The parallels between learning the ropes in market research and learning to play golf have shaped my approach to both, reminding me that progress comes from patience, practice and a willingness to embrace the challenge.

It has been just over two months since I began my journey into market research at Potentia, and during this time, I have found the experience to be rather similar to my first steps onto the golf course. Now the hobby I inject most of my spare time into (maybe too much!), it was once an intimidating prospect – just like my first day in the world of market research. Both experiences were marked by the cliched mix of excitement and uncertainty – standing on unfamiliar ground, surrounded by people who seemed to know every inch of the terrain while I simply hoped to keep myself in play. Just as on the golf course, those first steps were filled with anticipation and the dread of disappointing my more experienced teammates.

In golf, there is an initial rush of anticipation, quickly followed by the realisation that there’s a steep learning curve ahead: new terminology, unfamiliar tools and the pressure of not wanting to let your playing partners down. The comparisons were all too familiar here; navigating jargon like ‘nat rep quotas’ and ‘CPIs’ felt as alien as the difference between a pitching wedge and a sand wedge once did. As in golf, where I was missing the fairway, finding all the bunkers, and misreading the greens – the same was true at Potentia; my proposals were in the rough, finding the wrong CPIs and misreading client RFQs.

Across both environments, every mistake I made became a lesson to learn from, while every small success was a boost – not to mention the support and encouragement of more experienced players/colleagues, which consolidated these feelings further. In time, and with the support of my colleagues, I began reading the slopes of clients’ requests and started draining proposals like 30ft putts.

Above all, when people ask me about my new job, the main thing I focus on is the camaraderie and social aspect of the team here at Potentia. On the course, it’s about sharing a laugh after a duffed shot or celebrating a well-played hole. I feel this same atmosphere at Potentia, whether it be light-hearted jokes around the office or enjoying some of the social events I’ve participated in (although ironically, I missed the recent golf-themed one!). These social connections have helped me settle in, boosting my confidence and making each day more enjoyable.

My final transferable point is the importance of regular practice to improve your skills – developing new habits at work has been key in helping me find some consistency. I’m learning to approach each task methodically, double-checking my ‘stance’ before making a move – whether reviewing a proposal or preparing a cost table. Working in the office has also allowed me the opportunity to quietly pick up on the little things that my colleagues do to smooth out their day, even something as simple as prioritising tasks in a notebook has helped keep me on track when I get distracted by the novelty of a new task.

Funnily enough, as I wrap up this blog piece, it’s fitting that I find myself ‘teeing up’ a new challenge: upskilling in the project management side of our operations and helping run fieldwork on our sample-only projects. There’s still plenty for me to master in my current day-to-day tasks, much like perfecting my swing or learning to read the greens, but this fresh opportunity has brought with it a new wave of excitement, and I’m eager to add another club to my bag.

Hopefully, this post will come as a fitting compliment to the rest of my colleagues here at Potentia for creating such a welcoming environment and might even inspire some to get into golf over this summer (or, better yet, create an excuse to organise more golf-themed outings).

If you have a tricky hole of a project, send it to us here – we’d love to take a swing at it.