MONDAY MINDSET: YOU GOTTA GET GOOD TO BE GOOD

WEEK OF 8/12/24

 

Real talk, being a successful and capable fighter is cool.  You have confidence, your body is an extremely functional instrument, and people respect what you do and how well you can do it.

There’s a reason that people endure all the training, setbacks, injuries, pain, and costs of the development process to get to a high level.

And there are reasons that many of us want to “be good” at combat sports.  Some are noble, and some are just, let’s face it, a little vain.  And that’s ok.

But in order to be good, you have to get good.

Getting good is the hard part.  It’s early mornings, dietary discipline, and a lot of sacrifice.  It’s saying “no” to behaviors and habits that, while fun, don’t serve your ultimate goals.  Many people can’t, or won’t, make those sacrifices.  And, again, that’s ok.

The getting good part is what makes the being good part.  They are inseparable; unfortunately, there is no way around the requirements of getting good.  The costs are high, which is what makes being good so valuable.  And when we consider those costs in their totality, it can often feel, well, impossible.

See, we often focus too much on being good — and we are often disappointed when we don’t live up to that ideal, or when crossing certain milestones aren’t as monumental as they’d seem (everywhere you go, there you are, you know?).  Being good really isn’t some finish line or destination that we can eventually walk to.  It’s a state of being, of harmonizing your life around the pursuit of getting good, and at some point looking back and realizing to yourself hey, I actually did it.. I’m not half bad at this thing.

It’s looking back on the physical, mental, and emotional transformation you’ve made over time and realizing that, while you may feel like the same person you were when you started (and, in many ways, of course you are), you are also a completely different person.  A more capable, fearless, and disciplined person.  The same person, but more refined.

You may not feel capable, fearless, or disciplined — after all, it’s human nature to always move the goal posts — but looking back the changes will be apparent.

So rather than look foward to some idealized state of being, focus on the ground in front of you.  Focus on the getting, because the getting is the being.  And every once in awhile, take a look back and see how far you’ve come.  You may realize you’re closer to your goals than you actually think!