Why We Chose ‘Mirrorball’ For Our Club Name
Ever since starting this club I have been asked countless times, why the name Mirrorball? Where did we pull that from? To put a long story short I pulled inspiration from a Taylor Swift song called Mirrorball. The song for me represents what it feels like to be a woman in the golf industry. Always trying and struggling to be enough for those around us.
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For those of you here for the long version of this story, the song compares a mirrorball (better known as a disco ball) to the feeling of not being enough for people. The reference ties the shattered brokenness of a disco ball to the way women feel when they try to be a million different people to keep everyone happy while working in male dominated fields. It also makes reference to the feeling of reflecting light back on everyone as a requirement for maintaining any level of importance, because what good is a mirrorball if it’s not lighting up a room?
Now for the good part, the lyrics!
(I want to preface by saying that a lot of this post talks about negative actions of men. However, I do know not all of the men in these industries are bad, in fact I’m lucky enough to work with a lot of good ones currently. The reason for this post is to shine light on the way women are made to act in certain settings. This is meant to be a peaceful explanation of a connection between a song and a feeling!)
“I'll show you every version of yourself tonight”
This is self explanatory, the way a mirrorball would reflect a million different directions, any woman who works in a male dominated field knows, we reflect men’s behavior back to them constantly. Often times men will do something inappropriate or say something absurd and then look at you and say “Oh, my bad I should be more careful in front of you”. These are the moments we reflect their true character back to them and make them realize what they’re really saying.
“When no one is around, You'll find me on my tallest tiptoes … Shining just for you”
Whether people are checking or not, always putting your best foot forward, trying to shine and bring light to every room so that when people do come back and look they know you were there. A lot of a golf professional’s job happens behind closed doors when noone is paying any mind to it. The countless hours of communicating with students, maintaining websites, marketing on social media, preparing lesson plans, continuing their education, the list goes on. A very small portion of our job is seen when we are out teaching or helping out in the golf shop. As women especially, we spend so much time trying to prove ourselves and let it be well-known that we are in fact professionals. I get asked constantly if I’m a professional, while actively teaching!!! SO… everything I do it to enhance the way my name gets around so that I can become a well-known professional.
“I can change everything about me to fit in”
This is probably my favorite line and the most relatable line in the song relative to this industry. To be a golf professional you have to be a jack of all trades. Marketing is on you, lesson planning, scheduling, every aspect of someone’s experience in learning is up to you. Lots of times you are their first golf experience ever, so it’s up to each professional to be able to give the best first impression of golf possible. One thing I have noticed from speaking to other women in this industry is that we are constantly trying to fit in with the men around us and fit in with our students as well. This means we have to be 100 different versions of ourselves to get the job done sometimes.
“And they called off the circus
Burned the disco down
When they sent home the horses
And the rodeo clowns
I'm still on that tightrope
I'm still trying everything to get you laughing at me
I'm still a believer but I don't know why
I've never been a natural
All I do is try, try, try
I'm still on that trapeze
I'm still trying everything
To keep you looking at me
Because I'm a mirrorball”
The bridge of the song (my favorite part of any song) gives the most vivid imagery of the closing down of a circus or a disco, everyone has gone home and theres the mirrorball still shining for everyone, just in case. My favorite line, “I’ve never been a natural, all I do is try, try, try” is so beyond relatable for me I had to include it in this explanation. I don’t know if this in particular is a universal feeling for women in golf and other male dominated industries, but I constantly feel like I am having to try and try and try again as hard as I can all the time to be what people expect me to be. I don’t know if that means I should be taking a different route or if that is just how working hard feels in a career like this one.
Long story short this song means a lot to me and relates on a heavy level to how I feel when I get to work this kind of job. I love the struggle it takes to do this and I wouldn’t trade it for anything. Growing the game I love through the challenges has to be the most rewarding thing.
Now you know our background and how we ended up here, celebrating women in golf and all of their shimmering beauty.
