Leadership is always risky for cowards...but who's scared now?

Surfers have a mantra..."No Fear", because when you look down the face of a huge ocean wave, you either chicken out or drop in for fun. You can't have the surfing experience if you don't overcome the fear of being crushed by tons of water if you screw up.

Overcoming the fear of failure is the secret to success, and that's the same whether you're dropping in on a wave or taking a leadership position in the highly controlled and conservative golf industry. Try to change golf's direction in almost any area and you risk being crushed by the weight of tradition and global corporations that "control" golf, golf apparel, golf equipment, golf ideas ...you get the idea. Anybody with any brains at all would walk away from the challenge of changing golf's environmental protocols.

Dude, surfers aren't brain surgeons when they drop in on 20 footers, but they are very brave. It's the same with zero wasters at the golf course. We may not be geniuses, but we're not afraid to challenge the industry to make fundamental changes that all other modern industries are being forced to make to save potable water, to reduce the use of poisons, and to reduce landfilled waste. In fact, we're enboldened by the positive response from our community, from our local integrated waste management authorities, county supervisors and other interested environmental groups, our club members and the public at large..

For me, this golf environmental leadership thing is all new, and in the beginning it seemed like the golf industry was a looming wave waiting to crush us under it's enormous weight...but you know, once we just threw fear aside and just dropped in on zero waste golf , we found ourselves on one of the most exciting, thrilling and fun rides ever.