Tiger Woods’ Comeback at the Masters Reveals The Importance of One Unexpected Discipline You Need to Practice

[vc_row][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_column_text]As Tiger Woods roared victoriously on the 18th green of Augusta to celebrate his first major victory in over a decade, millions watched, enthralled.

After all, they’d seen something special.

It was the culmination of an epic comeback story that’ll be passed down from generation-to-generation. While few have fallen from grace quite like Woods, even fewer have bounced back so emphatically.

But how did the PGA icon accomplish what seemed like an impossibility just a few years prior—when he was a complete non-factor on the tour?

The answer, surprisingly, isn’t that he did more work. In fact, the biggest change Woods made was competing in fewer tournaments so he could be primed for pinnacle events like the Masters.

Perhaps there’s a lesson that corporations can take from Tiger’s story.

Rest Breeds Creativity

Due to injuries and age, Tiger Woods lost the physical tools (like his once monstrous drive) that made him so dominant.

The Tiger of 5-10 years ago simply pushed forward…and failed. While the newer, refreshed Tiger has a far better approach to the game

“[…] creativity plays such an important role,” Woods explains in an interview with the Telegraph. A view he might not have taken back in 2012 when he was unrested and overworked.

Scientists studying brain scans have learned that moments of creativity happen when the mind is at rest—not when it’s working on something. Interestingly, an IBM survey of more than 1,500 CEOs shows that creativity was ranked as the number one factor for future business success. Therefore, it’s not an unreasonable assumption that unrested employees could hurt a company due to their resulting lack of creativity.

And just like Tiger Woods’ new rest-heavy regime allowed him to hurdle over obstacles on the course, rested employees will conjure creative ways around workplace road-bumps.

Rest is Conducive to Empathy

The Journal of Psychology reports that one’s capacity for emotional empathy is hampered by poor sleep. In a nutshell, participants just cared less about other people’s emotions when their brains lacked rest.

As such, this could directly affect the workplace.

According to Forbes, there’s a 90% chance of employees staying with an empathetic organization. Furthermore, almost 70% of employees in tech, healthcare, and financial services claimed they’d make trade-offs on pay if it meant working for a more empathetic employer. Also, 87% of CEOs see a direct link between workplace empathy and business performance, productivity, retention, and overall business health.

These statistics suggest that corporations should take measures to harness workplace empathy. Since rest and empathy are correlated, promoting a healthy sleep schedule might be a great idea.  Setting boundaries for employees around when to work as well as and tasking employees with a reasonable workload could offset the overwork and stress that keeps most people up at night.

Creativity + Empathy = Success in the Workplace

Tiger Woods can teach corporate bigwigs about more than tightening up their backswings for the company tournament. Instead, learning from his newfound approach to rest can be a turning point for any business, because increased rest improves creativity and empathy.

When employees possess both traits, they’ll contribute far more to the overall success of a company.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space][/vc_column][/vc_row]