As 2024 comes to a close, we take a moment to pause, reflect, and celebrate the progress we’ve made together. This year has been one of growth, transformation, and valuable lessons—both personally and professionally. We’ve had the privilege of working on exciting projects, discovering new ways to serve our clients, and contributing to the growth of the golf and turf industries.
Recently, I had the pleasure of hosting our team for a year-end podcast, where I asked each member to describe this past year in one word. The responses were insightful:
- Fulfilled
- Reinvigorating
- Growth
- Innovative
- New
- Pride
These words truly summarize our journey throughout the year. Listening to our team’s reflections reminded me of a concept from a recent book I read, The Gap and The Gain by Dan Sullivan. The book introduces a mindset shift between focusing on where you want to be (the “gap”) versus where you currently are (the “gain”). This perspective is key to cultivating a growth-oriented mindset and staying positive, even when faced with challenges.
The Gap vs. The Gain
- The Gap: This represents the space between where you are right now and where you want to be. It’s easy to get stuck focusing on what hasn’t been achieved yet, leading to feelings of frustration and inadequacy. This mindset can create anxiety, as you constantly compare yourself to an ideal or an unattainable goal.
- The Gain: On the other hand, focusing on the gain means reflecting on what you have accomplished. Rather than comparing yourself to future goals, you measure progress by looking back at how far you’ve come. This mindset fosters gratitude, satisfaction, and motivation, as it allows you to celebrate the improvements and successes along the way.
Avoiding the Trap of the Gap
While focusing on the gap can feel natural, it can also lead to feelings of imposter syndrome. By constantly comparing where we are to where we want to be, we can undermine our achievements and feel unworthy of success. It’s important to recognize that growth is a journey, and progress should be celebrated in the present moment—not just when we reach our ideal destination.
I can personally look in the mirror and think of numerous scenarios where I have self-sabotaged my own success and opportunities, because I played the comparison game. I see it with other professionals, and all too often miss opportunities to sell themselves at pivotal moments in a job search or board room setting.
When we choose to focus on the gain, we can experience a sense of pride, which can be a powerful motivator. Celebrating our gains—no matter how big or small—helps us authentically share our journey and build trust with others. This sense of pride in our progress allows us to approach challenges with confidence and showcase our growth in a way that resonates with potential clients, collaborators, and partners.
One of the biggest lessons from 2024 has been the importance of relationships. Our team has worked closely with golf course superintendents, general managers, suppliers, club owners, and industry professionals to better understand their unique challenges and provide tailored solutions. We’ve found that fostering strong, ongoing relationships is just as crucial as delivering results. The trust we’ve built with our clients has been one of the most fulfilling aspects of this year.
This year, we helped organizations find top talent in nearly 100 search projects, while also helping them take pride in their core values and culture. We’ve witnessed leaders evolve, teams strengthen, and organizations transform into more dynamic, efficient operations.
Our efforts went beyond recruitment—creating long-term partnerships and providing career development support to ensure our candidates succeed in their new roles.
We established a research arm of our company to help improve real-time market information and best practices to create data-driven changes.
We’ve incorporated AI and other innovative technologies to deepen our capabilities in sourcing talent, and streamlining our processes.
Creating a positive and professional work environment is not only important for our client partners to retain top talent, but is a central core value to our company. I am proud of the work our team put into developing their craft and capabilities, which ultimately will improve the level of service we provide our clients.
Reflecting on these milestones, I’m proud of the growth we’ve achieved, not only as a company but as individuals. The relationships we’ve nurtured and the impact we’ve made in the industry are what make this work so rewarding.
Thank you for trusting us throughout 2024. We are grateful for the opportunity to work alongside you and help you build high-performing teams. Let’s make 2025 even more successful by continuing to grow together.
If you’re in need of further insight and best practices, set up a FREE Talent Strategy Call with our team.
About The Author
Tyler Bloom is the founder of Bloom Golf Partners. A former golf course superintendent and turf professional, Tyler’s love of all things golf began at the age of six when he stepped onto the course for the first time.
Tyler has an Executive Certifacte in Talent Acquisition fro Cornell University and a degree in Turfgrass Science from Penn State University. With 20 years of experience in the golf and turfgrass industry, Tyler has worked directly with reputable club leaders at some of the most prestigious clubs to place over 300 professionals in executive and management level positions throughout the United States.
Are you ready to build a top-performing team that drives results? Our proven framework, methodologies, and implementation is based on our personal track record of developing world-class teams. In addition to talent acquisition, we provide leadership development and ongoing consultative services for the golf course and club industry. Our team has personally coached and mentored dozens of future golf course superintendents across the United States.