The game of golf presents excellent life lessons.

In last month’s PGA Championship, a young man by the name of Keegan Bradley made history. He became the third player to ever win a major championship in his very first attempt. The bigger news to me however, was his admirable example of resiliency.

The 25-year old rookie was one-stroke back on the 15th hole when he committed the cardinal sin. He chipped his ball in the water and carded a triple-bogey, essentially eliminating him from contention (Note that this is a cardinal sin for the pros, just another day on the course for me). With only three holes to play, he found himself down by 5 strokes.

Resiliency defined is the ability to “bounce back” from adversity. Bradley did just that by making birdie on the next two holes and scoring par the very difficult 18th hole. Behind him, the leader faltered and by the time dust had settled, they ended up tied and headed for a 3-hole playoff, where Bradley eventually prevailed.

I’ve played golf for over 30 years, including competitively in high school. One of my challenges has always been to remain focused after a bad shot or bad hole. Invariably, the bad play would carry over for the next several holes making them “collateral damage” and frustrating me. Fortunately for Keegan Bradley, he had a different mindset.

How resilient are you in business and in life?

You may challenge me and say that my example is about a game, and not “real life.” Not quite. For Keegan Bradley and his fellow competitors, this is their boardroom. A triple-bogey for them on the 15th hole of a major is akin to losing a major account or stumbling on an important project. The concept of “resiliency” transcends sport and life and becomes one of mental toughness. When you’re going gets tough, are you mentally prepared to get going?

Business resiliency takes both practical and mental practice. From the practical side, Bradley needed to hone his game to completely trust it. That takes hours and hours of practice time. Do you completely trust that your organization is prepared to respond to adversity? If not, that’s on you. Preparation, planning, and practice (see last month’s column) are necessary components to ensure that from a procedural standpoint, your business can be resilient. The first step is making sure you have your “A game.” This means knowing yourself, communicating expectations to your “team,” and having the humility and self-confidence to move forward boldly in the face of a challenge. This only comes from experience scraping your knee a few times. Learning from your mistakes and being able to respond and lead in crisis are essential for any leader of any sized business.

Stress is the other major component in the concept of resiliency. In fact, it may be the most crucial. How we respond under pressure will reveal how well prepared we are and what level of confidence we possess. Stress has the ability to make us tense up; freak out; become depressed; lose our cool; go into a shell; make bad decisions; and say dumb things in the heat of the moment. In hindsight, we get to then say, “I wish I had…”

If you’re the leader, all eyes are on you. Your demeanor, your words, and your actions will be scrutinized and evaluated by all involved. Just like preparing your organization for resiliency, you must mentally prepare yourself. Golfers simulate pressure and work with coaches to prepare for stress. What do you do? If you’ve not prepared yourself to tackle stress, then you’re a triple-bogey followed by two double-bogeys waiting to happen! Take time to simulate stress; practice your response; and use a coach to develop your mental game.

Keegan Bradley was resilient because he practiced his game and his mindset. It earned him a championship. Honestly look at your “game” and determine if you’re prepared to respond like Bradley to the next triple-bogey you encounter.