qualify for the event that year as a club professional from Illinois and as I walked off the 14th green in round two, facing those final four monsters, I had to par all of them to make the cut! In the five other majors in which I had competed, I had never made the cut. But this time was different, because this time I was in—“The Zone.”
For those four holes, and indeed for the entire day, I surrendered any attachment to my goal of making the cut and simply lost myself in the flow of the moment. I let go of controlling my swing, obsessing about my score and grinding over every shot—my normal way of playing golf—and instead, I allowed golf to be effortlessly played through me. Any concern over success or failure and any feelings of fear and doubt simply dissolved and what emerged was the joy of being and my pure potential. Not only did I par those final four holes to make the cut, but earlier in the day, I hit a 297 yard three wood to within six feet of the hole for an eagle on a par 5! It was truly one of the best shots of my entire life.
But the next day it was gone. I couldn’t get in the flow again. I couldn’t find “The Zone.” I went back to playing as I had in the past: grinding, doubting and trying as hard as I could—as if life depended on it—and my score reflected it. I shot 74-79 and finished near the bottom of the field. What had happened? How could one day be such bliss and the next be so bad?
Whether you are a golfer or not, you have experienced what I’m talking about. For a short period of time, and for some unknown reason, some aspect of your life flows effortlessly. Maybe it’s for a stretch of holes where you just can’t miss, maybe it’s a day in your career when every deal or decision turns out great, or maybe you and your partner are connecting in a way you never thought was possible. No matter what area of life it is, “The Zone” feels like we’re on an effortless, peak performance roll. But then for no apparent reason, it vanishes and we’re back to struggling. Obviously, we’d all like to get in “The Zone” and stay there. Since that tournament nearly five years ago, I have put my full attention on understanding “The Zone,” and I want to briefly share with you what I’ve learned.
States and Stages
The first thing I discovered about “The Zone” is that it is both a state and a stage of consciousness or performance. What I experienced in the PGA Championship was a state of consciousness, meaning, it was a temporary peak performance experience. States, by definition, don’t last, but if they’re entered into consistently over an extended period of time, they become one’s stage of consciousness or performance. Let me give you an example.
If I give you a golf lesson, I can get you into “The Zone,” a state of temporary peak performance. You may be a 20 handicap (your stage), but during our lesson, you will hit it like an 8 (a state). If, however, you diligently practice what I taught you consistently over time, maybe for years, that state of performance that you experienced in our lesson will become your new stage of performance. In other words, you will be an 8 handicap.
Here’s the crucial point. “The Zone” is the third stage of human consciousness and potential. If you want to live life consistently in stage three, “The Zone,” whether it’s in golf, business or life in general, you must evolve through each of the two proceeding stages by engaging in a few essential transformational practices consistently. I want to walk you through both the stages and those essential practices so that you can personally evolve to the point where you live, love, work and play in “The Zone.”
Stage 1: Victim Consciousness
In this first stage, a person believes that something external is causing their problem(s). Dr. Michael Bernard Beckwith calls it, “To me, by it.” Victims live with anger and fear because something, over which they believe they have no control, is happening “to them.” Consequently, victims spend most of their time blaming and complaining about “it.”
Golfers infected with victim consciousness always have a story about why they didn’t play well. It was their last lesson, their equipment, the pace of play, the weather, the greens or their playing partners. Tour player, Sergio Garcia, revealed his victim consciousness in the 2009 Masters by blaming Augusta National for his poor play, saying the course was “tricked up.” Victims in the business world also have stories for why they aren’t successful. They blame or complain about their bosses, the system, their customers and nowadays, the economy. In intimacy, victims blame their partners for their unhappiness. In each of these three scenarios, the victim isn’t responsible for what’s occurring in their life, something or someone else is.
Consequently, this stage is filled with drama, angst and misery, and if it is to be transcended, a person must engage in the spiritual practice of taking responsibility. That means to ask how they might be responsible for what is occurring in their lives. The essential practice here is to quit blaming and complaining and begin wondering how you are creating your life situation. Often this takes the help of a good coach or therapist but when you do have the “aha” moment and see how your struggle is self-created, then and only then, can you take control of your life and start making changes that bring you success and happiness.
Stage 2: Creator Consciousness
Embracing the truth that we are responsible for our reality, that there are no victims and that nothing happens “to us,” empowers us to create the life we most want to live. Stage 2 is about self-mastery, taking control and making things happen. The popular movie, “The Secret,” was about this stage and Dr. Beckwith calls it, “To it, by me.” At this stage, we impose our will on “it”, aligning our thinking patterns with the laws of the universe to create the life we want.
For instance, creator-stage golfers use the laws of repetition, intention and visualization to improve their game. Almost every sports psychology book on the market is a stage 2 book. They teach you how to control you thought patterns thereby freeing your body to execute your intentions. Business people learn to master the skills of time management, strategic planning and leadership to build successful careers. Intimate couples apply the laws of appreciation, revelation and keeping agreements to create harmony and closeness.
This stage is exhilarating because, finally, life starts to work! Realizing that we are the cause that creates the effect is incredibly liberating, yet many people never advance beyond this stage. It’s easy to get stuck here, addicted to the adrenaline of achievement. But stage 2, for all of its success, is anything but effortless and flowing. Often, life is a grind, full of stress and imbalance. Though we are master creators, productive and successful, we begin wondering about our life’s purpose and if there is something beyond the daily grind. This moment is often called a Mid-Life Crisis and it is a tremendous gift from the universe. If we can resist the temptation to medicate this moment with a new sports car or a partner half our age, we can engage in two essential practices that can transform our lives and propel us into “The Zone.” Those practices are surrender and meditation.
Surrender doesn’t mean going soft or being a pacifist, it means yielding to the divine. It takes enormous courage to let go of control and open yourself to what wants to emerge through you, not simply by you. To surrender means to stop being the creator and allow yourself to be created. It means to step aside and allow something divine to come forward through you, and as you.
As for meditation, “The Zone” is a state of consciousness and performance where thinking stops and being takes over. In “The Zone” the mind is quiet and peaceful and life flows without effort. And that mindless state is brought about through meditation. Additionally, meditation is the means by which we discover what wants to emerge through us and as us in the world. Put quite plainly, we can not get in “The Zone” and stay there if we don’t make surrender and mediation consistent practices in our lives.
Stage 3: Zone Consciousness
When you are in “The Zone” you are in the realm of Spirit and magic. Beckwith calls this stage, “through me, by It.” Here, miracles seem to occur because pure potentiality is realized. Trying becomes flowing and thinking becomes knowing. Our egos recede and dissolve as we allow ourselves to become an instrument of Spirit’s intention in our world.
At this stage, golf (or any sport) is played with great intentionality but with absolutely no fear because it’s not about us anymore. We aren’t playing to protect, establish or enhance our egoic self but to display our most authentic Self through golf. Concepts like competition, success, failure, winning and losing don’t exist in the consciousness of a golfer in “The Zone.” Nothing is at stake and we have no attachment to outcome.
In business, our attention is placed, not on survival or even success, but on what desires to emerge through our company or career. The passion of the zone businessman or woman is not to beat the competition, protect market share or even to get the next promotion. It’s, “What is Spirit’s intention for my business or career and what do I need to let go of, or become, in order for It to manifest?”
In intimacy, once a couple has stopped the drama caused by blame and created a high-functioning, passionate relationship by aligning themselves with the relationship laws that govern intimacy, they begin to inquire, together, as to what deeper purpose seeks to emerge through their union. Beyond their own ecstasy and intimacy, why are they together and how can they be a vehicle to bring It into the world?
In conclusion, “The Zone” is spiritual enlightenment expressed through golf, business and/or life. It is the birthright and calling of every individual and the only question is whether or not we will commit to our personal evolution, which is the doorway into “The Zone.”
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