Of Davos, Golf and the Imperative Shift to Sustainable Growth

I've been in the snowy Swiss village of Davos for the past several days... feeling like a bit of an interloper... as the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum takes place around me.  It's been every bit as impressive... and just as quixotic... as I imagined it would be.

I'm not here as a delegate... obviously... nor am I  here with a media outlet, though I am writing.

For almost a year now I've been assisting a quietly brilliant Master of the Universe, Davos Man "world business leader" with a variety of writing projects.  I've taken to calling this my "day job" and that's what I've been doing this week... from the Swiss Alps. 

My access has been somewhat limited by the minion-ish badge I've been wearing, but the experience has been extraordinary.  I've gone to a numerous panels and met a lot of remarkable people and spent quite a bit of time doing last minute research and polishing for the"day job", but even though I'm not "reporting for anyone" or "covering anything",  I'll be taking a lot home with me,  much of it very pertinent to golf and the current focus on growing the game.

The theme of this year's WEF meeting is "The Great Transformation: Shaping New Models" and the conversations I've had here... in the conference hall, and on the frosty streets of town... all seemed to touch on the idea of an imperative shift towards sustainable growth.  What I find striking though, is that almost 5000 miles away, in balmy Orlando FL, the leaders of the golf industry seem to have been focusing on a similar agenda of transformation, and seriously looking at new models at their annual gathering this week during the PGA Merchandise Show. 

Regrettably,  Murphy's law once again intervened, dropping both of these two events (and the Sundance Film Festival and the Year of the Water Dragon celebrations) on the same block of late January days.

I missed the once yearly get-together with my golf writer and golf manufacturer friends and look forward to reading their reports and catching up with their news during the next couple of weeks.  The Farmers Insurance Open and the Abu Dhabi Championship are also taking place now and I've caught only fleeting snippets of each though I've heard latest rumblings (go Ryo / go Tiger).

I'll be back to my normal life... and regular-ish publishing schedule within a couple of days.  However,  the long journey home begins early tomorrow and it's time to pack up my yeti boots and attempt to sleep.