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Before you know it, it’s already May again.
At a big company, you might be in the middle of training; at a smaller one, you might have just been assigned and started out on the front lines.
“This isn’t what I expected.” “I don’t understand half of it.” “The days fly by.” — many of you are probably living days like that.
First of all: well done. You’ve been working hard.
Becoming a working adult is already remarkable in itself.
Today, with a cheer for all of you new to working life, let us make one suggestion.
What you only notice once you start working
One of the big differences between student life and working life is that the goal is set from the start.
There are deadlines.
There are results expected of you.
The date of the presentation is fixed.
Your boss and your clients expect something of you — in every case, the goal is set in advance.
The ability to think about what to do now, toward that goal.
This is called “thinking backward.”
The difference between people who get results and those who don’t often lies right here. Not “trying hard, more or less,” but “working back from the goal to decide what to do today” — that alone makes a big difference to the quality and speed of your work.
Pool is a sport of thinking backward
As it happens, pool teaches this way of thinking naturally.
In 9-ball, you pocket the balls in order from 1 to 9, and whoever finally pockets the 9 wins.
In other words, the goal is always to pocket the 9 — and that is decided from the very start.
When strong players are at the table, they never look at “just the ball in front of them.”
They work back from the 9 and design a route to run out.
After the 8, where should the cue ball be so the 9 is easy?
Then how do you get from the 7 to the 8?
From the 6 — working backward like this, they decide the one shot to play now.
This has exactly the same structure as thinking backward at work.
When you are swamped with the task in front of you, in pool terms, you are “aiming at the ball in front of you, over and over, without thinking about the 9.”
Even if it goes in, your position on the next ball is poor, and in the end the 9 doesn’t drop — that happens at work, too.
Relationships change when you think backward, too
Thinking backward applies to relationships as well.
If your goal is “I want to build trust with this person,” are you working back to what you should do now?
What does the other person want?
What words will reach them?
What does it take to move from where you are now to the next step? — this, too, has the same structure as running out a rack.
If you act on emotion, or only deal with what is in front of you, in pool terms, you end up with “the ball in front of me went in, but now the next shot is hard.”
Keep the goal of the relationship in mind, and act by working backward.
This is by no means cold calculation.
It is something you can do only because you are thinking seriously about the other person.
What you don’t understand is nothing but room to grow
To those of you new to working life, just one more thing.
Even when told, “If there’s anything you don’t understand, just ask!”, you don’t even know what it is you don’t understand — is that where you are?
There is nothing at all to be ashamed of.
The boss who acts so important, the senior colleague with a bit of an edge — they were all there once.
Everyone starts from there.
What matters, first, is understanding what it is you don’t understand.
Take a note the moment a question comes to you.
And rather than asking a peer from your own intake because it’s easier, ask your seniors or your boss properly.
That is the shortcut to growth.
Pool is exactly the same.
Beginners consulting each other rarely get much better.
Ask people who are good, people with experience — that is the fastest way.
To ask is a moment’s shame; not to ask is a lifetime’s.
At work and in pool alike, ask the people you look up to, the people who can do it, and set your mind on truly growing.
Everything you don’t understand, everything you can’t yet do, is room to grow.
Right now is also when you can grow the most.
Learning to think backward would be reward enough, but pool has one more pleasure in store.
Man or woman, being good at it looks cool.
And pool is a sport where the gap between beginners and intermediate players is very easy to see.
With just a little practice, the difference shows: “This person can play.”
Get-togethers with coworkers and clients, days off with friends — “Actually, I can play a bit of pool” is something that starts conversations and gives you confidence.
A new hobby for a new stage
Right now, as one stage of life ends with school or a new job and another begins, is the perfect time to take up a new hobby or goal.
Pool can be enjoyed alone, with friends, or with a partner.
You need no special equipment or clothes, and most halls charge by the hour, so it’s easy to start.
You learn to think backward while having fun, you become cooler, and it has a good effect on your work and relationships — there aren’t many hobbies like that.
One request for those who already play pool
Lastly, a word for those of you who already play.
More new players enrich the whole world of pool.
Invite a friend.
Take someone to watch a match.
Share what makes it great on social media — small actions, piled up, build a great culture.
If you think backward from “a future where the pool world is thriving,” you should be able to see what you can do now.
New members of the workforce and veteran players alike, let’s make pool thrive together.
From the moment you pick up a cue, your backward thinking starts to work.
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