Scottish darts player Cameron Menzies uploaded his CV to job site Indeed as he considered walking away from the sport following a challenging start to the year. The 36-year-old made headlines when he repeatedly thumped a table in frustration after losing to Charlie Manby at the World Darts Championship.
Menzies had left his plumbing career last year after securing qualification for every major tournament except the Grand Slam of Darts. However, his promising beginning came to a disheartening halt, leaving the world number 29 questioning his future.
Job Offers and Hypnotherapy
Menzies was even offered his old job back, but recent improvement on the oche has convinced him to continue. He says he is now in a much healthier headspace. Instead of returning to his toolbox, Menzies reached the semi-finals of the World Cup of Darts, partnering Gary Anderson. The duo were ultimately beaten by eventual winners England.
“It’s just because I wasn’t playing well,” he said. “I even started my CV again on Indeed; that’s how bad it was. I had CVs out there anyway, but I put a few out and got two or three phone calls for jobs.”
He added: “My old supervisor that I used to work for even offered me a job. If I wanted to, he would give me my job back, no problem. There have been options for that, but the last two or three months have been progress. It was starting to get me down but now I am mentally good.”
Mental Health Improvements
In an effort to enhance his mental well-being, Menzies has been pursuing hypnotherapy. While the primary aim was to sharpen his performances at the oche, he has noticed benefits extending into other aspects of his life.
“It’s had a positive effect both at the oche and at home,” he said. “It’s helping me massively not just with my mental state of darts but it’s to do with life as well. So I used to really struggle with flying. I used to get so worked up. I am still not a massive fan of it but I don’t get so anxious about it.”
He continued: “Even with life and trying to get too much done at once it helps you solve problems one at a time. It has been a massive help for me. It’s something I thought I never would have tried until it happened. I feel calmer on stage now because I am enjoying it more. I had the fear of maybe not being able to perform, so now I am trying to enjoy the moments because I know how easy it is to lose it all.”
