--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Musicians, like golfers, have to put…" description: "\"“Musicians, like golfers, have to put their minds in the right place – trusting, confident, enjoying the pressure, being in present. And so forth. Othe..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/788/john-eliot-15291_eliot_musicians-like-golfers-have-to-put-their_459977.png" --- # Musicians, like golfers, have to put their minds in the… ![“Musicians, like golfers, have to put their minds in the right place – trusting, confident, enjoying the pressure, being in present. And so forth. Otherwise, no amount of practice or “Time management” will make them better. The same is true in all professions: if you’re stuck in the Training…” quote by John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/788/john-eliot-15291_eliot_musicians-like-golfers-have-to-put-their_459977.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/788/john-eliot-15291_eliot_musicians-like-golfers-have-to-put-their_459977.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/788/john-eliot-15291_eliot_musicians-like-golfers-have-to-put-their_459977.png) > ““Musicians, like golfers, have to put their minds in the right place – trusting, confident, enjoying the pressure, being in present. And so forth. Otherwise, no amount of practice or “Time management” will make them better. The same is true in all professions: if you’re stuck in the Training Mindset, evaluating yourself, or thinking in the past or future, you will not perform up to your potential. You will waste a lot of time, be an inefficient performer, and likely assume you need to manage your time better. In reality you need to manage your thinking better. ”” [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Performance hinges on mental focus and presence; technical skill and time management are secondary to mindset. **In simple terms:** Mindset matters more than practice or time management. Key Takeaway Cultivate a present, confident mindset. Themes performance mindset focus Mood motivational reflective Type self‑help inspirational When to use this quote - music rehearsals - sports training - corporate meetings - creative projects - educational workshops Key Concepts psychology of flow cognitive control professional growth Questions to Reflect On - What mental habits hold you back? - How can you train your mind to stay present? A Different Perspective Changing entrenched habits can be difficult, and external pressures may disrupt mental focus. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Fitness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fitness/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Mindset](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mindset/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) [Time management](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time-management/) ## Related quotes > [I push my body to the limit all the time in training and in my mindset.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-draper/i-push-my-body-to-the-limit-all-the-time-in-training-and-in-my-mindset/) [Jack Draper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-draper/) > [I think I'm growing, becoming a little bit more mature. Thinking in a better way when I'm inside the court, in a more positive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-sakkari/i-think-i-m-growing-becoming-a-little-bit-more-mature-thinking-in-a/) [Maria Sakkari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-sakkari/) > [“Stop thinking for a while, then you will start thinking better; stop walking for a while, then you will start walking better! Apply the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/stop-thinking-for-a-while-then-you-will-start-thinking-better-stop/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) > [My life isn't perfect and neither is yours... so stop thinking that you're better than everybody else around you!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nishan-panwar/my-life-isn-t-perfect-and-neither-is-yours-so-stop-thinking-that-you/) [Nishan Panwar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nishan-panwar/) > [I'm not a big thinker. The less thinking the better.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-kershaw/i-m-not-a-big-thinker-the-less-thinking-the-better/) [Clayton Kershaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-kershaw/) > [“Writing is good, thinking is better. Being smart is good, being patient is better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hermann-hesse/writing-is-good-thinking-is-better-being-smart-is-good-being-patient/) [Hermann Hesse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hermann-hesse/) > [“Critical thinking is thinking about your thinking while you're thinking in order to make your thinking better.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-paul/critical-thinking-is-thinking-about-your-thinking-while-you-re/) Richard Paul > [The power of positive thinking had made me better and always solves my problems patiently.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-power-of-positive-thinking-had-made-me-better-and-always-solves/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I had gone through life thinking that I was better than everyone else and at the same time, being afraid of everyone. I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-wholey/i-had-gone-through-life-thinking-that-i-was-better-than-everyone-else/) [Dennis Wholey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-wholey/) > [I am sad but I hide it thinking it would be better another day](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adeel/i-am-sad-but-i-hide-it-thinking-it-would-be-better-another-day/) Adeel > [I try to be a positive person, but I'm also always looking and wondering, 'Maybe this could be done differently.' As soon as your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-heatherwick/i-try-to-be-a-positive-person-but-i-m-also-always-looking-and/) [Thomas Heatherwick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-heatherwick/) > [Every morning when I wake and every night when I go to sleep, I'm thinking about what I can do to become a better…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dwyane-wade/every-morning-when-i-wake-and-every-night-when-i-go-to-sleep-i-m/) [Dwyane Wade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dwyane-wade/) > [Nothing, to my way of thinking, is a better proof of a well-ordered mind than a man's ability to stop just where he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/nothing-to-my-way-of-thinking-is-a-better-proof-of-a-well-ordered/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [“Thinking there is something better out there in the world, something worth more than you already have- of all my mistakes,that was my biggest.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/louise-candlish/thinking-there-is-something-better-out-there-in-the-world-something/) Louise Candlish > [“On Dreams Only one thing supersedes the importance of thinking about a better tomorrow. It's taking action today.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vincent-lowry/on-dreams-only-one-thing-supersedes-the-importance-of-thinking-about/) [Vincent Lowry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vincent-lowry/) ## More by John Eliot > [To be a top performer you have to be passionately committed to what you're doing and insanely confident about your ability to pull it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/to-be-a-top-performer-you-have-to-be-passionately-committed-to-what/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [Great performers welcome pressure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/great-performers-welcome-pressure/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [Confidence is consistency of thinking about what is possible and how to make it possible.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/confidence-is-consistency-of-thinking-about-what-is-possible-and-how/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [If you really want to break from the pack, you have to risk being perceived to be as eccentric as these people. You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/if-you-really-want-to-break-from-the-pack-you-have-to-risk-being/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [cross that person off your invitation list.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/cross-that-person-off-your-invitation-list/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [Stick with your own perception of yourself-living in your own world-and letting your reality, not the reality presented by other people or particular situations,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/stick-with-your-own-perception-of-yourself-living-in-your-own-world/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [Superstars think like superstars long before the fans or the press anoint them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/superstars-think-like-superstars-long-before-the-fans-or-the-press/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [Great performers are, by definition, abnormal; they strive throughout their entire careers to separate themselves from the pack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/great-performers-are-by-definition-abnormal-they-strive-throughout/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [Overachievers don't think reasonably, sensibly, or rationally.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/overachievers-don-t-think-reasonably-sensibly-or-rationally/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [Perfectionism is simply putting a limit on your future. When you have an idea of perfect in your mind, you open the door to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/perfectionism-is-simply-putting-a-limit-on-your-future-when-you-have/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [I have discovered that I cannot enhance anybody's performance without getting them not only to live with the butterflies that come with high-pressure jobs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/i-have-discovered-that-i-cannot-enhance-anybody-s-performance-without/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [The idea of perfect closes your mind to new standards. When you drive hard toward one ideal, you miss opportunities and paths, not to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/the-idea-of-perfect-closes-your-mind-to-new-standards-when-you-drive/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [Elevated levels of confidence are omnipresent among history's greatest overachievers. Benjamin Franklin, one of the most famous men in the world even before he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/elevated-levels-of-confidence-are-omnipresent-among-history-s/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [Anyone who strays too far from the majority view or the conventional wisdom is bound to be labeled "arrogant," "a maverick," "a Wildman," "weird,"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/anyone-who-strays-too-far-from-the-majority-view-or-the-conventional/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) > [As soon as anyone starts telling you to be "realistic," cross that person off your invitation list.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-eliot/as-soon-as-anyone-starts-telling-you-to-be-realistic-cross-that/) [John Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) [Explore all 43 John Eliot quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-eliot/) ## More Eliot quotes > [“Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far they can go. —T. S. Eliot”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dean-karnazes/only-those-who-will-risk-going-too-far-can-possibly-find-out-how-far/) [Dean Karnazes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dean-karnazes/) > [Great literature has always been written in a like spirit, and is, indeed, the Forgiveness of Sin, and when we find it becoming the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-butler-yeats/great-literature-has-always-been-written-in-a-like-spirit-and-is/) [William Butler Yeats](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-butler-yeats/) > [Pound had argued - and Eliot had helped him prove - that a poem could be sustained by memorable moments. Olson proved that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clive-james/pound-had-argued-and-eliot-had-helped-him-prove-that-a-poem-could-be/) [Clive James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clive-james/) > [“The angels come to visit us,          and we only know them   when they are gone.     —George Eliot”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-brashares/the-angels-come-to-visit-us-and-we-only-know-them-when-they-are-gone/) [Ann Brashares](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-brashares/) > [I have but one life to give to adventure. " Alexander Eliot -" Life is a fatal adventure. It can only have one end.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-bors/i-have-but-one-life-to-give-to-adventure-alexander-eliot-life-is-a/) Matt Bors > [“The top eleven are, in order, T. S. Eliot’s “Prufrock,” Robert Lowell’s “Skunk Hour,” Robert Frost’s “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” William…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malcolm-gladwell/the-top-eleven-are-in-order-t-s-eliot-s-prufrock-robert-lowell-s/) [Malcolm Gladwell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malcolm-gladwell/) > [“Do we not wile away moments of inanity or fatigued waiting by repeating some trivial movement or sound, until the repetition has bred a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-eliot/do-we-not-wile-away-moments-of-inanity-or-fatigued-waiting-by/) [George Eliot](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-eliot/) > [When I was a teenager I fell in love with TS Eliot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/olga-tokarczuk/when-i-was-a-teenager-i-fell-in-love-with-ts-eliot/) [Olga Tokarczuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/olga-tokarczuk/) > [“Eliot was scornful of idle women readers who imagined themselves the heroines of French novels, and of self-regarding folk who saw themselves in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-mead/eliot-was-scornful-of-idle-women-readers-who-imagined-themselves-the/) [Rebecca Mead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-mead/) > [But you know, where did the Brontes go to college? Where did George Eliot go to college? Where did Thomas Paine or Thomas Jefferson…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamaica-kincaid/but-you-know-where-did-the-brontes-go-to-college-where-did-george/) [Jamaica Kincaid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamaica-kincaid/) > [Most people think that George Nelson, Charles Eames and Eliot Noyes invented industrial design. That is, of course, an exaggeration. George did it without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-n-lacy/most-people-think-that-george-nelson-charles-eames-and-eliot-noyes/) Bill N. Lacy > [Pound was silly, bumptious, extravagantly generous, annoying, exhibitionistic; Eliot was sensible, cautious, retiring, soothing, shy. Though Pound wrote some brilliant passages, on the whole…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-s-mathews/pound-was-silly-bumptious-extravagantly-generous-annoying/) T.S. Mathews > [Writers in the nineteenth century - people like George Eliot and Flaubert - were accustomed to addressing particular communities with which they shared not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pankaj-mishra/writers-in-the-nineteenth-century-people-like-george-eliot-and/) [Pankaj Mishra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pankaj-mishra/) > [Universities are filled with poets and novelists conducting demure and careful lives in imitation of Eliot and Forster and those others who (through what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gore-vidal/universities-are-filled-with-poets-and-novelists-conducting-demure/) [Gore Vidal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gore-vidal/) > [I don't know if I call myself a poet or not. I would like to, but I'm not really qualified to make that decision,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/i-don-t-know-if-i-call-myself-a-poet-or-not-i-would-like-to-but-i-m/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) Browse all 144 Eliot quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Musicians, like golfers, have to put their minds in the right place – trusting, confident, enjoying the pressure, being in present. And so forth. Otherwise, no amount of practice or “Time management” will make them better. The same is true in all professions: if you’re stuck in the Training Mindset, evaluating yourself, or thinking in the past or future, you will not perform up to your potential. You will waste a lot of time, be an inefficient performer, and likely assume you need to manage your time better. 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