Failure is an option

Years ago, my father told me "True failure" is when you do not even try. He was a firm believer in Nietzsche. "That which does not kill you, only makes you stronger." He explained to me, any failure which doesn't kill you, is an opportunity to learn a lesson. He may have regretted telling me this with all the trouble that ensued over the years.

I tend to throw out challenges to get people's reaction. My favorite is one hundred Frogjump/pushups. Most people fail at just the mention of Frogjump/pushups. They are not easy. 10 of them will make you question the sanity of the exercise and 20 of them is the limit for most people. 40? Oh god no! Why not?

Someday, I am thinking of Bungee jumping, without the bungee. Where is the chance of failure there? It is easy, just calculate the number of bungees by your weight, distance to travel and the amount of "boing" you want. My thoughts are, How much iron shirt training would be necessary to crawl out of the crater and walk away. Sounds crazy, impossible? Yeah, to most people. I have fallen 35 feet and walked away, why not a hundred? So this is how I approach life, everything should be a challenge to me.

Now, we all pick icons we compare ourselves to. I find most people do it, just to place themselves. He/She/It is stronger, faster, smarter, weaker than myself. We do this as a society, it is our way of finding our place. I tend to look at people who are more than me. Then I ask why. Why are they stronger? faster? This is where my study begins. I watch people closely to learn their "secrets".

This is not easy. Learning all the finer details of becoming better as a person, takes a lot of time and effort. Having a mentor or guide is a big boost to a student's growth. As martial artist, we tend train with attitude we are doing it right unless we are told otherwise. With a guide, we have a mirror to ourselves, constantly reminding us of lapses in form. But we cannot have a personal trainer with us all the time, or can we?

Can we become more responsible for our own training? Watching our forms? Take the time on the next correction and look at your body. And then feel the positioning; the spine, the head, the shoulders, the knees. These areas will all have a certain feel to them. After time, this will develop better body awareness.

Once a student develops body awareness, they can better compare themselves to their icons. You will see the finer details of movement and then can start applying these revelations to oneself.

In a matter of time, you will be doing the extraordinary that others consider impossible. Just never shortcut the details.

Rock on.