I was reading one of my student’s comments that he wrote for the book, “The Way to Black Belt.” and John’s words hit a cord with me that had not been struck before.
There is an old saying, who knows where it came from, but it reads that you learn more in a loss than in a victory. I came that idea in high school while wrestling and playing football, but John’s comments reshaped something for me. John wrote, and I paraphrase; that he “Learned more from bad days in the dojo than good days.” I have to say that hit me in the sternum like a major league baseball coming off Jose Consaco’s bat circa 1992. I have to admit something – I always considered bad days, throw away days, days to get through or over and reset for the next day. Now I have to work through those days, and learn from them just like I learn from a defeat. We always say that you never stop learning in the martial arts, well I guess it just take some of us who are thicker a little longer.
Is it wrong to be looking forward to the next bad day so I can ply my new intent? Mmmm, maybe not in this instance.
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Every time I work on throwing in general, it’s one of those days for me. My small stint in Judo was mostly just feeling useless, but that in itself proved to be pretty useful!
I keep asking myself “man, how come I am so bad at this”, why do I not improve faster. Finally i’ve just given up and come to realize that that aspect of things is just gonna come to me in small increments, and it will never be “my” thing (there’s the part I learned from it, what I am and am not)..I just try to remember “stronger every day”, and even teeny, minute increments are ok.