The Mental Arts Tidbit (Mar. 10)
Intentionally intentional
The Mental Arts Tidbit for the Day
Current Musing
Fame has killed a lot of people
So when they say that I’m going to be famous
I hope that day never comes and yet
I’ll be ready I guess, for testing positive on that test that
I’m human after all and that I didn’t mean it that way
And I never meant to go viral and I never meant to shut you out
Or to shut you down or to shut you up
Only to shut you in
I wrote this poem, Fame, following a discussion of social media with a friend and then lots of introspection afterwards about how I felt on the matter. I think that social media has a way of degrading the original intent of what I set out to do, because I’m really busy looking at how other people have done it. The lens in which I analyze their merit is not through an intuitive lens of what is right for me, but rather the warped lens of metrics that would be non-sensical in real life (imagine if you had to purchase groceries by paying in “likes” or your internet speed depended on the number of “follows” you had).
I’ve been carefully observing and paying attention to how my intentions change throughout the day and noting where things get sidetracked and where I end up unsatisfied with how my day has gone.
Paying attention to where my intentions go awry has also helped me break down where my jiu jitsu training is succeeding or failing.
If I have the intention to “retain my guard” as much as possible, but I am consistently hesitating or forgetting to pull guard in rounds, then that could be a signal about how much faith (or priority) I really have in a game plan when under stress.
If I have the intention to “stay focused during drilling and not talk all the time," but I find myself cracking jokes again and not feeling the techniques, then that could be a signal about my social anxiety levels.
If I have the intention to “see a range of predictable responses to passing on my feet,” but I find myself resorting to my A game of smash and pass because I’m getting frustrated, then that could be a signal about how my ego is behaving at the moment.
Try This Tidbit
Write down an intention (so you remember it), a time to “follow-up,” and then spend 10-15 minutes reflecting on where you kept or deviated from your intentions. Was it something within your control or out of your control?
PS!
I’ve been doing shorter episodes (1-5 minutes) for the podcast.
Current series: Imposter Syndrome.