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Apr
22
I’m tired of being afraid of things. Last night I was training jiu-jitsu with Miles—a big dude, super nice, and good with takedowns. We were working on take downs and I felt slow and uncomfortable and I know why. I had a bad case of the What Ifs.
“What if I shoot for a single and he sprawls and I’m caught underneath?”
“What if I do a double-arm-over-throw and he lands in mount?”
“What if he sweeps me and I look like a fool?”
The What Ifs can be crippling, it will definitely slow your game down. It’s funny because while you’re thinking about a What If, you’re missing your opportunity for action. I see a chance for a single leg and I think “What if I shoot for a single and he sprawls” by the time I’m finished with that thought the opportunity has passed. I’ve missed it.
I don’t care what you call it, too much thinking, paralysis by analysis, fear to commit—flow has no fear. The What Ifs are speed bumps, they slow you down. They ruin your flow. Instead of being like water, you’re lumpy gravy.
There are What Ifs in every aspect of our lives.
“What if I lose my job?”
“What if the car breaks down again?
“What if my son is bullied at school?”
There’s a beautiful counter to the What if? and that is another What if ?
Here’s an example:
“What if I shoot for a single and he sprawls and I’m caught underneath?”
What if he doesn’t sprawl? What if I get the single?
“What if I do a double-arm-over-throw and he lands in mount?”
What if he doesn’t land in mount?
“What if he sweeps me and I look like a fool?”
What if he doesn’t?
The point is you can’t be afraid of the What Ifs. A what if is only a speculation and it’s usually a bad one, a negative thought, but we have to realize that there are positive What Ifs that balance the equation. So the best thing to do is to not even ask the question. You see a good opportunity to shoot a single—shoot a single! Focus on the shot not the outcome. Don’t think about it, do it.
What if the Tap or Die company fails?
The more important question is What if it doesn’t!
I’m not going to think about failure, I can only see an opportunity and I’m going to take a shot.
Great post Mark. Here’s a quote by Theodore Roosevelt that is kind of on par with this post: “In the arena”
It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat