Daddy the Caddie

by Sean Saunders

I was on the move to the hospital with my wife at 10:00 on a Thursday evening. My wife delivered a beautiful baby girl at 4:18 the next Friday morning. I understand now what it means when you become a dad and the feeling of joy you have when you see your baby for the very first time. There is no greater gift than the gift of life. Winning golf tournaments is exciting, but it doesn’t compare to the experience of child birth and meeting Brooklyn.

As in preparing for a golf tournament and studying the course before I play it, my wife and I also had a birth plan. The birth plan helped us understand what we needed to do to make the pregnancy and labor process more manageable. When I prepared for college tournaments, I studied the golf course by strategizing what club to use for different golf shots and where I should aim to hit the golf ball on the best part of the green or fairway. When I had a plan to help me manage the golf course, I had more confidence which helped me play better and record lower scores. If you fail to plan, you plan to fail. I have been more successful in life and my golf career since I’ve taken the time to plan ahead.

I was a caddy for my wife throughout the pregnancy and labor process. A good caddie is a person that helps a golfer perform at their highest level because they do all of the little things that take place behind the scenes. A caddie carries the clubs and bag, keeps score, walks off yardage, gives advice, cleans equipment, and the most important task of giving encouragement and support when the golfer needs it. After my wife delivered Brooklyn, she thanked me for being there to give her support throughout the entire process. It was important for my wife to know she wasn’t alone. Helping my wife focus on her breathing during labor pains, holding her hand, and giving her encouragement were my major responsibilities as daddy the caddie. We won the best prize of all in the tournament of life!

Swine Flu - Seriously?

by Dr. Tiffany Schafer

Swine Flu, Seriously? What’s next?

A few years ago we had the Avian or Bird Flu scare, now it’s the pigs? Seriously, what’s going on here? Well, what the larger health organizations and biased news media are not telling you is that these flu’s are around and infecting many people every year. So the next logical question is why is Swine flu a big deal this year? Well, aside from the political and economic conspiracy theories circulating, we need to touch on Swine flu history in the US, what the current scare is, and why vaccines don’t fit into the equation for the majority of the population.

Here goes. Swine flu, aka Spanish Flu was a large problem in the early 1900’s. The current flu is similar to the 1900’s outbreak strain, but it is not the same. In approximately 1918-1920, a very large percentage of the world was infected and millions died from the virus. In this pandemic, normal healthy individuals were becoming infected and dying. Currently, with today’s strain, only the immune suppressed, babies, and elderly are dying. An example of immune suppressed would be people south of the border where sanitation and food preparation are not what they are north of the border. Improper sanitation makes the immune system work harder giving viruses a better chance to infect and do their damage. Babies don’t have fully functioning immune systems and elderly immune systems start to decline as a part of aging. What everyone is not making clear is the current scare. It’s not that swine flu is infecting again; it does every year. The difference is that the healthcare community is expecting a mutation that will be harmful for normal healthy individuals, or the majority of the population.

The common cold mutates so often and so fast that we aren’t able to create a vaccine for it because a vaccine is specific to one strain, not every strain or variation in one season. Think of writing a story. You’re going to read back over it and proof-read it making punctuation and grammatical changes. The story is the same, just a newer, better draft. This is like the minor mutations viruses make. Same theme but different enough our bodies have to go through the immune reaction again. Imagine one day you wake up and the story you once wrote doesn’t appeal to you anymore. Just like in the movies, you wad it up and shoot for two in your office waste basket then write the story completely over. It’s the same story but told completely different. This is a larger, more dangerous mutation of a virus, more dangerous because the gap between the mutations is more than our immune systems can adapt to.

Let’s touch on the vaccine topic. What they aren’t telling you with the vaccines is that for the general population (the normal and healthy group), any mutation renders the vaccine useless. The healthcare community is expecting a mutation by the end of the summer. The hope is the new mutation will be similar enough to the current strain and a new vaccine will be easily modified, but if that is the case, the normal and healthy population will survive the mutation without the vaccine anyways.
The best thing to do is to take care of yourself. Hydrate properly, eat a healthier diet, and take a good quality, well rounded vitamin. Exercise and chiropractic adjustments increase the number of immune cells in the body. It’s like creating more soldiers verses sending the exhausted ones to the line. You can also get good information on diet, supplements, vitamins, and mineral recommendations to increase your immunity and all around health from your family chiropractor or naturaphathic doctors.

Introduction: Dennis Mayes "On the Move"!

by Dennis Mayes

My name is Dennis Mays and I'd like to start out by telling you a little bit about myself and why I'm on the move in Springfield. Having lived in this wonderful little slice of heaven all my life, I have had the chance to see some awesome things happen here. Granted "all my life" only covers twenty-one years, but in that time Springfield has grown considerably. From things like a new ice rink and minor league baseball stadium, to big city fly-over interchanges and airport terminal.. There is no doubt in my mind that just like all of us, Springfield is on the move and growing. It seems to me that year after year new sub-divisions and apartment complexes are popping up all over the place around town. This leads me to believe that I'm not the only one who enjoys the little things like Fair Week, Mexican Villa, and cashew chicken that make Springfield what it is today.

Now why I'm on the move. Just recently my mother (Kim Batson) has opened the newest coffee shop in Springfield, Sinatra's Coffee Gallery. Being the amazing mother she is, she has bestowed upon me the honor of taking care of her "baby" during the week while she attends to other matters. Some of you may have been in, others of you might not have had the opportunity to visit us yet. Either way we are here to provide "you" Springfield with: excellent drinks at an exceptional price. At Sinatra's we also offer meals and snacks to accomodate any size appetite. Whatever you may come in for, you can always count on being treated with respect and getting exactly what you ask of us, because after all we wouldn't be in business if it weren't for the great patrons of this city. Honestly a coffee shop can "survive" anywhere, but it wouldn't make getting up with the crack of dawn as rewarding as it is in Springfield. Thanks!

Staying "On Course"

by Sean Saunders

This week, I had the opportunity do a playing lesson. I was on the move to Deer Lake Golf course. Playing lessons are my favorite because I get to spend more time with the student and it really lets me know what is going on in their golf game. Playing a round of golf and hitting range balls are two different things. I’ve worked with a lot of golfers who hit the ball great on the driving range and then they get bad thoughts going on the golf course and play poorly. I try to get my students to play like they practice and practice like they play. It is important to have a pre-shot routine and to focus on the process of hitting a good golf shot rather than focusing on the result. As soon as my students start thinking about not hitting the ball in the water hazard or out of bounds, that is when they tighten up and make bad golf swings resulting in exactly what they didn’t want to do in the first place.

Playing lessons also allow me to teach a lesson that goes beyond the golf course. Golf teaches you about life lessons. I can learn a lot about someone by just playing a round of golf with them. For example, a student’s true colors come out when playing a round of golf with them such as cheating, losing their temper over a bad shot, their personality type by watching the tempo of their golf swing, and how they manage the golf course and the decisions they make. I can tell if my student is a risk taker depending on what club they use in certain situations. I can also tell if the student has integrity because they follow the rules. Golf is the only game where the player makes the decision on what the ruling is and whether they play by the rules. I’ve had to teach many of my students about etiquette and what you are supposed to do if you hit the ball out of bounds or in a water hazard. I don’t expect my student to know all of the rules, but my students that are planning on playing in tournaments and they need to know the rules, I try to keep them informed on how to look up rules in the USGA rules book.

A goal I set for each one of my students is to help them improve their game and have fun playing golf, but I also want them to explore for themselves the greater lessons learned from this great game. “The Mulligan” written by Wally Armstrong and Ken Blanchard is a book I recommend reading that hits on the life lessons learned from the game and the Old Pro. This book reminds me to try and keep balance and not let work and results control my life. It is a constant struggle as a Golf Professional during the golf season to maintain balance. I want to continually push forward and see my business grow into something great, but I also can’t lose focus of my personal and family life. I am a Type “A” personality who sets goals and tries to achieve those goals as soon as possible and making sacrifices if needed. I am also expecting my first child any day now and I know she is going to change my outlook on life forever. I know that if I am going to be successful in my career, I need to prioritize my goals and make sure spiritual and family goals came first. If I can’t reach my spiritual and family goals, I’m not going to be happy and that will keep me from being successful.

Quality Relationships = Success

by Don Harkey

Have you ever noticed that successful people often seem to "know everybody"? At a first glance, you might think that its just because people know who they are. However, if you spend some time with successful business people, you will find out that they not only have lots of contacts, the contacts they have are high quality and interactive. In other words, its not just the quantity of relationships that is key, it is the quality.

A key to business is developing relationships and a key to relationships is that they are a 2 way street. Randy Mayes' talks about a "Relational Progressive Model" (RPM)in terms of developing any relationship (applied here to businesses). These steps include:

1) Connection - Both parties meet and recognize the potential for value in knowing each other.

2) Communication - People begin to converse, share ideas, and get to know each other.

3) Cooperative Action - Both parties now see real value in each other and begin to partner, often in a very simple way (ex: give each other a referral).

4) Commendation - "Potential" value becomes "real" value through the experiences of the cooperative action. In other words, both sides are seeing the other person live their value.

5) Commitment - A relationship based on trust has been developed.

Very successful people know that valuable business (and personal) relationships occur only when all 5 steps are taken. It is easy to collect business cards from different network events, and MOST people who network live in steps 1 and 2. The REAL relationships occur in steps 3-5. Believe me... one REAL relationship is worth a thousand business cards!

Just some advice for people "on the move"!

Giving Back

by Sean Saunders

I was on the move this week working with Phys. Ed. programs at two private schools in Springfield. It reminded me of why I love my profession and enjoy helping the youth. The best reward of being a PGA Professional is teaching a game to juniors that soak up the information you give them and gain an interest in golf. The classes I helped teach were only 30 to 45 minutes long so I was only able to teach the students the basics, such as grip, aim, set-up, and the difference between the baseball/softball swing and the golf swing. Going to the schools and getting to know the students is an effective way to promote Swing Right. Many of the students don’t want to play on a golf course yet, but they enjoy playing a round of miniature golf or hitting balls on our driving range. Swing Right offers the youth a fun place to learn and enjoy different areas of golf with their family.

I also want to get the youth involved in a game they can enjoy playing for the rest of their lives and possibly receive a college scholarship. I was fortunate to work with the state champion in Iowa and see him go to college on a golf scholarship. He was a sponge and worked diligently on the techniques and mental approaches to the game. It gave me confidence to know my teaching philosophy and style helped him excel.

Many kids aren’t introduced to golf because it is expensive to play or they just don’t get the opportunity to play so they pick up another sport that is more convenient. I haven’t touched a basketball, baseball, or football since college when I played intramurals because they are team sports and you have to get everyone together to play. With golf, all I have to do is fire up the simulators at Swing Right and play a quick nine at Pebble Beach or Torrey Pines. I don’t have to worry about not being able to walk because I blew out my knee from trying to fake out my buddy on the basketball court. I love sports as much as the next guy, but I like getting out of bed without feeling like I got in a fight. I also see the majority of our youth spending the majority of their time on the computer or playing video games. Educating parents to invest in golf for their kids is a great way to help their children be more active and not get hurt like in other physical sports. Carrying your clubs for a round of golf is a workout. It is also a lot of fun being outside and enjoying the outdoors. An organization called the First Tee helps inner city youth get the opportunity to learn how to play golf and also teaches them about life lessons. A website that would be of interest to youth in southwest Missouri that would benefit from the First tee is http://www.thefirsttee.org/club/scripts/section/section.asp?NS=FL.

Great People in 417!

by Don Harkey

I really love this town!

One of the great things about living in Springfield is getting out and meeting some of the people. If you listen to the radio or watch the TV these days, all you hear about is bad news. If you get out and meet people, you will find innovation, creativity, strong ethics, and people who are simply working hard.

Last week I met Matt and Shelley Wehner at Cabinet Concepts by Design. They purchased the business over a year ago and have had a challenging, but very successful first year. You should see the cabinets they are putting out!

I also met with Rebecca Austin with Strive 4 Savvy who is putting together a Seminar at the Executive Conference Center in Springfield on June 5th called "Success Seminar - Its All in Your Head". This all day event features several area speakers and lunch... all for only $30! She is innovating and finding ways to help people manage their time better. (Contact me if you are interested in getting tickets)

I met Nicole Piper at Child Care Resource and Referral, an agency of the Council of Churches of the Ozarks. Her agency provides child care referrals to anyone in the community who is trying to find good child care. She can help with training for child care providers and can connect parents with resources.

These are just a few of the people I met with in the past couple of weeks who are working hard and are really energizing. What a great job I have where I get to spend time with such exciting and interesting people who are creating real value for the community and for themselves!