Yes, equipment matters. But desire, heart, and your desire to achieve your goals matter more.
Philosophy
Something to think about
It is natural for people to think and act selfishly and egotistically and, because of it, it is equally natural for suffering and unhappiness to follow.
-Buddha
Learning to ignore things is one of the great paths to inner peace.
Learning to ignore things is one of the great paths to inner peace.
-Sawyer
So it’s not that I’m ignoring you, it’s that I’m seeking inner peace. 🙂
All silliness aside, it’s actually true, especially in this day and age of information overload. Frankly, now that I ignore Twitter, barely check Facebook, and probably catch up on my RSS feeds maybe once every couple of weeks (which involves a lot of “Mark All As Read”) well… let’s just say I don’t stress as much.
Now if I could just do the same at work… and get away with it. 😉
Iron and the Soul
Found over at RossTraining.com, a reprint of an essay by Henry Rollins.
I have never met a truly strong person who didn’t have self-respect. I think a lot of inwardly and outwardly directed contempt passes itself off as self-respect: the idea of raising yourself by stepping on someone’s shoulders instead of doing it yourself. When I see guys working out for cosmetic reasons, I see vanity exposing them in the worst way, as cartoon characters, billboards for imbalance and insecurity. Strength reveals itself through character. It is the difference between bouncers who get off strong-arming people and Mr. Pepperman.
Muscle mass does not always equal strength. Strength is kindness and sensitivity. Strength is understanding that your power is both physical and emotional. That it comes from the body and the mind. And the heart.
Emotional Updraft
It’s amazing what love can do. There is nothing that lifts us up more. In times of trouble, when somebody loves you, it brings healing. The more love the better. We know this, but strangely, somehow it often seems illusive. We want to love and be loved, but it can be so hard to do.
Continue reading at The Climbing Up Blog…
Goals and fundamentals
Top competition pistol shooter, BJ Norris, blogged about his 2011 goals.
Note. BJ is in the elite of competition pistol shooters, with numerous Open Junior National championships and also a World and National Steel Challenge SteelMaster title. He’s fast, he’s accurate, he’s good at what he does.
So notice what his goals are about:
- Dry fire 15 minutes daily
- Group shooting
- Physical readiness
What do you notice? It’s all fundamentals and working those fundamentals on a consistent basis. It’s also very calculated: shaving 0.1 seconds off his draw adds up to 3.1 seconds over the course of a match, and that’s HUGE at his level of competition. He wants to repeat the World title this year, and that will be all about speed and accuracy. So he’s doing what he can to go faster and do it in a calculated manner. Working group shooting will help his accuracy and work those fundamentals of sight picture, sight alignment, and trigger control.
It’s always interesting how we journey through something. As a beginner we learn the fundamentals but want to get on to learning the advanced skills because they’re fancy and exciting. But once you get to that advanced level, you realize that you need to go back to the fundamentals if you want to become a master. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing, it’s all about fundamentals. They’re never sexy, but you’ll never get anywhere without them… nor the goals to motivate you along.
Scout Vesper
I was digging around my office and found a Boy Scout Songbook.
Publishing date is 1963. I remember finding this book as a kid… must have been my Dad’s, but the publishing date was after my Dad was 18 so… not sure how it would have fit into his Scouting involvement (Dad is an Eagle Scout). Nevertheless, I always dug the book and could never part with it. It has a lot of good songs, and harkens back to a day when men were men not hampered and pussified by the political correctness of today.
Under the chapter “Closing Songs”, the first song listed is “Scout Vesper”. Sure it’s a Scout song, but I think it’s message is good for anyone to reflect upon.
Scout Vesper
Tune: “Tannenbaum”. Key: G. Time: 3/4
Softly falls the light of day,
While our campfire fades away;
Silently each Scout should ask
“Have I done my daily task?
Have I kept my honor bright?
Can I guiltless sleep tonight?
Have I done and have I dared
Everything to be prepared?”
Thought for today
This morning, two quotes from Shunryu Suzuki came over the Maku mozo! mailing list. In light of last night’s crazy journey, they felt appropriate.
The most important thing is to be able to enjoy your life without being fooled by things.
When you practice as though this were your last moment, you will have freedom from everything.
Stuff to ponder.
Good Cop, Bad Cop
Over at The Climbing Up Blog, a posting titled “Good Cop, Bad Cop”.
Nothing to actually do with police, but more a mindset about what differentiates a good person from a bad person.
The crazy thing? As I read the list of “bad cop” things I couldn’t help but think of politicians and our current state of governmental affairs.
13 tips for childlike behavior
Posted to Facebook by a friend of mine, an article about 13 communication and life tips that children teach us.
While the article is geared towards business and presentation, the 13 tips about child-like behavior are quite applicable to life in general.
- Be completely present in the moment.
- Allow for spontaneity.
- Move your body!
- Play and be playful.
- Make mistakes.
- Do not concern yourself with impressing people.
- Show your enthusiasm.
- Remain open to possibilities and “crazy” ideas.
- Be insanely curious, ask loads of questions.
- Know that you are a creative being.
- Smile, laugh, enjoy.
- Slow down.
- Encourage others.
You should read the whole article; it’s worth it.
As we grow older we tend to also grow up and take life too seriously. While yes there are moments when seriousness is called for, we must have balance and take time not be serious.
I remember when Oldest was an infant and first became mobile; how we had to child-proof the house. One thing that helped? Literally viewing the world through his eyes. I got down on the ground and put my eyeballs at the same level as his and looked at the world. I’m 6’3″ tall, so putting my eyes 2′ off the ground greatly changes your perspective on the world, literally and figuratively. Truly viewing the world through the eyes of a child does open your mind.
Stuff From Hsoi 