When we look to grow as martial artists and as people really, we need to understand that it’s perfectly okay to disagree with others. In fact, people are less likely to trust and believe you if you agree with them on each and every little thing. People will believe that we are putting on a face just to get along with them and be on their side. They will know that you are being fake.
In order to gain the trust of those that we work with, we need to express our honest selves. In having things that we disagree about, we will come off as unique and authentic as we are. We will need to have disagreements with people to learn different ways of thinking and gain new ideas. This will help us move forward in our organizations whether they are our companies or martial arts associations.
If you have an idea to share or don’t agree with something someone said, state your opinion. Yes, it is always an important thing to be diplomatic in how we bring up our differences and convey them with compassion (Who wants to learn a lesson from a jerk?), but we are doing a disservice to ourselves and everyone around us by not bringing these differences up.
In physics, a wheel by itself on the ground literally will not rotate when there is a force applied unless there is some friction on the surface. Friction gets a bad wrap for being a nuisance but in this case it is quite useful. Let us have positive friction with those around us. It will keep us moving forward and will help us get a grip on our productivity and keep us advancing to the next level.
