When I discuss success strategies with my patients, many of my favorite analogies are drawn from the game of golf. This sport is one of the best metaphors I know of for successful living because it contains all of the elements required for setting, tending and reaching one's goals.

I enjoy watching as well as playing golf, and my favorite event is the Pro-Ams. I find it fascinating to watch the likes of Bob Hope, former president Gerald Ford, Clint Eastwood, Tip O'Neil, Joey Bishop and Jack Lemmon give themselves over to the exhilaration of competition.

What is it about this sport that motivates already successful people to challenge themselves even further? The lure of the game is undeniable, for no less a personage than Michael Jordan, acknowledged as the best basketball player in the world, has stated one of his ambitions is to '. . . turn (golf) pro after my basketball career." And Lawrence Taylor, an all pro linebacker for the New York Giants who has had numerous bouts with drug addiction, considers golf his therapy.

I've learned that the excitement of the game comes not from getting the ball in the hole, but from the challenge of reducing the number of strokes it takes to achieve that triumph (ingrained goal setting). Life without goals is like a golf green without a flag, or a hole without a par.

The power of commitment is behind every success story, including the following:

Gail Borden-Borden's Milk & Ice Cream -  An eccentric inventor and drifter, witnesses the deaths of a number of children who drank contaminated milk. He finds a way to preserve milk so that such tragedies will not recur.

George Kinney-Kinney Shoes -  A widower with a young son loses his job at a department store. He dreams of becoming his own boss and scrapes together $1,500 to open his own store.

Thomas Alva Edison-Inventor of the light bulb, phonograph, motion picture, etc. - A six-year-old boy ponders ways to speed up the hatching of chicken eggs. His solution is to sit on the eggs himself. This initial glimmer of ingenuity was the precursor to the genius that later illuminated (literally) the world.

Estee Lauder-Estee Lauder Cosmetics and Skin Care Products - The little girl enjoys touching people's faces and hair, she loves to help make people more attractive. She dreams of becoming a skin care special- ist while she watches her uncle concoct creams and potions on her mother's gas stove.

Mike Ditka-Pro football player; head coach of the New Orleans Saints -  Living in a government-funded housing project in Pennsylvania, he dreams of escaping the mines of his home state. He knows sports, but more important, he knows what he wants.

Burton Baskin and Irvine Robbins-Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream - Two brothers-in-law have a simple dream of starting a business together and earning $75 a week. Their marketing philosophy is likewise simple, simply brilliant: they will serve one product 31 different ways.

Robert, Edward, and James Johnson-Johnson &Johnson Health Care Products -  It's the 19th century, and many surgery patients are dying from infections caused by unsanitary conditions. A young dreamer convinces his brothers to work with him on finding a way to produce sterile bandages.

Dick Clark-American Bandstand host  - After his older brother is shot down and killed in World War 11, the teenager listens to the radio to ease his loneliness. He dreams of someday being an announcer on his own show.'

None of these people were overnight successes, nor should you become discouraged if you don't instantaneously produce tangible results. One of the most valuable lessons I learned on the golf course was to take one hole at a time, in fact, to take one shot at a time. Many people who begin diets or health regimens become discouraged after a small setback. "I overate at a party on Saturday," or "I had a piece of calls at the office today and blew my diet.' They allow one to keep them from their goal and then think that the goal itself was the problem.

The best economists are intimately familiar with the workings of the Dow Jones. They know how to make the stock market run for them rather than over them. I will teach you the Dow Jones principle of weight control, which will put you in control of your metabolism. You will learn how and when to make sustenance deposits and withdrawals, to manipulate your diet as an economist manipulates stocks and bonds.

And speaking of economics, it is important to realize that you do have to pay a price for everything you want. In this case, the price is discipline. To achieve lasting good in our lives, we must have this attribute. No less a being than God made this decision, which he codified in a set of rules of life known as the Ten Commandments.

I have found this lesson the most difficult to master, but the rewards have been tremendous. I went through periods of dishealth, unhappiness and economic hardship. By increasing my capacity to withstand discipline, I increased my feelings of self-worth. As a result I became happier, more successful and more giving. In turn, I received more from my friends, my wife and my family. In response I gave more time, energy, and dedication. It's a benevolent cycle rather than a vicious one.

It was discipline that enabled me to reach my athletic goals in high school and later in college. I stand 5'8' tall, yet I played basketball despite the fact that I was told I was too short for the game. I would like to emphasize that I was not an unusually gifted athlete, but I was an unusually dedicated one. What I lacked in height, I made up for in perseverance. While not the tallest on my team, I was probably in better shape than any athlete on any team I ever competed against, and it showed on the court.

Discipline did not come naturally to me. When I played college basketball at Fairleigh Dickinson University, I developed the habit of smoking cigarettes. My uncle, Herb Punyon, warned me that cigarettes were addicting and would lower my stamina, but I was convinced of my own invincibility. I discovered that the consequences had caught up with me when I tried out for the United States Maccabea Team at age ZS. As I ran up and down the court, I found myself gasping for air. Despite my strong desire to succeed, my lack of discipline prevented me from reaching the standards I had set for myself. I threw away my cigarettes that very day. But I didn't accomplish that goal or my other goals immediately. Ultimately, though, I did materialize my dreams.

One of the secrets to keeping your large goals alive is to set smaller, interim goals. If you want to lose SO pounds, put that on your goal plan, but also make it a sub-goal to lose 10 pounds by a certain date. The excitement and self-confidence you derive from this achievement provides the feedback you need to remain on course.

Before you can make a map to your destination, you have to know where you are. Dr. Donald Gutstein, my clinic director and mentor during my internship, had a favorite quote: 'The ability to recognize ignorance is the first step toward knowledge.'

There are millions of people who believe they are fated to suffer from conditions ranging from obesity to poverty by forces beyond their control. Nothing could be further from the truth. God created men and women in his own image, and that image is not one of failure and lack. God created us to succeed, but it is up to us to follow his plan. "God's gift to man is life, and man's gift to God is what he does with his life.'

The first time I heard that quote, it was uttered by one of the most successful health practitioners in the country, Dr. Jimmy Gregg. I had heard that Dr. Gregg has been known to treat in excess of 300 patients a day, a figure that 1, as a busy physician, found difficult to believe.

Still, the reports were confirmed over and over, and it was true that people came from all over Michigan to see this man.

When, as a student, I first heard of him, he was already a legend. I set a goal to meet him, to learn from him. Then I developed my goal plan (a goal without a plan is nothing more than a wish); I decided that I would attend his next seminar.

I expected the man to have the charisma of Oral Roberts, the strength of Babe Ruth, the perseverance of Lou Gehrig, the personality of Ronald Reagan, and to stand at least 6'2' tall. I was in for a surprise. Dr. Gregg is approximately 5'6", and a good-looking man, though not as spectacularly handsome as a movie star. What is spectacular is his dedication to the principles of life,,his ability to give for the sake of giving. You see, Dr. Gregg is the ultimate healer, a doctor who will treat any patient regardless of his or her ability to pay. Dr. Gregg taught me his concept of health care, and to this day I am grateful.

I learned another lesson from him on the tennis court. On one side of the net stood Jimmy Gregg, who was at least 30 pounds overweight and did not look to be in the best of shape. On the other side was the new Eric Kaplan, trim, at least semi-athletic, and very competitive. Dr. Gregg defeated me 6-1, 6-0. 1 later learned that he not only treated Billy jean King, he frequently played tennis with her. The lesson here is not to judge others. We must only judge ourselves. We must learn from all people, by learning from their defeats it may lead us to our victories. 'Even a clock that doesn't work is right twice a day.'

I've also learned a great deal from another friend and patient, Jeff Reardon. Jeff is one of the premier relief pitchers in baseball. Presently he ranks third of the all-time saves leaders in the history of baseball. It would be easy to assume that in the four or five months that comprises the off season, he would take it easy and count his money. This is not true of Jeff, who spends the off season preparing himself for the following season.

Jeff is a man with a larger-than-life mission, which is why I enjoy spending time with him. I had the privilege of being with him during the 1987 World Series and had the pleasure of congratulating him for the fantastic success of the Twins. Did he sit back and bask in his success? Quite the opposite; not long afterward, he was talking about winning the next World Series.

Jeff wasn't born with a silver spoon in his mouth, nor did he have his victories handed to him on a silver platter. True, he has a gift, but he is not a natural phenomenon. He wasn't one of the people who signed on right out of high school. He honed his skills on the University of Massachusetts team, but after four years of college baseball he was not drafted by the pros. He entered pro ball as a free agent. The rest is Major League history.

In many ways Dr. Jimmy Gregg and Jeff Reardon are complete opposites. Their similarity lies in their understanding of the principles of goal setting. They are both dedicated and disciplined, and these common attributes explain their success in their respective professions. There are five major health goals--one for each facet of health:

1. Proper exercise

2. Proper diet

3. Proper rest and relaxation habits

4. Positive mental attitude

5. Proper nerve supply

It is known that Babe Ruth 'The Sultan of SWAT' was successful at hitting 714 lifetime runs. A total that many felt would never be equaled, a feat so spectacular that even today, years after his death, he is still a legend to every child or every person who ever enters the game of baseball. But, he also was the man who struck out a record of 1,732 times. The point here is, we as people will be remembered more for our successes than for our failures.

Another man who is remembered for his victories rather than his defeats is Abraham Lincoln. I think of Lincoln primarily as the president who brought our country through a bitter civil war, the man who ended slavery. I also knew that he did not begin life with the trappings 2 of success. But in Dave Dean's book, Now Is Your Time To Win, I was stunned to read the following concerning Lincoln: '

1816 Forced from home
1818 His mother died
1831 Failed in business
1832 Defeated for State Legislature
1833 Failed in business again
1834 Elected to State Legislature
1835 His sweetheart died
1836 Suffered a nervous breakdown
1838 Defeated for Speaker of State Legislature
1840 Defeated for Elector
1843 Defeated for Congress
1846 Elected to Congress
1848 Lost reelection
1854 Rejected for job of Land Officer
1855 Defeated for Senate
1856 Defeated for Vice President
1858 Defeated for Senate
1860 Elected President of the United States of America

Here was a person with a dream so strong, no failure could dampen it. We were all taught about his greatness. Now I understand that Lincoln's greatness stemmed from his perseverance. In 28 years of politics, he had four times as many defeats as victories. Most men would have decided that life was unfair and given up. Because Lincoln remained true to his goals, he eventually won the most important race of all. In 1860, not only was he elected as President of the United States, but he went on to become one of the greatest presidents our country has ever known.

Still think your failures are of great significance? Don't dwell on the times you failed to lose weight, to quit smoking, or to make a relationship work. Concentrate on your goals, instead. If you keep your eye on the green flag instead of the sand trap, you're halfway to winning the game.

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