Self-Talk and the Incredible Power of Words in Golf

Next time you play a round of golf, listen closely to your language and the words you say.  Notice how calmly or harshly your words are spoken.  Observe your tone of voice and how rapidly or slowly you speak.  Pay attention to your body language and sense how happy or tense your words make you feel.  Think of your intention (genuine or sarcastic) and what you really want to say. Self talk in golf is a very important factor in your success.

For many if not most of us, words are spoken automatically and unconsciously, making the self-berating expletives for which some of us are famous take on a repetitive and addictive life of their own.  While those who seem to complain the loudest often believe that with a few choice words they will “get a bad shot out of their system,” nothing could be further from the truth. On a purely physiological level, our angry words become toxic and raw, sending stress chemicals coursing into every cell of the body which translates into states of tension, resistance and “dis-ease.”

Self talk in golf

Conversely, kind, respectful words have a very different energy and feel, releasing into our bodies instructions which allow our movements to be in a peaceful and powerful Flow. On an esoteric level, which we are now looking at through the eyes of an invisible energy field that is being explored through the relatively new field of Quantum Physics, the positive or negative energy behind our words becomes a match to the golf shots we see.  Every word we speak is like a beacon or signal to which the Universe agrees, and what shows up in our golfing experience is simply an energetic match to the intensity and frequency of our thoughts, words, emotions and beliefs.  The issue with our language, however, is not with the language itself – words have no power in and of themselves – but rather with the calming or toxic energy that lies beneath the words. Conscious or unconscious to what we say, every word is immediately and powerfully assimilated in the cells of the mind/body as well as in every particle of the Universe.  Every word either empowers and strengthens our ability to perform or creates more anxiety, tension and fear. The power of the mind/body can no longer be ignored in the fields of peak athletic or human performance.

Don’t push away success

Optimal results will eventually find a way into our experience whenever we find a way to compliment and praise.  We also can do nothing but push success further away in every moment and with every word through which we are beating up on ourselves or blaming someone else. Gently guide your language and you will gently guide your mind. Change your self talk in golf and you will literally change your world.

Photo by Steve Newton

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