I am Write

It is hard to believe it has been six years since I penned my first column for Golf Course Industry. Turfheads Takeover provided an outlet for this wannabe writer to share my thoughts on happenings within our industry. And that outlet eventually created the opportunity to share those thoughts more regularly as your back-page columnist.

How did I get here? I don’t know. Growing up I never fancied myself a writer. Writing my master’s thesis was definitely the most daunting of all tasks required of my advanced degree. Yet somehow while composing that scientific document I was learning and growing.

Three years after graduation, I accepted my first position as head superintendent and immediately was tasked with providing content for the club’s monthly newsletter. This was my first opportunity to tell stories about what our team does and why. Looking back at some of those early Turf Talks, I realize how little I knew then about writing.

When I arrived at Carolina Golf Club, there was a printed newsletter. I continued to make monthly contributions, this time under the guise of Grass Roots and went to work informing the membership so they could be “in the know.” My goal was to ensure the narrative spreading within the membership was not full of inaccurate misconceptions.

Like most things printed, the club newsletter eventually fell victim to the digital age, but I received the autonomy to deliver email blasts directly to the membership at will. For a while, this worked fine, but I eventually tired of merely communicating with the written word and desired to provide greater content with pictures, videos and more. So in November 2011, I created The Greenkeeper, my blog page.

I believe it was during the first two years of The Greenkeeper when I honed my writing skills and developed my style. I once received feedback from a member who was a retired English professor — and his technical praise certainly boosted my confidence. Two years later I joined Twitter and linked my account to the blog page so posts from each can work hand-in-hand informing the membership what they can expect day-to-day on the golf course.

Apologies for such a long-winded introduction, but the importance of communication — well-written communication — cannot be understated in our industry. Ask any superintendent who has been in their position for at least 15 years, and I am certain they can name at least one fellow superintendent who was relieved of their duties despite not a blade of grass being out of place on their golf courses.

Last month, I shared with you the parable of the clover: your written communications to owners, boards, committees, members, and/or patrons that is your opportunity to express clearly and correctly what is happening on the golf course and why. Remember you will be judged on your communications so it is important to overcome any anxieties you may have.

How do we overcome writing anxieties? The same way we overcome those associated with public speaking: do it. That’s right, get to writing. Practice and learn to become the most trusted and respected communicator at your facility.

Interdepartmental emails are a great place to start. Be professional, whether composing or responding, and make sure you don’t have any grammatical errors. Take the time and make the extra effort to ensure you are using the correct versions of to, too and two or your and you’re. And stop blaming your “smartphone” for the egregious mistakes. Learn why using ALL CAPS is frowned upon and take responsibility for your words. Make the effort to ensure what you are communicating is accurate and correct.

And if you have a great idea you want to share with your peers, write it down and submit it for a future Turfheads Take Over issue. The December issue has been vastly popular because your peers are most interested in what assistants, superintendents and others within the industry have to say. And who knows, you just might get asked to contribute more frequently. That is exactly how I wound up on the back page. And it has been fun and rewarding.

I thank you for reading and, more important, for interacting online when something strikes a chord. How long can I keep going? I do not know, so if someone out there is ready to step up and share their ideas with America, now is the time to write.