Hidden in the Shadows

     Over our lifetimes we will have many successes along with many more failures. The failures define who we are. They give us the strength to endure, and the knowledge to succeed. The successes give us the drive to continue. To find more ways and other things to succeed at. Success comes in many forms. From taking your first step, finding a job, throwing a seemingly effortless kick with perfect alignment, your 160th push up of the day, to not getting toothpaste on your dress shirt while getting ready for work, again.
     One thing that I have noticed, is that in the wake of an enormous achievement or success, we all seem to become blind to the small successes. Like the valley cast in to darkness from the shadow of the mountain, these small successes seem to get hidden in the shadows. It seems that the larger the achievement or successes, the longer this remains true for.  It's not like you don't recognize that there has been a success with something different it is almost like the smaller success doesn't matter as much because it wasn't as big or didn't have as much impact.
     I know that I have suffered with this for the past couple of years. For some unknown reason, we put an immense amount of pressure on ourselves thinking that if today's wins weren't as big as yesterday's that somehow we have failed. We know and understand as decent human beings that we shouldn't judge others from their past actions. So why are we so quick to do it to ourselves?  Why in the wake of great achievement is it so hard to recognize that we are still making progress?
     If you notice that you are doing this to yourself like I am, I urge you to stop it! How you say? That I am not 100% sure. I do know one thing for sure though. The first step is being aware enough to recognize that you are doing it. 
   

Sharing with the World

     From the very first blog that I have written for the IHC, I have also posted the links in Facebook as well as in Google+. It was kind of a scary thing at first. I am not usually that outgoing, and definitely don't share with many people the things that I have been blogging about. One cool feature that Blogger has is that you can see who is looking at your blogs. Not exactly who but the originating country and also how they accessed your blog.

It is pretty exciting to know that people outside of the IHC regularly read the blogs that you post. 

     There is a certain amount of anticipation and excitement while you wait for your first like or comment on Kwoon Talk after you post a link. Other social media outlets also provides this instant gratification. But there is a little more to it than just that. Lately I have had the opportunity to spend some time with some "friends for the past". People that I had become friends with through work or other friends or even from high school but have not seen in quite some time. In seeing these people I was amazed how many of them had been reading my blog and had some comments about it. This would not have been possible if I was not posting the links for them on Facebook. I would encourage everyone to take that leap, as scary as it might be, and share your experiences with a wider range of people. 

Weathering the Storm

     This summer has been harder than I could have imagined to keep up with my commitments. I have been searching to find a reason, and during that search found many excuses. 

     A few months ago now I was having lunch with someone that I used to work with. During our conversation over lunch he had asked me why I was doing all of the stuff that I was doing. Getting up early, going to the gym four days a week, doing extra training, fitness class Saturday. I paused for a moment, looked at him with a blank stare and told him that I wasn't really sure. 

     I think that most of the populace is quite happy living in comfort or mediocrity. Those who choose to rise above this and become more, who choose to make themselves better each day have a certain amount of drive, if you will, to do so. Without this drive there is nothing to separate you from mediocrity.  When I could not answer with good reason I started to loose that drive. For with no purpose our actions are meaningless. I remembered this day while searching for a reason for struggling. Is this one action the entire reason? I see it like a river about to burst its banks, it is not the last rain drop that causes the flood but the many that came before it. I remembered this moment because it is when the water spilled over the banks but it is not the entire reason for the struggle. 

     Over the past couple of weeks I have found some sources of encouragement which have enabled me to find that "drive" again. With taking a little vacation, meeting with some old friends that are on similar paths, and getting caught up on reading blogs I have managed to pull myself out of the funk that I was in. Being able to see that others struggle in similar ways definitely helps. 

     Thank you to the others that consistently blog, there always seems to be some source of inspiration in there. 

Enjoying the Heat

My wife has been at the head office of the company she works for in Pasadena for the past three weeks.  We had talked about me possibly flying down after she knew how long she would be down there for. I ended up flying down this past Friday early in the morning. For the past few days the temperature has been well over 100F. It is much easier to deal with the heat while you are on vacation rather than working for sure. Yesterday we were downtown LA first at Staples Center then walking around a bit looking at different shops. Out in the open there was a nice breeze to help cool off but being surrounded by high rise buildings the temp reached slightly over 110F or 44C. No amount of wind cools that off.
When we were done looking through The Last Bookstore we decided to drive to Malibu and up the PCH. After managing to make our way through the L.A. traffic and get to the ocean it was amazing how much cooler it was from the air coming off of the ocean.
     Today we decide to drive up to Santa Barbara. We parked at Stearns Warf and walked around for an hour or so then took the water taxi over to the pier. Once their we were able to walk out on the break wall out to a sand deposit "island". We spent about four hours on the beach and decided to take a drive around the town. Santa Barbara is very heavily influenced by Spanish design with some pretty cool architecture.  It is also located in a very hilly area, much like most of California, so when we were driving around we had some very exciting moments with all of the twists and turns and elevation changes, sometimes very sudden changes.
Along with all of the site seeing I also managed to get in a couple of much needed date nights. In a couple of days it will be back to Stony Plain and two  more weeks of being a single parent.  This trip was a nice break for me and I am sure that the kids are enjoying the break from me and seeing their grandparents.

Taking a Break

     Even with all of the things that are going on I have been trying to take a little bit of time each week to do something that I enjoy doing. Sometimes alone, sometimes joined by a family member or two. I think that it is very important to do this in order to help refocus and prioritise all of the other stuff that is going on. For the past few weeks this has been golf. I have not had enough time to go an play, but living beside the golf course has given me the opportunity to be able to walk to the driving range.
     This weekend I started thinking more about the lessons learned at Kung Fu while walking to the driving range. I started thinking about how many balls I hit in the hour that I would go. Then how many different clubs that would be used in order to hit those balls. And finally how many walks to the range it would take to swing each one of those clubs 1000 times. It appears that if I am able to stay at this every weekend for an hour I may be able to make the Seniors Tour. 
     One thing that I have learned through an astronomic amount of bad golf shots, is that much like everything else in life routine is everything. When at the driving range I am there to do something that I enjoy and also to learn and get better at it. The way I have gone about doing this is to ensure that I do everything the same and then make small controlled changes. Much like in practising Kung Fu. Everything from lining up the shot to setting the distance from the ball to the angle of the club to inhaling on the back stroke and exhaling on the follow through. These are all things that are easy to control and repeat every time. Doing this causes me to focus on that one shot every time. It grounds me to the act of what is happening and betters the chances that the outcome after impact is more favourable. As soon as the routine is broken everything falls apart. It does take me like an hour to hit a small bucket of balls though.
      Last week we were also learning about the impact that muscles have on speed training. The more muscle you use the slower you are and the less force is applied to the target. So this weekend I also gave this theory a test at the range. The first few shots were not very good. The timing has to be almost perfect. Tighten up to early or late and you are either hooking or slicing the ball like crazy. After about a half dozen shots though things started to look much better. I managed to hit the ball straight, which is always good, and I was also hitting the ball 10 to 20 yards further depending on the club. 
     Unfortunately I won't be deriving an income from golf anytime soon. Being able to use the theories learned in Kung Fu to better yourself at something else that you enjoy gives the affirmation sometimes required that you are heading in the right direction. 

A Change in Lifestyle

     Most of a full week in and five more to go.

 Let me explain. 

     Last Wednesday morning I took my wife to the airport so that she could fly to Pasadena, Ca.  The head office for the company that she works for is located there. With a bunch of other stuff going on this summer as well, we had discussed this opportunity for her at length. There  was no way that I would have been part of holding her back from progressing in her career, so for me it was an easy decision. There were some initial timing details that we need to figure out with the sale of the house and the short period between receiving the paperwork and signing our papers at the lawyers but somehow it all managed to work out. 
     The time with the kids has been awesome so far, they have managed to keep up with their chores and I have been able to be around when they need me to be. I know that this is about to get much harder with the end of school quickly approaching and lots of extracurricular things like the Canada Day Demo and four on four hockey about to start on top of going to the gym and Kung Fu classes. The kids are also flying out to see my parents on Aug 1st for almost three weeks so it is nice to get some extra time with them before they go. I am sure that over the next five weeks that there will be lots of routine things that don't happen, gym missed here a class missed there, but I also know that it is for a relatively short period of time and in a couple of months things will be back to "normal".
     One thing that I didn't think too much about while we were discussing Dawn working in Pasadena, were my requirements. As they are mine and should definitely not adversely affect her career, it never really entered the conversation. That is until after she left and I started trying to figure out how I was supposed spend time with someone that is 2800 km's away. And that was the easier one to overcome. We have been talking daily so I am pretty sure this one will be covered. The date night one is going to be a little trickier though. 
     If I am missing here or there over the next month you will know why. I don't plan on missing anything but it is amazing how much stuff you don't know you don't do, until you have to do everything.

Synergy

     By definition SYNERGY is the interaction of elements that when combined, produce a total effect that is greater than the sum of the individual elements.

   A different look at this might be , an individual is capable of more than that person would normally be capable of when part of a high functioning team.

     This past weekend Silent River Kung Fu had the opportunity to be involved with Heritage Days in Onoway. For the second weekend in a row we were able to be in a parade and as a group represent our school. We also managed to do a forms demo down town after dismantling the float. Last weekend in the Farmer's Day parade we won first place with our float which was pretty amazing considering how many entrants there were in Stony's parade. This weekend we managed to win another first place ribbon.

     When the marshal came over with the ribbon, Sifu Brinker had thanked me right away. A similar thing happened last weekend and the more I process this the more I believe that it is undeserved. Or maybe not completely undeserved but there are way more people that also deserve credit for what we manage to accomplish. 

     Two years ago, while we were waiting in the staging area at the Farmer's Day parade, a group of people were discussing how nice it would be if we had a trailer to put some of the stuff that we were carrying on. I had just purchased a small trailer in order to bring all of the kids and my bikes in to town so i volunteered the use of it. The discussion quickly changed when I mentioned that I was the manager at large equipment trailer manufacturer. Once the parade started the ideals of grandeur slipped away.  The next spring while discussing Panadamonium with Sifu Csillag and Mr. Kohut, the topic of creating a float resurfaced. One of the salesmen at the company I work for, who happens to be Sifu Bryant's brother-in-law, happened to have a trailer that was about the size we were looking for. I picked up the trailer and brought it to the Kwoon during open training  so that Sifu Brinker could see what the "plan" was before signing off on having the float. I forgot to mention that the trailer may not have been in the best condition. As Sifu stepped out of the Kwoon you could see the expression on his face quickly change to disbelief. In the end he said that he trusted that his students would represent the school the best they could and agreed that we could enter a float. For the next week I spent a bit of time each day removing the paint and rust from exposed areas and repainting. By the next weekend it was like a brand new trailer, minus all of the holes in the wood. The three of us joined by Mr. Dyble constructed the weapon rack and installed on the trailer. 

    On the day of the parade there was lots of help from the team, and this somewhat decrepit trailer started to take on a new life. Sihing Macdonald had signs for the school made and we managed to cover up the lumber issues on the deck, and once the dragon was added it drew any focus away from the remaining flaws. We threw some mats on to ensure no one would fall through the deck and we were off. 

     This year was very similar. The components were already there we just made some small adjustments. Sifu Csillag came out to give me a hand to change the weapon rack so it could be installed on the newly decked trailer and we also made a platform to elevate the head of the dragon. Another change that was made actually came from Sifu M. Beckett. Reading her blogs on reducing impact and waste was the reason I looked for alternatives to the cheap plastic covering we had used on the deck the previous year. We also used the new dragon this year as there was talk of running with the older one. All of this came together to create something that was truly beautiful.

    In Onoway, it was like pulling in to the pits for a tire change. Once the trailer came to a stop there were people all over it installing things as they had been the week before. there was a little more work as the road I had decided to drive on the way there may not have been in the best shape and the weapon rack needed some attention. In 30-40 minutes we once again had an award winning float to call our own. 

     I may have been the one to supply the truck and bring the trailer, but it was the actions of a team working together that made it what it became. I am very grateful to be able to be a part of this team and there is no doubt that this team has made me a better person. I would encourage everyone to try to come out to more of the school or team events when possible. It is these events that solidify the team and bring everyone closer together. 

Smelling the Roses, or maybe Lilacs

     As spring turns in to summer the endless list of things that need to get done seems to get even longer. This weekend some of the "have to do's" got pushed to the side for "want to do's".
     Saturday morning started off with it's own struggles. I was a little late leaving the house in order to pick up the trailer for the float at our other house and be at the Kwoon for 7:30. I got to the other house and realised that the key for the large barn doors on the shop were on my car key chain, which was at home. Why would I need my car keys when driving the shop truck? It is about a ten minute drive between the two properties, so the decision was  made to "remove" the other lock. Thank goodness the rest of the day went a lot smoother. 
     Once we were able to deal with the initial shock of change, the parade was lots of fun. As we were about to get on to the road from the town yard, we had to stop for the lead band to go by. The gentleman who was marshalling the entrants in to the parade jokingly said "this is your first time through, right?" It is inspiring to think that there are that many groups in the community that come together to support this event. In a few spots along the route the crowd was amazing. The density of the crowd overtook the sidewalks and spilled out on to the road. All in all, this was an excellent morning spent with some awesome people.
     Sunday started super early for me, but it was easy to do as I was invited to do something that I enjoy. The alarm went off at 4:30 for a quick bite, shower, pack the car and then drive to The Legends in Sherwood Park to play golf at 7:15. The invitation was from someone that I used to work with at SMS about eight years ago and don't get to see too much. It was like the old adage "killing two birds with one stone". It was an excellent morning for golf. Slightly overcast with a gentle breeze to keep most of the bugs away. Once home, I changed and then took the family to Farmers Days. Baker and Adrianna went on lots of rides, while Dawn and Cassidy walked through the General Store. Once we left we also decided there was time for a treat so we went to Jack's for some ice cream.
     Later the reality of the ever looming "Monday" sets in which comes some laundry and other chores. It was nice to have a couple of relaxing days to regenerate. It also looks like our house deal should wrap up Monday, as long as the conditions all get removed, which also helps knowing that the end of caring for two properties is in sight. 
     Now it is back to work and trying to figure out how to schedule all of the work that "had to" get done on the weekend. 

Busy, Busy, Busy

     The last few weeks have been extremely busy. With all of the rain and heat grass seems to be growing almost as fast as you can cut it. With us moving in to town this is a lot easier to deal with, with one exception. We still haven't sold our other house so this means way more work. Our other property is just over three acres and has about a 400 foot winding driveway with laurel leaf willows on either side. In the summer this looks really cool as the willows form a canvas over the drive. The unfortunate thing about laurel leaf willows is that they are self pruning trees. Normally this is a pretty good thing. As the smaller twigs and branches die off they fall to the ground so the trees always look full of life. On the other hand, when you have a day with 60-80 Km/hr winds, like we had last week, it makes a huge mess. There are still showings being booked for this house, even though there is now a deal pending, so this stuff can't be left it has to get dealt with which adds probably another 10 hours of work each week. I know from my work and the changes that get made, that as soon as people are overwhelmed with being too busy they fall back in to their old, usually bad, habits.
     Not being at Kung fu for the past couple of weeks I started to worry about this same thing happening to me. When you start to fall out of a routine that you have formed it becomes pretty easy just to revert to old habits. In order to combat this I did the extreme opposite. Last week once I heard from the Dr that I for sure didn't have chicken pox, I signed up for "Training for Warriors" again. This makes a busy schedule even busier with four classes a week, but it, much like Silent River, is a group of  very motivating people. Is this something that can be sustained for extended periods of time? Likely not but for the month that I have signed up for I am pretty sure that I will be able to manage. Next week the conditions of the sale of our other house should be removed and the new owners take possession at the start of July so hopefully a month from now things should be back to normal, whatever that looks like. Until then there will be lots of running from task to task, with push ups and sit ups in between.

Chicken Pox???

     Almost two weeks ago I found myself laid up in bed for about three and a half days. Not an ideal thing to have happen especially when you are on vacation visiting with people you only see once a year. By Mother's Day I started to feel somewhat normal and we were able to go out to celebrate. Monday and Tuesday was Kung Fu as normal, then Wednesday things deteriorated. I woke up to a few, what i thought were pimples on my forearm. By the end of the day both of my arms were covered in these "spots". Thursday morning I went to see our family Dr. before going to work to see if it was in fact chicken pox and/or if I needed to be worried about being contagious. By this time I now had these spots everywhere but no real concentration they were very sporadic. The Dr didn't think that the timeline between the fever and chill and the spots equalled having chicken pox but he didn't have an answer for what it would be. He said that I would be fine going to work as long as I managed to keep all of the blisters covered. He figured as long as they were contained that I should be able to pass the infection?? on to anyone else. 

     Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to get some answers as to what I have and will be able to resume going to Kung Fu. On the plus side I haven't been feeling too bad so I have been able to keep up with push ups and sit ups. The acts of kindness are a little harder when you are trying to avoid most people though.  

Visitors

     This past week we were home to a couple of visitors. Nana and Papa, my parents. We don't get to see them too much so the kids are always excited when they know that they are coming. They flew in a week ago last Thursday May 4th, which happened to be my 45th birthday. We had expected them to be at our house, new house which they had never been to, around 9:00pm. We went out for dinner just before 7:00pm so we figured we had lots of time. Just after we had finished eating the doorbell rang, our security system has an app that connects the house and our phones so actually Dawn's phone rang. Dawn talk to my dad through the doorbell cam, which I am sure was an unusual experience for him, and was able to unlock the front door for them as well.
     I had booked a few days off of work so that I would be able to spend some time with them, there had been lots of times in the past where I hadn't taken time and have regretted it. On the Friday there were still lots of things to get organised for the auction at our other house on that coming Sunday. I went out there fairly early and then my parents were nice enough to join me later and give me a hand. Staging stuff either on the trailer or on tables and then cleaning the dust off as well. The auction went well, or so I have been told I should get the paperwork this week, and I am sure it is due to the cleaning and the care of setting up. Thanks again for the help.
     On Monday I had made a T-time for my dad and I to play golf at Stony Plain Golf Course. It was a nice day and even though the greens were in terrible shape it was nice to spend the time together. The next day was supposed to be about the same for weather so I phoned another course to see if we could get a T-time for Tuesday. On Tuesday we played at The Ranch which was in great condition. All but maybe two of the greens were excellent and the rest of the course as well. Another difference in the days was that on the Monday we had been put together with another pair to make a foursome but on Tuesday we were left on our own. When we arrived they had told us that we were the next out. There were no people on the two holes ahead of us and no one else teed off until we were on the third or fourth hole. 
     I used to play golf fairly regularly, 15-20 rounds during the season. A change in jobs here, some kids over there another change in jobs over here, and this time seemed to vanish. The last probably five years I had maybe played two to three times a year. Usually in a tournament where you are not actually playing a full game but in a scramble. Anyways, I had always had the same issue that most golfers have, recovering after making a bad shot. Once a bad shot is made then in creeps doubt, second guessing followed by pressure to make an even better shot next time to recover. A couple of these in a row and most peoples game does not recover, or at least mine never did. On Tuesday though I noticed that something had changed. Instead of getting upset and letting emotions control the game I started breaking down what had happened and trying to change one thing before the next swing. 
     Did the game of golf get mastered that day? No. But on a personal level it was probably one of the best games I ever had the opportunity to play. The scorecard sucked and it didn't seem to matter, I got to spend some time with my father and learn some things about myself as well. 

The Effects of Inaction

     This weekend I had some time to reflect as I was preparing for an auction at our acreage. I went out early Saturday morning in order to clear a spot for the Auctioneers trailer. The initial goal of the morning was to clean up the remnants of a tree that we had cut down last year. Last spring to be exact. We had a couple of dead trees that were infringing on the neighbours yard and threatening to destroy their chain link fence. Because of the location of the trees and the hazards that were involved we decided it would be easier to hire someone to take the trees down. While they were there, we also had them take down another tree that was close to the house and causing some issues with the eaves trough. After the crew that cut them down had left I started limbing and cutting these trees. I had most of them cut up within a few days. The one that was by the house actually was two intertwined with each other. This made for some tricky limbing and cutting as the pressure from the weight of the top tree would either cause the branches to snap back or the saw to get pinched as the weight shifted. With about two thirds of these large evergreens cut down and just about twenty feet of the top left, the removal of the refuge seemed to drop in priority. 
     A year later, the work was still required to be done but now had a higher priority as they lay in the way of the optimal spot for parking this trailer. As I moved the branches in to a pile in the treeline, I started to think lots about what was actually going on. There are lots of life lessons about doing something at the time being faster than putting it off. This wasn't that. The branches themselves were dry and lighter than when the tree was first cut making them easier to move. Most of the needles had also fallen off of the branches over the winter aiding in making the branches lighter. As I reached the branches that were at the bottom I started to notice something and my train of thought change directions. The needles that had fallen of had formed a sort of barrier where they lay. This barrier was thick enough to block out any sun from reaching the earth thus giving life to the plants below. In this case mostly grass. 

     Due to the fact that I had not taken the action required to finish this task the grass that had been in this spot for over thirty years was now completely dead where the tree once lay. With a fine rake I made sure that the barrier of needles was removed. Will the grass come back? I have no doubts that it will. I assume that by the end of summer, weather permitting, this area will be green and full of life again. 

Lesson: Changing the priority of a task doesn't necessarily mean that it won't get done or will be harder when you do end up doing it. Depending on the task however, this delay may have some affect on the environment around you. 

Charitable Casues

     This past week I had the opportunity to go to the NHL Alumni Luncheon for the Alzheimer's Face Off Tournament. One of the guys at work has played in this tournament for the last few years with a team in Leduc. I had never really looked in to this event much before attending the luncheon. The cost of the event does not really allow the average person to entertain attending. In fact my initial reaction to being asked to go was not excitement but almost disgust. Pay how much to spend a couple of hours with a bunch of over payed ex athletes? This did not make a lot of sense to me. 
     I had just finished reading "Relentless" which was written by a pro athlete trainer. This book looks at athletes from a different point of view. The author talks about the internal force that is inside of people who are always trying to be better than not only everyone else but themselves as well. He talks about them being relentless in their pursuit of excellence. With this knowledge, I set fourth to see and meet some individuals who were not set on some pedestal by society, but that were relentless enough in their careers to achieve some sort of greatness.
     At the luncheon every table of eight has an NHL alumni sitting at it. Sitting at our table was Steven Goertzen. Born in Stony Plain and now living in Spruce Grove and still active in hockey and training young hockey players.
     After the food was served the MC started to introduce the people that make this tournament happen. One of the people that came up to speak was medical researcher that talked about dementia. One of the things that was said really stuck with me. He made a comment that I had heard before but not with Alzheimer's or dementia but with Cancer. He made the point that everyone in the room at some point will either have or know someone suffering with dementia. Late Saturday afternoon I had some time and started to look in to some posted stats. In America one in nine people suffers from dementia. That's a little scarier than I would have thought so I kept looking. The next information that I had found seemed even worse. It said that one in three people that die over the age of 65 will have experienced some for of dementia in their lifetime. My outlook now has completely changed. If this information was correct, which came from a published  document from the Alzheimer's Association, then with two living parents and two living in-laws there is a good chance that this will have some impact on our family.
     This event, Alzheimer's Face Off, raised over $1,000,000 this year. I may not have another opportunity to attend the luncheon, but I will do whatever I can to help support the teams playing in the tournament. The realisation of the impact of this disease on not only my own families but others we know had completely changed my perception of the event and the charity that it supports. 

Just do it already

     One of my personal requirements this year was reading. Twelve books for the twelve months to be exact. Since starting to read more this year I have also found myself reading lots of other things as well. The teams blogs, articles and blogs from other influential people and even some of the local paper now that it magically shows up on our front porch. Most of the things that I have chosen to read have a similar theme. The shortened, to-the-point version of this would be "if you want something, you need to get off your butt and do something about it".  
     Wanting something, or even making a plan to get it, does absolutely nothing if you don't actually take action. Another lesson that has come out of this is that if you need to make a decision then make it. If you trust your knowledge in a particular situation, then the only reason to put off making the decision is fear. Yes, fear. Mostly, the fear of failure. Unfortunately the decision will still need to be made and choosing not to make it, out of fear, will only add stress to your life.
     This week I decided to embrace this as true and implement this at work. The results, so far, have been very enlightening. I manage a business that employs over 100 staff most of which fall under four different trades. Generally by the end of the week there are so many things that "slipped through the cracks" that going to work on Monday's is fairly stressful.
     This week however is much different. During the week, instead of pushing things off I made decisions, on most things, at the time issues came up. At one point one of the floor supervisors was in my office. He was in there for about fifteen and in that time I had five different phone calls and two other people come to the door. As I hung up one phone a different one would ring making the timing seemed almost planned. During this time I also managed to spend enough uninterrupted time with the supervisor to answer the questions that he had for me as well. Before he left he looked at me and shook his head. I thought maybe he was discouraged by what had just happened so I asked him what was wrong. "I don't know how you do this" is all that he said. Normally by this point the stress would have been through the roof. By changing the standard "let me think about it and get back to you" to actually just making a decision the stress seemed to disappear. 
     I think that too often we allow fear to control our action which then becomes inaction. This inaction then creates stress and increased pressure. For me, the confidence that has come from practising martial arts as well as joining the I Ho Chuan team has allowed me to trust myself enough to face these fears. Will every decision be perfect? No. Will all of the answers be correct? Probably not. Will something fail because of a decision that I have made? More than likely. Will I allow the fear of failure to stop me from making decisions? Not on your life. 
     As long as there is a lesson to be learned from each failure, there is no reason to fear the outcome. 

Best Laid Plans

     Last week I had great plans of this being the week that I would get way ahead with some of my requirements. Last weeks numbers were not as high as I had hoped so I wanted to improve on that.

     Things did not go as planned. Sunday and Monday were not too bad even though muscles we pretty sore Sunday from Saturdays fitness class. The fitness class by the way is awesome and more people should attend. Tuesday however things went downhill quickly, at least for most of my requirements. Our two oldest went on an after school trip in to the city to see a play and were not due back at the school until 11pm. This made it pretty easy to go out for dinner and spend some extra time with Dawn and Baker. We did go somewhere with some healthier options though. On Wednesday, I was invited to go watch the first Oiler's play-off game with some people that I haven't seen in a few years. We met early then with a late start and and the game going in to overtime it was pretty late when I finally got home.
     Up until this point I had tried to keep up with the physical requirements daily so that not only could I keep up with them but so that they become fairly routine as well. A habit if you will. I have also really never been very good at just letting go of some things once they have happened and moving on. I have been working on this but struggling with it as well. So when I woke up on Thursday and started thinking about it I started to panic a little. Not a lot, but enough where the feeling of defeat crept in. I started thinking about one of our previous IHC meetings where we were discussing letting go of what happened and starting over fresh. Like I mentioned previously this is something that I have never been very good at. 
     While having breakfast I started doing some math. Add up the push ups and sit ups that I had already completed, subtract that from my weekly goal, divide by the three days left. Suddenly the outlook changed. That number was not that big and scary. This was now something that I knew could be accomplished. With one very minor change in perspective, the doom and gloom of defeat had been eradicated by optimism.  
     Even with having certain goals, whether they be daily, weekly, yearly, it is important that we still take some time to live life and experience things. With that being said, it is also very important to find a way to not beat yourself up over the small failures so that you can find a way to reach your goals. It is way too easy to go down the path of doom and gloom and forget about your goals completely.

Humble Enlightenment

     For a weapon form this year I choose to do the school Broadsword form. After initially learning the basic movements of the form I somehow convinced myself that the form was way too easy. I am not completely sure how this thought crept in to my head, but it did. Maybe it was the length of the form. Was it the seemingly simplistic movements? Whatever it was, it did not do me any favours.
     Yesterday however, was different, way different. I would like to start by first thanking Sifu Hayes and Sifu Beckett. With there not being very many people at open training yesterday, I had the opportunity to spend a little over an hour with Sifu Hayes working on my sword form. I had originally asked him to come over because I thought that I had a fairly simple question. To be completely honest I can't even remember what it was. All I do know is that question led to another, which led to another and another and so on. Now I know what you are thinking, so you were at open training and spent an hour standing around talking instead of actually training. It didn't happen exactly like that. With every question came a demonstration followed by my effort to emulate. We went from basic movements to nuances of the form that I had not even thought of up to that point. 
     It all came back to action with purpose. Why are you doing this action? What will the outcome be? From a thousand foot view it all seemed so easy. you have a sword. You are there to cut someone while defending yourself. When you start looking at all of the small details however, things get a little tougher. On the other hand, the closer you look the clearer things become as well. The angle of the blade, the angle of your wrist, using the hand that does not contain the weapon in order to accelerate the weapon. Everything just started to make more sense. 
     I am grateful for the time that was taken Saturday to help me with the form and how helpful everyone at the Kwoon is. It is nice to be able to train somewhere that has such a supportive atmosphere. I guess I will be able to test that theory next Saturday when I am sure to be asking the same or similar questions.

Slaying Dragons

     As I had mentioned in my last blog the last couple of weeks have been pretty tough. Last Sunday as my blog was completed and finally posted it felt like a large weight had been lifted off of my chest and I could breath again. As I began to write, certain things became clearer bringing out things that were really bugging me opposed to what I had believed the problem was. The realisation of the issues then made them much easier to deal with. This morning while working out though, I started even looking a little deeper.

     It was something that Master Brinker had said at Saturday's meeting that made me start questioning things. During one of our conversations of injuries and figuring out how to deal with them, he had mentioned that it was pretty easy to allow mediocrity in to your life when everything was going well. When everything was "easy" there were lots of the little things that get missed and sometimes you don't even notice. Then one thing leads to another, and another, next thing you know these seemingly small independent actions create circumstances that can alter your life in many inconceivable ways. 

     Six months ago, Sundays consisted of getting up at 4:40am and going to the gym. Get home around 6:30-6:45 and cook breakfast, usually scrambled egg whites maybe some fried roasted potatoes if we had them for supper on Saturday. By 8:30 we would be at Superstore doing the shopping for the week followed by two or three hours of food prep.

Below is an actual picture of our fridge from the other house.

     

     With too many other things on the go, insert many other excuses here, this fell off. This meant that any food prep that needed to be done, then had to be done as it was needed. Read that five times fast. This then made it way easier to say screw it and not do it at all. First it was suppers, even though I wasn't eating suppers most days during the week, I still managed to make something for everyone else. With no food prep done that turned in to using different variations of processed or frozen food, which then becomes eating out from time to time or getting take out. The good and bad of now living in town. Then comes either skipping the occasional breakfast or stopping at Tim's and grabbing a coffee and breakfast sandwhich.

     I had grown to be a pretty big advocate for close to source eating and the benefits that come with that and had somehow slowly gotten away from it. The difference that eliminating or at least reducing processed food makes on both your mental and physical health is amazing. The better the fuel the cleaner the fire. All of this then leads us to the current state. Feeling more stress instead of being able to deal with it. Being tired more than I should. Not being able to get up as early as I had grown accustom to. And finally missing some obligations that six months ago I would have never let myself do.

     Last week I had made the decision that April would be different. That I would force myself back in to the good habits that I had learned over the past couple of years. Reflecting on everything that was said at yesterdays meeting solidified this decision for me. 

     Being part of a team makes everything a little easier, and I would like to thank you all for that.

Down with the Sickness

     For the first time in over a year I have found myself being fairly sick this week. In reality I believe that I am probably a little bit sick and probably fairly stressed out. This has affected me both physically and mentally. Another first for me this week, or at least in a long time, was missing a class. I also managed to miss everything on Saturday. Tai Chi, fitness class and open training. I thought for sure that everything was good Saturday; I woke up early, did some push ups and sit ups, had breakfast, did some more sit ups and push ups and then laid down for a few minutes just after 9:00 am. When I finally woke up it was 1:30 pm. 

     For the past year or so, I have been working on a few different implementation projects as well as trying to deal with regular day to day stuff. I have been fortunate in the fact that some Supervisors have been able to step up and take some of the work load off. This past week we finally managed to review financials from the past two months and it has become fairly apparent that the lack of focus on the day to day has been pretty costly. Increased cost of rework, increased warranty, over target climbing, all of the "bad" things happening at once. This is definitely not the norm for me. Over the past couple of years while a lot of companies within Alberta have been crippled with the economic down turn, we have been able to make some amazing things happen. Even having to reduce staff initially in 2014, we have been able to keep almost everyone since. Revenue per hour has increased about 30% so even with 45% less staff than three years ago we are able to do almost the same amount of revenue. In order for this to happen there were some pretty large culture changes that needed to take place. Most people are eager to change, especially if there is instant gratification or immediate signs of improvement. The issue comes when they see that there is a lack of engagement from the people or person driving the change. This usually results in people reverting back to old habits. 

     Mid week there seemed to be a light at the end of the tunnel - no, it was not a freight train. We had an extremely time sensitive job, that of course the material was two days late for, hit the floor on Tuesday. When I got to work on Wednesday I went straight out to see that the night shift had not even started it. Me: freaking out. After some less than happy words with the supervisor I headed back to my office to prepare for another few hours of brow beating for the February financials. At the end of the day I was amazed at the progress that was made on this "rush" job. By end of day Thursday they were passed where we had thought they would be and the supervisor was actually in a good mood when he came to see me; this usually means that things are going quite well. On Friday afternoon I started reviewing March and realised that we were not only still on track to complete our revenue numbers for the month but we were actually 5% over for gross profit so far for the month. 

     Looking back, I realise that over the last few months I have let stress build up so much that it has been very visible to the employees. This in turn creates a great deal of stress for them believing that if things are bad enough for me to be this way that they better start worrying too. I can't change the way the current economy is, but I do plan on trying to keep the staff better informed of what is going on in the future. 

     The first step for me will be more interaction with people on the floor. 

Rewiring of an Old Device

     Even thought we are all on different paths, there remains one thing that is constant for all of us, change. Whether it is physical, mental, habitual or countless other things, we are all striving to change something. Over the past couple of years I have gone through some pretty major physical changes. These change are very evident as they can easily be seen by the naked eye. The past week there have been certain changes that are becoming more apparent. They are not changes that can be seen, but they are definitely there.
     After this past Tuesday night, I noticed that I had started seeing things a little differently and in turn started thinking about some things differently as well. In class you constantly repeat motions in order to gain muscle memory so that they become automatic when needed. Once this has started then you put a couple of these movements in to a combination and repeat until the combination becomes muscle memory. One of the issues that presented itself in the past, is the hesitation at the end of those movements when free sparring. For example: Someone is throwing a kick your way and you make the most awesome forearm block. As you are having your own little party in your head celebrating what just happened, you are eating a fist because you have left your guards down. This past Tuesday, while sparring with Sifu Lindstrom, I received a couple of shots to the ribs which changed my way of thinking. Thank you Sifu. I laughed at the time because I knew that I had done something stupid. When the match concluded he said "You have to watch because you are telegraphing your back fist". I knew that it had happened as soon as my head had spun around to see no one there, and felt the fists against my ribs. Hearing the words though seem to make it stick. Sparring then suddenly became chess. That may seem like a bizarre statement to make. The next match I started to fake more, purposely telegraphing an opposing action from what I intended to take. From this, amazing things started to happen. With every fake it was easier to predict where the next punch or kick was going to come from. This made the action of blocking much quicker with less hesitation, equalling less fists to the face, always good. Knowing where a punch or kick is coming from in turn means that you know where there is going to be no guard, you get to land something, even better. Then this turned back to classroom lessons. How can I get someone to kick or punch me in a way that will lead to being able to try out some of the defence moves that we are learning in class? Without thinking about it, I was suddenly planning three moves ahead, or trying to at least. 
     Thanks to one seemingly insignificant moment in time, I started seeing the same situations from a totally different point of view.

The Rule of Thirds

     If you Google the rule of thirds you will find lots of information about photography and how to bring focus to objects you are taking pictures of. What does that have to do with this blog?

Nothing!

     In the eternal search to find greatness, I have been reading and listening to lots media published by people who have "made it". In my travels I came across an interesting take on getting ahead.

The Rule of Thirds

     The idea behind this was that you spend a third of your time mentoring people who are trying to get where you are, a third of the time with people on the same level as you, and a third of your time with someone who is where you are trying to get to. This was a very intriguing notion to me. 
     I have had lots of training on how to deal with employees and creating an atmosphere where they can succeed. With some of this training we were taught that the only true way to move forward with your own career is to promote others to replace you. In other words mentor the people below you to succeed you. Now if you have worked for smaller companies you will know that this goes against most things that go on. In a lot of cases people inside these organisations still have a scarcity mentality where they horde information so that no one can take their job. I know that I have been through that at several places and therefore I am on board with the first third. As a parent you also get the opportunity to spend copious amounts of time with people who are in need of knowledge and wanting to get to where you are. 
     The second set of third is also pretty easy. These are generally all of the like-minded people that you surround yourself with every day. Whether it is in business or your personal life probably most of your time is spent among peers. As you develop throughout your life this group will more than likely change and new peers are established.
     It is the final set of thirds that until recently seemed to be elusive. I have always struggled with having an "end goal". I have tons of daily, weekly, monthly goals which I strive to achieve every day. Having an overall plan though, where do you see yourself ten years from now, I have no idea. So if you have no idea where you plan on going how do you spend thirty percent of your time with people who are already there? Let's presume you did know where you wanted to end up. How would find someone in that position that would be willing to spend that amount of time mentoring you? If your goal is to one day replace your boss you can probably manage to spend that amount of time with them, assuming that they are okay with you replacing them. What about outside of work? Most people work 40 hours a week and there are 168 hours in the week. Even if you sleep 56 of those hours, seven days at eight hours per day, that still leaves 112 hours outside of your work life. It doesn't seem like a good idea to me to focus solely on only bettering one third of your life. For me this is where Silent River Kung Fu comes in. Initially whenever you enter new circumstances you carry with you things that you have encountered in past experiences. This was no different for me when I originally started taking Kung Fu at Silent River. There seemed to be this group of "untouchables", the black belts, who appeared supercilious or at least I had perceived them this way. Knowing now the effort that it takes to advance in this Martial Art I recognise that my perception was incorrect and that even though there is a certain amount of respect that is owed to them, these black belts are not only willing to help, they are actually passionate about doing so. Being a part of Silent River has helped me develop in so many ways in all facets of my life. Being one of the lower belt level members of the I Ho Chuan it has made even more of the top third accessible. 
     In the unquestionably minuscule amount of time that I have been practising Kung Fu, there have already been some incredible paradigm shifts. I can hardly wait to see what lessons the future brings, and would like to thank all of you who have helped thus far.

Lessons can be tough

     This past week our youngest has had to learn some pretty hard lessons. Last weekend the tablet that he received for his birthday ended up with a broken screen. This was the direct result of him not taking proper care of it. He had left it lying on the floor in the basement, and then he and his sister were chasing each other around throwing pillows at each other. Sounds like lots of fun except for somewhere during the running someone had stepped on the tablet. This lead to a discussion about how everyone needed to do a better job of looking after their belongings. That conversation was followed by him being informed that we would not be replacing the tablet as it was only six weeks old. At this point he was doing a lot better than I thought he would at keeping it together.
     The next lesson was a much tougher one. What could be tougher for a kid than losing his electronics? Losing a pet. On Monday, we discovered that our pet tiger salamander, Baker's pet, had died. To fully understand how hard this lesson was I will give you a little background on "Dudley".
     Last spring we were on a mission to clean up our yard, at the time we were living in an acreage subdivision. Underneath an evergreen beside the garage lay what used to be our overhead garage door. The door was removed when we turned our garage in to a gym. While we were loading the pieces in to the trailer Baker and his sisters found this tiny little salamander nestled in the pine needles. They immediately picked the little guy up and brought their new prize to my attention. At this point I was in "trying to get stuff done" mode and said "that's nice put him down and get back to work". Amazingly enough that is exactly what they did. After the load of garage door parts went to the dump we redirected our attention to all of the pine needles that had piled up over the last few years. Raking the needles back to dirt and loading the piles on to the trailer. In the midst of the raking frenzy, in complete astonishment, I found this same little salamander wedged between the prongs of the plastic rake. Baker seeing this dropped everything and ran over to pull him out. At this point there was no saying "no" to "Can we keep him?".

     On Monday a very nervous girl came in to the living room to talk to me. She said that she had gone in to give Dudley some fresh water and that he wasn't moving. She said that she was afraid to tell Baker because she didn't want to get blamed for it. I told her that it wasn't the time to worry about blame, that the fact that Dudley was dead was way more important then what had happened or who's "fault" it was. Adrianna went to find Baker and I went to tell Dawn what had happened. I heard Baker go in to the office. When I went to see how he was doing, he was just standing in front of the terrarium. You could almost see the energy leaving him as he became consumed by sadness. 
     At this point you yearn to have the ability to help, as you are overwhelmed with feelings of empathy.
     For the next few days we had a very quiet little man. He has been dealing with it a little better each day, but it will be a long time before the events of last Monday are forgotten. 
     Sooner or later the electronics will get replaced. The next one may, with any kind of luck, be treated a little better. The death of a pet, although very tragic and somewhat traumatic, emphasises how precious life can be. My take away from this weeks events: sometimes showing someone else compassion is more important than making sure they learn from their misfortune. 

Tuesday Night Sparring

     This past Tuesday was the first night of having a sparring group since the Sanshou class was put on hold. Mr Dyble and I had discussed trying to get some people to meet outside of regular classes, and I had sent a few people a Google+ message about us being able to meet at the Kwoon for sparring. Even though lots of people displayed interest, I had this sinking feeling that there would end up being two or three of us standing there, no black-belts and no one with keys, looking foolish. Thankfully that was not the case.

     There ended up being eleven of us there for sparring. Having an odd number worked out very well as someone was able to rest during the rounds. We made two lines of five people and squared off for two and a half minute rounds with a one minute rest period between rounds. During the rest period everyone rotated clockwise giving everyone the opportunity to face ten different opponents. This was an awesome learning experience. Ten different styles of fighting to read and adapt to. Pure awesome. Some opponents slower and methodically striking with precision. Others slightly more aggressive and somewhat relentless in their attacks. One thing that all of the opponents had in common was the ability to judge where you were at with sparring and adjusting how they sparred accordingly. 

    Most of us got in thirteen two and a half minute rounds, with a couple of people choosing to grapple for the last few rounds. This was not just a night of logging some sparring rounds, there was a lot of education and fun to be had, as well as some extreme cardio. At the end of the night getting undressed I am sure that my jacket was about five pounds heavier than it was at the start of the night. the statement "even my belt is wet" came out in the change room as well. 

     All in all it was a very good night. A night that would not have been possible without the black-belts agreeing to come and of course Sifu Brinker allowing us to meet at the Kwoon. As we currently are only scheduled to be meeting at the Kwoon on Tuesdays until the end of March, I would encourage all IHC members to come out if you are able. 

    Thank you to everyone that came out, and thanks again to Sifu Brinker. Without you none of this would be possible.

You win, I win, we All win

     One of my personal requirements this year is to increase the amount that I read. To be exact, I have twelve titles that I am going to read over the next twelve months. I have always had issues reading. Not that I can't read, but it is more the fact of having difficulty narrowing my focus enough to concentrate on reading. This requirement for me is dual purpose. The titles that were chosen are ones that will also help me develop, both in my personal life and in business.
     The book that I am currently reading is "Tongue Fu" which they paraphrase as being the Kung Fu of language. Seems like a legitimate title for a Kung Fu challenge. This book was recommended in a class that I attended a few years ago at NAIT while taking Project Management. There was a guest teacher at the time from one of the software companies in Edmonton, BioWare. He was a very charismatic person and I thought "I need to read that book". That Christmas "Tongue Fu" magically appeared under the tree. For the next couple of years it bounced from bookshelf to bookshelf but I never made the time to actually sit and read it. One of the awesome things about setting goals for yourself, and making a commitment to achieve those goals, is that you actually do some of the things that you maybe didn't before.
     The premise of the book is that by altering the way you react in certain discussions you increase the chances of finding resolution instead confrontation. I am only part way through but have found so many lessons to be learned. One, that has a direct link to one of our other requirements, came from a quote that is in one of the chapters.

"Those who bring sunshine to the lives of others cannot keep it from themselves"

     Every time you take a second to do something nice for someone else, it also makes you feel a little bit better. In an argument there is no winner, there are just a couple of people who can't believe that the other can't see their side of things. Changing the way that you converse with someone, especially in an argument, you can show them that you are listening to them. This doesn't mean that you have to agree with them but showing that you care enough to listen gives you the opportunity to transform a possible argument into a constructive conversation.
     In accepting the commitment of reading I have found myself not only reading the titles that were submitted but also lots of other blogs, bios and other material I find. I am grateful for the opportunity to be a part of I Ho Chuan. In pursuing the goals established at the start of the year I have already experienced more change than I expected.

PS Can someone remind me next year that I need to make sleeping one of my goals?

People think I'm CRAZY

     Yesterday at the Kwoon someone asked me how much weight I had lost. My initial response was "since when?" 

     Later I started thinking about this a lot more. I started at Silent River just over two years ago. When I first started, it was at the time when oil started to crash. Working at a business that was fairly dependant on capital expenditures from companies that relied on income from oil field companies, things started getting tough quick. I missed most of my classes for the first four months as I had to do some restructuring that included terminating about 45% of the staff at the time. I was at work six or seven days a week and generally late enough that I would miss the beginner classes on Monday and Wednesday nights. In February of 2015 I knew that some changes were required. At this point I was approximately 390 pounds of mostly fat.
     The first change that I made was to start attending the morning class so that there would be no reason to miss class. The next was to join the fitness class on Saturdays. This was a struggle for sure and anyone who regularly attends this class will know what i am talking about. A few months in, I had a bit of a set back. I remember the weekend well as it was the Saturday that we were doing 500 round house kicks, which went better than I thought (minus some missing skin on the top of my feet). That night I started having some pains on my side and by Monday I was having my appendix removed. Two weeks later, I was able to walk and helped out at the Pandamonium with the dunk tank. At this point I had lost 50 pounds but was a little concerned that it would start creeping back if I was inactive too long. At the six week mark I was cleared to start doing Kung Fu again and four days later I also started a two month strength-building program at Snap Fitness.
     This was my first experience with a nutritionist and it was an eye opening experience. I had been so focused on just losing weight that I was basically starving myself. Exerting so much energy every week with minimal calorie intake was not doing me any justice. After the consultation, the recommendation for calorie intake was almost three times what I was currently eating. Skeptically, after hours of meal prep, I followed the suggested meal plan. By the end of the first week there was a dramatic increase in the amount of energy that I had. No more fighting to stay awake, no more excuses not to do more. By the end of the two months I hadn't lost much more weight, but managed to increase my lean muscle mass remarkably.
     A few months later came the next set back. This one was a little more profound then the last. Rotator Cuff Surgery - to be more exact a Bankart repair on my right shoulder. When I went for the pre-surgery consult I was at 315 pounds but was eating like a horse because I was working out four days a week, going regularly to Kung Fu classes and still in the fitness class on Saturdays. It takes six months for the cartilage to heal back to the bone and the first three months of that require the joint to be completely stabilised.
     Coming back to classes after being away for six months was a challenge to say the least. I had gained 15 pounds and wasn't really full of ambition. Our family attended the Chinese New Year banquet and I had hoped that it would help recharge the inspiration that I had before the time off, after all, this event is where some of the inspiration that I previously possessed came from in the first place. I moved back in to the night classes for grading but Sifu Brinker had allowed me to continue in the morning classes as well, in order to make up for all of the classes that were missed while I was incapacitated. I was now in classes four days a week and fitness class Saturdays but it still seemed like something was missing.
     With a previous experience at Snap Fitness I thought I would see if they had anything that might fill this "void". In June there was a new class of "Training for Warriors" so without hesitation I signed up for another two months of extreme fitness classes three days a week. It just happened that the classes offset the night Kung Fu classes so all was good. At the end of the two months I had lost another 20 pounds and was full of tenacity.
    Since July, the end of "Training for Warriors", I attended last years boot camp, have joined Snap full-time going to the gym four days a week, joined the I Ho Chaun which has a class every week plus the other requirements, started doing Tai Chi before the fitness class on Saturdays and have been staying for open training on Saturdays as well. When people find out that I get up at 3:30 in order to go to the gym, they think that I am crazy. The truth is, it is done some what out of fear. I know exactly how easy it is not to do it. To stay in bed, to lay on the couch snacking and watching tv, and I won't let myself go down that road.
     In the first three weeks of the I Ho Chaun I have lost 5 pounds and am on track for reaching my commitment of 275 pounds by July and maintaining for the rest of the year.

     Thank you Sifu for the question yesterday. You sometimes become so focused on the goal, that you forget where you started.

In the beginning

     At first sight, it is the most amazing thing you have ever seen. How is someone even capable of doing these things. Lingering at altitudes that seem to defy gravity. Moving in what seems to be complete harmony with all surroundings. Never faltering in transition from one stance to another responding to every movement with absolute symmetry.

     One of the most important rules of setting goals for yourself, is to ensure that the goal you set inspires and motivates you. Doing this allows you to readily prioritise these goals, thus entrenching the behaviours they create in to your life. As you advance towards your goal, behaviours become habit and the goal doesn't seem like some far off, impossible task but rather something you've incorporated in to everyday life. Not every goal will follow this path, but I would bet the most successful ones will.
     When we initiate the goal setting process there are numerous reasons for the goals we set for ourselves. Whether it be something short term or a goal that continues for a prolonged period of time, at the source, there is a specific rationalism that has lead us to set it. As we set an action plan in to motion, this initial reason may become less important as we begin to reap the benefits of our new behaviours.

I would advocate that this is the purpose of the I Ho Chuan. Not only to help set goals and give you the tools to achieve them, but to help integrate these habits in to your life. We are a couple of weeks in and the fulfilment, both physical and mental, that I have gotten from completing incremental tasks has been incredible. The looming dread of early morning physical requirements has become a welcomed endeavour. This has been made possible by the fact that the reward has outweighed the effort required to perform these tasks. I am not incognizant to the fact that once muscle pain and fatigue set in that this feeling may dissipate, but right now I feel AWESOME!

Not Always That Easy

Sometimes the tasks that you believe to be the easiest, turn out out to be the toughest once actually set in to motion.

     This year has been full of change so far. Over the Christmas break we moved in to town from an acreage, huge change. I have moved from the beginner class, at 6:30, to the intermediate class, at 8:30, another big change. And the most recent of changes, beginning my journey with the I Ho Chuan team.
     For a little history, about a year and a half ago I received my Green Belt in Six Sigma. I love  change. Having the ability to monitor progress, alter the process and increase productivity. These are the things that I strive for every day and have lots of fun doing it. I know from having to deal with my employees everyday that not everyone feels the same and it is always good to have a little conflict to ensure that everyone is kept in check. 
     The first week has been great. I have managed to alter my routine enough in this short period to handle the physical requirements. Initially I was concerned that the physical portion added to what I was already doing was going to be too much. Oddly enough on Friday, generally my hardest, I was out of bed as soon as the alarm went off. Sounds easy enough but mine goes off at 3:30am and it is off to the gym for me.
     I remember talking to Sifu Brinker about the requirements. The one that was the most concerning at the time was the 1609km. I have been in the fitness class for a while and feared the days that we were going running. 4km a day how is that even possible? After a few discussions with people who were currently in the I Ho Chuan, I felt a little better about this requirement but it was gnawing at me a little. For Christmas I received a Fitbit and all of these concerns melted away. It seems that on a regular day I travel about 4.5 miles, one less distraction.
     On the other hand there were requirements that I didn't even think twice about. Acts of kindness, I do lots of things every day. Or at least I thought I did. Up until Thursday morning my AOK column was just about blank. Am I really that bad of a person? Haven't I managed to alter a single moment with a kind act? Until this point I had believed fairly strongly that for the most part I had put other peoples needs before my own. Surely there must be something, my mind was drawing blanks. Thursday morning was the same as others. I woke up, made scrambled egg whites, sat at the table to eat phone in hand. Another change that I had made, which seemed somewhat insignificant was to alter the content in the morning. Instead of Facebook, it is now reading I Ho Chaun blogs and then through some random blogs from others or a pod cast or two. The pod casts are handy and lend themselves well to the treadmill. 
     On Thursday I stumbled across a post about a trucker who came across a presumably drunk person swerving from lane to lane on the highway. As he approached the car he noticed an elderly man shaking behind the wheel. The truck driver noticed that the car had a two way antenna and started trying to reach the other driver on the radio. He asked the man to pull over and to his surprise the car pulled over to the side of the road immediately. The trucker stopped behind the car, he then exited the truck and walked up to the drive side of the car. He talked with the older gentleman for a few minutes and learned that he had just come from the hospital where doctors had told him that they would be removing his daughter from life support that night..... as the first tear rolled off of the end of my nose in to my egg whites, I realised that there was probably some compassion in there somewhere... The truck driver followed the man to his exit talking to him constantly on the radio. As he said good bye he heard another driver comment that he would continue following him. 
     With all of the negativity that gets promoted in the media, it is sometimes hard to see all of the good things that are happening. Even if those things are directly in front of you. I think that it more important now than ever to find the good and promote it as much as possible. Sometimes the slightest shift in perspective is all that it takes to be able to recognise not only the good that is happening around you but the impact that you personally have on it.