I just finished watching the latest seasons of Drive to Survive and Full Swing. Two of Netflix's long-running sport documentaries.
With this latest watch, I noticed something very specific that happens in both sports.
It's part ritual and part strategy formulation.
It's often done alone (in Golf) or with a very small group of people (in Formula One).
It's also done at a very specific time—before the main event.
In this post, I want to describe what this specific thing is, tell you when and how I do it myself, and point out its major limitation.
The Specific Thing
The specific thing I'm referring to, for lack of a better term (or for lack of me not knowing the formal term), is called the walk.
In golf, it's when a caddy walks the course before the player plays it.
In Formula One, it's when the team (and driver) walk the track before driving it.
I don't know exactly what they're looking at or looking for, the documentaries give some hints, but I'm not close enough to either sport to really get it.
What I do know, is what I'm looking for when I do my equivalent of the walk.
When and How I do the Specific Thing
For me, this often comes up when I have to present or facilitate in front of a group of people in a new space.
My walk involves physically going to the space and quite literally walking around in it.
During my walk, there are technical things I'm looking for, like how my computer will plug into a screen, if there even is a screen, what the sound system is like, if there even is a sound system, etc.
More importantly, I am trying to gauge something far less technical.
I am trying to get a sense of what the space feels like.
The space you're in evokes a sense of energy within you, whether you're aware of it or not.
When I try to gauge what a space feels like, what I'm really asking is what kind of energy this space might evoke from someone in it and as a speaker or facilitator, how might I play with that?
The Major Limitation of the Specific Thing
Last year, I wrote about my favourite mental model: The Map is not the Territory (2 min read).
The walk is essentially all about updating your map, by understanding the territory.
There's just one issue.
Isn't it obvious?
There's something missing in the walk.
That missing thing, changes everything.
In golf, it's the other players.
In Formula One, it's the other drivers.
For me, it's the participants.
The walk is a great way to update your map.
Just remember, the map is not the territory.
