Date: 22.02.2023

The older I get. The more I think about the following: It doesn’t matter what you have done in the past. But what you keep doing consistently that counts.

After 3 years off the track. I'm back again. I decided that this year I will resurrect my running habit.

However, despite my long history of jogging - I've been running for more than 15 years till I stopped 3 years ago. I'm no better than a novice on the road.

But my stupid ego didn't want to admit that.

Two weeks ago I decided that I'll do a 5k just like that - no warm-up, no extra preparation, no light run a couple of days prior. And to make it even worse, I started the race from the front positions - with the top runners. With the guys and girls who are doing this every week - some even every day - without a pause.

The outcome? Well, I finished. But I was barely able to move for the first few days after the race. Plus, as a bonus, I got a really nasty cough that lasted for 2 weeks because I was gasping for air like a fish out of water through the whole race.

My previous "experience" didn't mean sh*t. Plainly, I was unprepared.

But probably the worst thing of all is that I was focused on the outcome instead on the process.

I was more focused on finishing the race. Not focused on the process of running.

Yet, this did help in some strange way.

What this event helped me remember is how much I love running.

Running is probably the best activity one can involve himself because it's a reminder that good things take time. There is no magic. There is no shortcut. There is no hack when you are setting one foot in front of the other.

It's not even you against the others.

It's you against you.

The more you run. The more you are capable of running the next time.

But the real lesson here is that you should never stop. Just like life. It's a never-ending process. Well, at least, if you want to reach a place you've never been before.

• Four Thousand Weeks by Oliver Burkeman: Our time on earth is insultingly brief – we have only around four thousand weeks. On top of it all, we waste much of it trying to do everything but eventually accomplish nothing. Four Thousand Weeks offers insightful philosophical tools that provoke deep reflection. Oliver Burkeman will help you figure out what’s truly important in your life so you can regroup, escape activities that are unworthy, and learn to focus your attention on the here and now.

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Interesting books I recently added to my reading list (and hopefully will read at some point):

• Coming Alive by Barry Michels and Phil Stutz: The book presents a program for defeating your inner enemy. The authors use their experiences as psychotherapists and spiritual practitioners to offer practical tools and techniques to help readers overcome common obstacles to creativity and self-expression.
• Understanding Variation: The Key to Managing Chaos by Donald J. Wheeler: First published in 1993, the book provides a practical guide to understanding and managing variation in processes and systems. Throughout the book, Wheeler emphasizes the importance of data-driven decision-making and the need for a systematic approach to quality improvement.

From my desk:

• Personal Core Values: A Must-Have Accessory To Get a Sense of Direction: "If you still don’t know, ever-lasting happiness is based on two things. First, not needing escapism of any form. For example, when you are sitting right next to your spouse on the sofa, you don’t feel the need to go online and see something else. To be with someone else. The presence of the person next to you is enough for you to feel joy. Secondly, you have to live up to your values."

From around the web:

• 45 days of silence: "Meditation sensitizes you to your thoughts and feelings, including suffering / stress. So after feeling so much peace and love, going back to the news and social media where there's so much cynicism and hate felt a bit overwhelming. The evident striving of social media influencers can also trigger a feeling of suffering and compassion."

Shu Ha Ri Мethod

How one becomes so good that he invents his own art style, for example?

On paper, it's not that complicated.

Shu Ha Ri is a Japanese martial art concept that can explain how a single person can master a particular discipline and eventually create a new movement that is profoundly different - e.g., Vincent van Gogh and Post-Impressionism.

The premise of the concept is the following, as explained by Aikido master teacher Endo Seishiro:

"When we learn or train in something, we pass through the stages of Shu, Ha, and Ri… In Shu, we repeat the forms and discipline ourselves so that our bodies absorb the forms that our forebears created. We remain faithful to the forms with no deviation. Next, in the stage of Ha, once we have disciplined ourselves to acquire the forms and movements, we make innovations. In this process, the forms may be broken and discarded. Finally, in Ri, we completely depart from the forms, open the door to creative technique, and arrive in a place where we act in accordance with what our heart/mind desires, unhindered while not overstepping laws."

In simple terms, the Shu Ha Ri method is a philosophy of growth and transformation. It recognizes that true mastery is not just about learning a set of rules or techniques and mindlessly repeating them. It's about innovation. Trying different methods. Restructuring the known, so you can create a better method of what you've been originally taught.

If you are in a hurry to reach your goals... Slow down. Don't try to end the journey fast. "Better if it lasts for years," says C.P. Cavafy - the most distinguished Greek poet of the 20th century - in his mesmerizing poem Ithaka.

As fulfillment is not found at the end of the destination. Rather, it's something we get along the way. During the process of striving to reach our destination.

Regards,

Ivaylo Durmonski