Every day as a Curated Golf Expert is different. I have worked with Curated since February of 2021 and have helped a good number of customers find new equipment that will help enhance their game. I am excited to get to tell my story and describe what it is like for me to work as a Curated Golf Expert.

One thing that’s really awesome about Curated is that every expert comes here from a completely unique background around golf (or other outdoor adventure). There are quite a few of us, myself included, who work Curated as a second job, but there are other experts who work for Curated full-time. The beautiful thing is that each Golf Expert could write a piece just like this and no two pieces would be exactly the same.

An Average Day in My Life

My days vary quite a bit, depending on what day of the week it is. On a Monday or Wednesday, I go into the office for my day job, working as a Market Development Specialist. Tuesdays, Thursdays, or Fridays, I work from home. Earlier in my time at Curated, I was working in shipping logistics at a third-party trucking brokerage.

An average weekday involves checking in on my customers at Curated during my lunch break. The ability to move around my break to fit my schedule is a huge plus for me. This way, I can take my break and make it to Curated trainings and events as often as possible. I have taken training meetings for Curated from my company atrium, my car, or while taking a walk outside. The ability to work virtually anywhere really helps me to maximize my time and make sure I continue to learn and grow my knowledge in golf to help my customers to the best of my ability.

The real story begins after 5:30 p.m. EST, or 6 p.m. if I have to commute back from the office. I generally will get home, make some dinner, and then focus on Curated and my customers. I keep up to date during the day and generally will be open and honest with my customers: “Hey, I am working my day job right now, but I will send you some new ideas later today once I am back home on my personal computer.” Most people are very understanding, and some even are complimentary of my work ethic.

Once I get home, I try to focus on answering any outstanding customer requests or issues first. After that, I will look at my workload and see where my time is best spent that day. I will do follow-ups with customers and check in to make sure that everyone is taken care of and all questions are answered. I also contribute to the Curated Expert Journal and enjoy writing different articles, so I’ll check my progress on whatever article I am drafting and make sure that I am caught up in that aspect of my role as well.

Occasionally, I will be asked to contribute in other ways on various projects or initiatives. I enjoy doing as much as I can to help Curated and I love working as a Golf Expert. Each day is different and each customer’s unique game and experience helps me to learn more with every customer request that I receive.

My 2023 Curated Goals

I have really grown in my role and in 2023, I hope to take some further steps forward with Curated. An average day can vary, so I am hoping to use some space in this article to write out my goals for the year and how that will impact my day-to-day. My Curated goals and my golf goals definitely overlap some, so I am excited to spell these out and put them into a public forum. Hopefully, towards the end of the year or early next year, I can write a review article that explores how my year went compared to these goals.

More Golf Rounds

The first goal that I have for 2023 is to play more golf myself. I am an avid user of the GHIN system, so I have good data for how many rounds I have played per year over the last decade. Golf season here in Western New York mostly is between April and October, with the occasional round outside of that for an early spring day or a golf trip.

As you can see from the chart above, my rounds per year were at an all-time high a decade ago, which makes sense given that was my last year of junior golf before college. I started working in the golf industry at age 16 at my local course and continued working in golf ever since, minus in 2020 during the pandemic. Over the course of the next five years, I had one year (2014) where I played a fair amount while working at Holiday Valley in Ellicottville, New York. However, I hadn’t been playing much and it was frustrating to go out and struggle. I am a feel-oriented golfer, so without reps, my game deteriorates quickly.

After a large lull during college (2013-2017), my rounds per year started to pick up in 2018 in graduate school and had been on a positive trend year over year until 2022. Last year, my number of rounds was cut by more than half. My goal in 2023 is to head back in the upward direction and try to improve my game, which will only happen by getting out and swinging the club more. This will only help not only my own love for the game but my ability to better relate to and speak with my customers as I try to get my game back into form right along with them.

Golf Content

Another goal for Curated that I have in 2023 is to grow my online presence as a Curated Golf Expert. In 2022, I started an Instagram account for my experience working in golf and my love of the game. It is small now, but my hope is to increase my content and show my journey this year working to grow my game. This time of year, it is hard to come by golf content in Western New York given the weather, but as the year progresses, I want to learn more about growing my account and reaching more fellow golfers who I can talk with about the game.

This may or may not lead to additional Curated customers as I reach out and grow my community of golfers, but I look forward to being able to better connect to the larger golf community around the country and learn more each day. My fellow Golf Experts have been already so helpful in working on golf content advice and I look forward to getting to know my coworkers better and seeking their expertise in various areas of the job.

Caddying

One thing I really enjoy is caddying in the summer. I have been caddying at The Park Country Club in Williamsville, New York since 2018 when I moved to Buffalo (minus 2020 when there were no caddies during the pandemic). I didn’t get out to loop very much in 2021 and was lucky enough to be able to do so more in 2022. I hope to continue to increase my loops, as well as get out on Mondays to play and practice at the course more in 2023. This would also be great for my content as I can share what the experience of being a caddie is like.

Summary

Every Golf Expert here at Curated is unique and has their own experience to share. I thoroughly enjoy my work for Curated and look forward to the upcoming year as an expert. I have worked multiple jobs since I was 16 years old and I can firmly state that Curated is my favorite second/side job that I have ever had. I am so blessed to be able to continue to assist my customers and work with such a great group of people. I am excited to continue my work in 2023 and hope to keep everyone updated on my year and all the wonderful goals I have set for myself this upcoming year, which will only help me to fall deeper in love with this wonderful game that I’ve played since the age of three.

Reach out to me here if you’re interested more in what it’s like to be a Curated Golf Expert!