Many superintendents got their start working under the guidance of a veteran of the turf. Tim Moraghan, GCI columnist and principal of ASPIRE Golf, talks about the need for strong mentoring for the next generation of turf managers.
Why is mentoring an important issue?
It’s an important issue to me because, whether it’s for a life perspective first, and then a professional perspective second, it’s always good to have someone with experience that has dealt with similar circumstances that you have yet to encounter. You can always bounce decisions off of family members and friends, but it helps when you have a professional mentor who can help you with your on-course issues whether they be membership or staff or the what-ifs. The “What would you do if something like this were to happen?” or “How would you handle if this situation were to happen? What would you do if the weather is this way?” You always need a barometer to make good judgment calls. A very good superintendent told me once when it comes to maintaining a golf course, all superintendents are one bad spray application away from being out of a job.
So, as a young superintendent, someone who might be 30 years old, who can talk to someone in their 50s like myself, and I can say, “Hey, here’s how I would handle this. You don’t have to do it my way, but we had this situation before at my club and here’s how we did it. This is the kind of response you’re going to get, this is how you’re going to prepare your argument.” And if your superintendent has to go into a board room, at least they know how to approach people. At least they know how to handle questions and pressure. There’s qualities that you can impart on those who have yet to travel the pathway on how to be a good leader, how to be a professional, how to handle a tricky situation that all benefits the younger person that’s never been through it.
That’s why mentors and advisors and coaches are good. They help you adapt to situations. All these expert opinions of what to do – well, we’ve done it. These guys have been around in high-priority clubs and these are people we want to listen to. These are the people you want in your life. That’s why when I speak to any superintendent’s assistants, at the end of the presentation, some kid comes up to me and says, “Mr. Moraghan, that was great,” I say, “Give me your card. Here’s my phone number. You got a problem, you call me. I’m here to help.” I’ve been down the road, and it’s my job to help those who haven’t been down the road yet.
It’s nice to be able to pick up the phone and say, “Hey, partner, what would you do here? I’ve never been involved in this situation before,” or just talk to someone about your family or what you’re doing off the golf course. There’s all sorts of different reasons to have someone to bounce things off of. It’s very cliché but I say it all the time, a wise man seeks counsel. That’s called experience. If you are always looking for information and never settle for the status quo when it comes to knowledge, you’re going to be far better than you were. It’s just one more method of improvement.
Why go out of your way to mentor others?
Because people went out of their way to help me. That’s as simple as it gets. From my perspective, I’ve had a great career and I’ve had a lot of people help me along the way, from my father, to professional people, to athletes, to politicians to whoever. A lot of these people gave me advice that made me better at what I do, who I am and what I want to become, so why not do that for somebody else? It’s a giveback thing for me.
That’s the way you’re gonna win friends and influence people. It usually comes back to you threefold. The more you’re nice and the more you give, the more you get back. Whether it was Pebble Beach or Pebble Creek it didn’t matter to me, I was going to give them the same effort. That’s that giveback.
When you’re trying to be a good mentor, what are the things you should be doing?
I think, like anything, you don’t want to overdo it. You have to let that individual know you’re not going to tell them to put one foot in front of other. I think there’s a judgment call, like a coach. There’s a right time to pull someone aside and say, “Hey, how are you doing, is everything working out all right? I haven’t heard from you in a while. How’re things, how’s the family?” You need to have a little list of kind of personal questions, about the job, about the budget. You keep a record of people, of significant events, of birthdays. You know when they had kids. I could sit on the phone all day and pick whomever and call them up and say, “Hey, how’s it going? What are you going to do for Christmas? How’s the family? Did you have a good year this year?” If you’re a good coach or mentor, it’s knowing when to call. And you have to know when to let the people you’re mentoring contact you. You don’t want to be a burden; you don’t want to constantly be there. It’s just the timing of when to be considerate and concerned for others. And there’s some people who can do that very easily, and there’s some that can’t. I always try to associate with smarter, brighter, more aggressive people because that’s how I learn – I still want to do that.