Perception is a funny thing. Fact can become irrelevant. It is how you see the facts that seems to make the difference.
A perfect example of this is the I Ho Chuan program. Not long ago I had the opportunity to chat with a former student of SRKF. This individual had reached a fairly high rank but chose to move on to a different martial art. I asked this person why the change. The answer was that they did not have time to deal with the IHC commitments so why stay if they couldn't grade for black belt.
I found this an interesting viewpoint. At one time I had viewed the IHC program as impossible. I did not believe in myself that I was physically capable of doing what was required. Now having been involved for the past 1.5 years, I realize that this argument is really just an excuse to avoid pushing myself.
Unfortunately, we were not in a place where I was able to get into a real conversation about my views of the IHC program. This person seemed extremely surprised that I was involved. I tried to convey how much I had benefited from being involved and that the time commitment had not been an issue in my life. I'm not sure the message came across but I tried nonetheless...
How do you describe the time commitment of the IHC program? If you have carefully examined your life and looked at the changes you want to make and set goals based on those insights... If you are actively seeking to meet those goals... Then yes, the IHC program is very time consuming. Really it is a 24/7/365 commitment. That is what it takes to live in pursuit of mastery. It takes every single breathing moment you have on this earth.
To the argument that it is too time consuming? I don't want to 1/2 live life. I don't want to waste the precious time that I have here. I want to be the best person that I can be. I looked at what qualities were important to me. I looked at my life and what I would like to see changed. I set my goals based on this. It is now my job to pursue those goals every waking moment. Either I am moving in the direction towards the person I want to be or I am not. It doesn't matter if you are involved in a program, this is a universal truth. So yes, it is very time consuming but it is totally worth it!
This morning as I was texting back and forth with my kung fu accountability buddy, I looked at what I had accomplished. From the time period from 7:30 until roughly noon, I had done virtually nothing but work towards my IHC goals - yet I had spent very little time doing actual physical kung fu. I had watched an online webinar, done some reading, had a glass of water with a dear friend on my deck, slid in a few push ups and sit ups for good measure... All of this related to my goals. This morning was an incredibly successful morning when framed within the life I want to live. This afternoon has been filled with work, blogging and caring for our home. One way or another, it can almost all be related back to my goals.
Perception is everything.
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