Balance

This past month I have been reminded how difficult it is to maintain balance in your life. It is always a struggle to prioritize, or even recognize what should be your priority, when each aspect of your life is interwoven within the fabric of your life’s other aspects. At the end of the day, no matter what decisions you make, there are always consequences - both good and bad.
I have never been one to second guess my decisions, at least the decisions that have been made for the right reasons. Yes, I have made some spectacularly bad ones in my lifetime and hindsight is always a vicious undertaking but bad decisions for altruistic reasons happen and as such I accept them and move on.

What I have always had difficulty accepting is that no matter my motives for the decisions I make, there will always be people who will interpret them in the least favourable light. So the challenge for me is to keep my head up and carry on, if my conscience is clear, and not pull a David Brent by ensuring my decisions are not influenced by the pursuit of popularity but rather by what I truly believe.

“Popularity is not leadership.” - Richard Marcinko (b. 1940)

Work In Progress

I’m over halfway through my second consecutive UBBT and I’ve had my share of ups and my share of downs. Obviously the ups are what everyone wants but I find it is the downs that really define the challenge. My ability to adapt and continue to progress in spite of what obstacles are thrown my way has given me the confidence and drive to pursue mastery every day and in every situation.

The perpetual injury situation isn’t anything new for me nor is it unusual for someone as active as I am. It definitely makes me feel the challenge and I learn something new about myself everyday.

My goals continue to evolve as I develop new skills and master old ones. I am happy to say the UBBT process has permeated my entire life.

“The wise adapt themselves to circumstances, as water moulds itself to the pitcher” - Chinese Proverb

Lost and Found

I know of a man who lived his life as if time was endless. Tomorrow was always in the horizon carrying the promise of possibility so that accountability for today never existed. He was oblivious of what he consumed and treated the earth as if her resources were infinite. Years had passed before clarity was found and with it came an awareness of lost opportunities, the preciousness of time, and the miracle of life. Each day is a gift and if each moment is lived as such, life becomes effortless.

“Our days are numbered. One of the primary goals in our lives should be to prepare for our last day. The legacy we leave is not just in our possessions, but in the quality of our lives. What preparations should we be making now? The greatest waste in all of our earth, which cannot be recycled or reclaimed, is our waste of the time that God has given us each day.” - Billy Graham (b. 1918)

Progress

I’m halfway through my second consecutive UBBT and as some of my students approach their black belt grading, I have been reflecting upon the value of the UBBT process. The relentless march of time is something we do not have any control over but we do have 100% authority over what we do with our time.

I shudder when I think about the amount of time I have wasted over the past twenty years - always waiting for significant ‘free’ time to apply to my kung fu. Raising my children and running my business all while working a full time job, pretty much guarantees the term ‘significant free time’ will never apply to me. The power of incremental progression has become the lynchpin in my training regime.

Over the past couple of years I have been able to annex over two hours a day to apply to my kung fu. A schedule like mine only provides for snippets of free time several times throughout the day but by applying myself consistently during these seemingly insignificant intermittent intervals, I end every day several steps closer to achieving mastery.

My daily meditation regime continues to be an integral part of my training success. Meditating gives my mind the focus to recognize the multitude of opportunities as they present themselves that allow me to progress incrementally everyday. After a couple of years of small daily progress, I have achieved significant improvement in areas that have been stagnant for a long time.

If only I had applied myself this way twenty years ago....

“Every day you may make progress. Every step may be fruitful. Yet there will stretch out before you an ever-lengthening, ever-ascending, ever-improving path. You know you will never get to the end of the journey. But this, so far from discouraging, only adds to the joy and glory of the climb.” - Winston Churchill (1874 - 1965)