You Cannot Make Progress Without Making Decisions
Deciding can sometimes be the most difficult skill to master in life. A lot of people would opt to delay a decision, adding additional stress on themselves, then do what needs to be done. So many times, in life and in the martial arts we can get into an analysis paralysis mindset. In Karate a perfect example of this is when you are faced with a situation in martial arts such as a sparring. You might face a difficult opponent so you hesitate to react with your moves because you think you might get caught with a counter. From a skill set you might be evenly matched but unfortunately it is this type of hesitation that ends up costing you the match.
How does one become better at the process of making decisions? Taking deliberate action is like building a muscle. If your instincts are good and you trust your gut, you will often make the right decisions. So many times, I have seen our students and myself personally be in a rhythm with training where things seem to flow so seamlessly. Thought processes and execution happen with little or no effort and it is almost like you are on auto pilot and you can’t make a mistake.
Then something terrible happens you start to second-guess yourself. Perhaps you are faced with an extreme situation or tremendous stress that you have never encountered before. You begin to struggle, and it is almost like everything you do leads to a consequence. Breaking this pattern as a martial arts and in life can be very difficult however taking action is a very important first step.
With the constant changes over the past many months it can be really hard to see any positives from what’s been going on. If you look hard enough, in my opinion, it has forced a lot of people to make decisions on the fly. Often, we are told last minute this is the “New Norm” and we need to adapt and manoeuvre. Just like our sparring example the situation changes rapidly, and we need to make decisions in almost real time. If our students can be so resilient and willing to adapt so easily it cannot all be bad. I must think their ability to act and change will serve them for the greater good when they set out on their paths in life. If you try something and it does not work try something different. At the very least you are that much closer to the answer.
What is not going to help any of our students at First Choice Martial Arts is constantly wondering what tomorrow is going to bring. It is out of our control and only thing we can control is our mental focus. We spoke about this last week in our previous example and we continue to see the best from everyone at the dojo. We know and they know that movement is progress and progress is what it is all about. If you wait for the perfect time to go to class, if you wait for the perfect weather to go for a run, you just might end up sitting on the couch.
Sensei Chris