Every sport has in it the concept of follow through. That is, completing the full motion of a technique. In golf it’s natural for beginner (and not so beginner) players to stop their swinging right after the moment of impact. This lack of commitment on a swing will assuredly send you on a stroll through the woods. “There’s just no fooling the ball,” a seasoned golfer will tell you. Follow through it seems impacts the results of just about everything.
After a night of partying, something had triggered my friend Mark’s motivation for change. I didn’t ask what had happened. I was just delighted Mark had finally decided to try Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, as it is a hobby of mine. Mark explained all of his reasons for wanting to join and I was thrilled at the sound of his dedication. Up until this point I haven’t successfully recruited any friends to join.
Unfortunately, this would still hold true as Mark never showed up. I was disappointed by his lacklustre excuses; they should have been nothing short of a car crash given his recent enthusiasm. As I felt my anger boiling, I made a small attempt to be mindful and realized my own lack of follow through.
Recently, I’ve become equally as excited about the opportunity to regularly contribute to The Mindful Word. I think about how exciting it would be to be part of a growing website and how great it would be to have people read and appreciate my work. What I didn’t initially consider was actually doing the work, that is: the amount of hours it will take, week after week, month after month, and potentially year after year to make a solid contribution.
In the same way, when I began Brazilian Jiu Jitsu I dreamed of shiny metals, and getting a black belt. Instead, my first year was about simply surviving long enough to not get tapped out from submission, which I was usually unsuccessful at. I’m truly thankful that it hasn’t come easy, as the struggles have made the journey all the more enriching.
How many of us get starry-eyed gazing into the window of opportunity, only to find that opening it is too much work? Whatever your goal may be, nothing happens until you take action. Yes, this is not exactly a groundbreaking idea. Yet, fantasizing about success, or hoping things will fall into place perfectly for us can be alluring. It can also keep us blinded from what is seemingly obvious.
Of all people in all places, Ashton Kutcher delivered a reminder to his fans about the necessity of hard work during his speech at the Teen Choice Awards. Over incessant screams from adoring fans Ashton explained: “Opportunity looks a lot like hard work.” With this, he went on to reveal his real name Chris and that as Chris he has been working extremely hard since the age of 13 to be where he’s at. Hopefully this message sunk into on some of his fans, that is if they were able to pause their drooling over him.
Ashton’s speech was inspiring but the problem with these types of messages is that they quickly fade and we go right back to our normal mode of being. Oftentimes, a breaking point needs to be reached to get yourself going, yet this too doesn’t guarantee anything. As was the case with my notoriously flaky friend.
Perhaps it is our “realism” that keeps us from getting going. We are intelligent enough to foresee the challenges of starting something unfamiliar and let the opportunity dissolve. The phrase “Just do it” might help cut through the chatter of excuses to get going. Although, you might still find that you’ve only half done it, slipped, and gone off into those familiar woods again. The phrase “Just keep doing it” may be a more helpful one to hold on to.
Image by gregorycosta from Pixabay
