So much of a turf manager’s job happens beneath our feet. Dry spots, insect damage, diseased and trafficked turf—we spend a lot of our day looking down. Looking for the next problem.

If we spend too much time looking for problems, we run the risk of getting mired in the negative. The job starts to feel like “work.” It begins draining us of our energy. We forget what drew us here in the first place.

If we spend too much time looking for problems, we run the risk of getting mired in the negative... We forget what drew us here in the first place.

We must remind ourselves to LOOK UP. Find something that takes you back to that moment you first fell in love with turf management—a sunrise, the dew glistening on the green in the early morning, or perhaps the sound of mowers humming in the distance against a quiet backdrop.

On this month’s episode of Trailing Thoughts, I take on the Maryland Heights trail overlooking Harpers Ferry, WV, a trail once considered so difficult that even President Lincoln was forced to turn back.

With the infamous “100 Days of Hell” fast approaching, remember that life is always better when you LOOK UP.