Daily Yamabushi

The big difference

It’s that you thought to do it, and then you acted on that thought.

Big difference.

Is it you?

Who are you prioritising in that decision?

Is it you?

Should it be?

The excuse that isn’t

We’re all at different stages along our own path. We’re all still learning something. But we can only use this as an excuse for so long. Even though we may still be learning, there are things we should have learned or mastered along the way that match our experience and stature.

Otherwise we’d still be learning.

Use it to your advantage

No matter how much you try to prepare, there’s always going to be something that trips you up. There’s always going to be something unexpected that gets in the way.

If there isn’t, you aren’t being bold enough.

The ordeal isn’t there just to be a nuisance. It’s there to help you become better.

The most exciting time in an idea’s life

As soon as you hit that send button, as soon as you push publish, as soon as your work gets sent out into the world, it’s time to say goodbye.

It’s magic time.

It’s time to let the ideas take flight, and to see where they’ll go.

Put your ideas out in the world

Put your ideas out in the world. It’s the only way you know for sure if they have any merit.

Hint: they do.

If it wasn’t for x, I would have been x by now. If I could only x, I could x.

No woulds. No coulds.

Just is.

Anything else is simply an excuse.

Give the moment your best shot

Here. Now. Self. The only three things that actually exist, and the only three things we have control over. Anything else is not worth worrying about.

Turn your focus towards what you have control over. Turn your focus towards being in the current moment, and making the most of that. Anything else is a waste of time and energy.

You have an obligation to make the most of what’s in front of you. An obligation to give the current moment your best shot, and to do it justice.

Start there. Because what else is there?

Self-discipline and regular resets

Self discipline is hard. It’s why it’s a discipline, not a walk in the park. When you think you’ve mastered something, something else always has a tendency to rear its ugly head. This is why regular check-ups or regular resets are so important.

When you’re working on one reset, you either need to already have plans for the next one, or at least be in the process of working on the next one.

I’m not talking about something like a weekend, or a time you use as an excuse to get away from what you’d rather not be doing. I’m talking about something that is made into your lifestyle that you enjoy doing, but that gives you that all important escape.

Something that without which you would be back to your old ways. Because otherwise, what’s the point of all this self-discipline?

The Beginner’s Mind and the current moment

Regrets are about living in the past. Anxieties and fears are about living in the future. What we have in front of us right now, this is where it’s at.

Every moment of every day, we start over. Every moment of every day is our chance for better. It’s our opportunity to do what we couldn’t do before, to use our newfound knowledge to push things forward.

The beginner’s mind isn’t just great at keeping us humble. It also keeps us hungry.

Let it.

Is it?

Ask anyone who’s lost someone close to them suddenly, the day before they died, did you think they would still be here tomorrow?

I thought so. I thought I would be with them for many more years.

Some things are a given. Some things are replaceable.

But many things aren’t, and we need to treat them as so.

Make do with, and without

During Yamabushi training last week I was away from it all. At one point, at least five or so days in, I overheard music coming from the kitchen. It was probably Justin Bieber or something else I don’t listen to, but for whatever reason in that moment I remember thinking ‘oh, that’s right, music exists!’. Coming from a lover of music, this was quite the realisation to have.

I’m the kind of person who has to have some sort of background noise. If I don’t have music on, it’s a podcast, or god forbid the TV. But this week helped me realise that I don’t actually need all that stuff. It helped me realise that I already have enough. That I already have what I need, and that’s all I need.

Make enough enough. Do with what you’ve got. And every once in a while, do without what you’ve got. It’s surprising how well we can survive without the comforts of modern life. I’d definitely suggest giving it a try.

Do that.

Find what’s paramount to get you to where you want to go. Focus entirely on doing that. It may involve some experimentation to get there, but that just means that experimentation is important.

Do that. And you’re on your way.

Prove it.

Did you? Did you really try? Was your heart in it completely, or did you have something else going on in the background?

To really try at something means you give it your all. It means you go all in.

And when I say all, I mean all.

It’s ok to be nonchalant about something, as long as this period doesn’t last too long, or as a way of testing the waters. However, when you find something that you are really passionate about, something that truly resonates with you, go all in.

Then you can at least say you tried.

No decision is also a decision

Do or do not. Go or stay. No matter what, you are making the decision. You are the one choosing whether to do something or not, not someone else. No decision is also a decision, and sometimes it’s a good one.

This means that you alone are responsible for the implications, good or otherwise. You alone are the one for which these things matter most, you alone are the one who has to live with these decisions.

Whatever decision is made, you made it with the best knowledge you had at that point in time. Don’t beat yourself up for a ‘wrong’ decision, think about how you can make it the right one in the future, and move forward.

Give it your best

Give your effort the respect it deserves. Give your effort your best effort.

Respect the effort. Respect the effort required. Respect the effort you put in. Give it your best.

Think long term. Do what’s best for future you.

Sure the lure of the smartphone right before you go to sleep may be a strong one. Sure your headache can wait for a little browsing on the internet. Sure the game you’re about to finish can be finished before you need to rest.

But should it?

Let it help you

If you were to wait for the perfect sunlight, the perfect cloud cover, the perfect amount of rain, you’d never get anywhere. That storm cloud on the horizon, that rain that falls on your face, that sunlight too bright to see anything, it’s not to be worried about. It’s all stuff that adds to the magic, and it’s all the scenery. It’s all just background stuff that either helps or hampers your progress. Your choice.

What’s in store?

The spectacular become spectacular by doing spectacular things.

It may take one spectacular thing or it may take one step after another after another after another…

So what are you doing that could be spectacular? What do you have in store for us?

What is possible to be taken for granted?

What are you thankful for?

You can only be so ready

Once the wheels are set in motion, that’s it, you’re on your way. You just have to trust that you’ve done enough preparation, and that you have the skills and attitude to get through.

Because you do.

Having done similar before helps, but nothing can prepare you for the unpredictable. That’s why it’s unpredictable. The best thing to do is to trust the process, and trust that you’ve prepared as best you can.

Because you have.

What game do you want to play?

The right choice leads to satisfaction. Knowing you’re doing the right thing is motivation enough to do the right thing.

On the other hand, the wrong game can lead to heartbreak and anguish. If you find yourself playing the wrong game, what’s stopping you from stopping? What’s stopping you from playing the game that leads to satisfaction? The game that allows you to do the right thing?

What game are you playing? What game do you want to play?

That’s why you do it

You don’t do it for the likes. You don’t do it for the recognition. You don’t do it for the status it gives you.

You do it for the people who care. You do it for the people who give a damn if you do it or not.

That’s who you do it for. It’s also why you do it.

Of course this comes with the caveat that you are one of those people.

How serious can you be?

Serious. How serious do you want to be? How serious you take something is a big clue as to how serious you think you should be about it in the moment.

It’s ok to not be serious about something, it usually just means you should be doing it less. But for the things you are really serious about?

Well, be serious about them.

Find what those things are, or what they may be, by trying different things. Then put your mind to it.

What are you serious about?

Give it your best shot, show us how serious you can be.

Respect both and you will be treated in kind

Progress is to process as process is to progress. One cannot be had without the other.

Sure the process may be willy nilly. Sure things could be done in a better way, but the process is the process, and it begets the progress it deserves.

Treat the process with the respect it deserves, and it will treat you in kind.

Keep on keeping on

It’s one thing to remember something. It’s another thing entirely to remember it well. That’s why continuous effort, even in the face of zero perceived progress, is so important.

To keep going at something you need conviction it will work. You need conviction that you can get there. Either that, or you need to make enjoying the process part of the process itself. Without these, well, you’re stuck with merely remembering things.

Do what’s right for you in the situation

Ask your grandmother how to make a recipe and she’d probably use words like ‘this much’, ‘about one hands full’, ‘enough to fill the pot’ or any other indeterminate amount.

Or in other words: ‘play it by ear’.

This doesn’t help when you’re wanting to get a recipe right. But ‘right’ depends on who you’re asking.

What’s right for you in the situation, is entirely dependent on that situation. In which case, indeterminate amounts are perfectly fine to use.

The rest will take care of itself

Working for money is a temporary solution. Working for impact, however, has lasting effects that should be prioritised.

Impact on self is one thing. Impact on others is another thing entirely.

Focus on the impact. The rest will take care of itself.