Moments to Remember: Why Your Hobbies Are Your Best Business Strategy

Not too long ago, I stood in front of a room full of college students and told them something that surprised a lot of them. I told them that some of the most important business relationships I have ever built did not happen in a boardroom. They happened on a golf course.

Business deals are done on the golf course. You have probably heard that line before, and it is true. But the reason it is true has less to do with golf itself and more to do with something simple. Time.

Think about it. A full round of 18 holes takes about four hours. Four hours walking or riding alongside someone, talking between shots, watching how they handle a bad drive or a missed putt. You learn more about a person's character in four hours on a course than you often learn in months of scheduled meetings. That is not a coincidence. That is the point.

The Cigar Lounge Effect

Golf is not the only way I build these connections. On occasion, I like to sit down with a good cigar. If you have ever done this, you know exactly what I am talking about. You are not lighting a cigar for five minutes. You are locked in for 45 minutes to an hour, easy. No phone. No rushing off to the next thing. Just conversation.

Recently I attended my friend Jeff Nischwitz's 65th birthday celebration at King Corona Cigars in Tampa. About 17 of us showed up for a night of great smokes, good bourbon, and even better conversation. The photo from that night was actually submitted by a friend and published in Cigar Aficionado Magazine, in the July and August 2026 issue, under a section called Moments to Remember.

I love that title, because it captures exactly what I want you to take away from this article. Connecting with others is how you become known. It is not the transaction. It is the moment.

It Is Not Just Golf and Cigars

Another friend of mine recently told me about the leadership team at his company. On occasion, several of the executives head out on a deep-sea fishing trip together. Hours on a boat, nothing but open water, rods in the water, and time to talk. He told me plainly that those trips matter more than people realize. When it comes time for promotions, raises, and new opportunities within that company, the relationships built on that boat carry real weight.

That is not favoritism. That is human nature. People give opportunities to people they know and trust. And trust is built in moments, not memos.

Skill Gets You In the Room. Connection Keeps You There.

I want to be clear about something. Having a strong skillset and being a hard worker matters. It matters a lot. But in a competitive market full of talented, hardworking people, skill alone will not separate you from everyone else standing next to you. Connection will.

The people who consistently get chosen, promoted, referred, and remembered are not always the most skilled people in the room. They are the people others feel like they know. The people others trust. And in many cases, it is the hobbies and activities outside of work, the golf rounds, the cigars, the fishing trips, the dinners, that build that kind of trust faster than anything that happens inside the office.

Why People Pay for Access

Think about why country clubs, private clubs, yacht clubs, and other exclusive organizations exist in the first place. People do not pay those membership fees just for a nice golf course or a boat slip. They pay for time and access. They pay for a setting where relationships can form naturally, away from the pressure of a pitch meeting or a performance review.

That is the real value of these memberships. It is not the amenities. It is the moments those amenities create.

Find Your Version of the Golf Course

You do not need a country club membership or a boat to apply this. You need to find your version of the golf course. Maybe it is a weekly pickup basketball game. Maybe it is a book club. Maybe it is showing up to the same coffee shop every Saturday morning. The activity matters less than the consistency and the time it creates for real conversation.

At NEXTKNOWN, we talk a lot about Presence, Positioning, and People. This is People in its purest form. Becoming KNOWN is not about being the loudest voice in the room or having the most polished resume. It is about showing up, again and again, in the moments that build real relationships. The business will follow.

So take up the hobby. Join the group. Make the time. Somewhere between the fourth hole, the second glass of bourbon, or hour three on the boat, you might just build the relationship that changes everything.