At some point in our martial arts career, even now maybe, we plateau in terms of our skill and have to work a bit harder than usual to get better. Whether we weren’t able to kick as high as we wanted, we couldn’t punch as hard as we wanted, we couldn’t roll as well as wanted, we couldn’t break fall the way we wanted, or even do a figure 8 spin with a Bo staff like we wanted; whatever it may be we felt like we plateaued at some point. We made it to a point where we felt stuck and thought we wouldn’t move forward. Yet, through constant training we were able to surpass what seemed to be a limit. We were eventually able to get our kicks higher, get our punches harder, roll cleaner, break fall better, do that figure 8 spin with the Bo staff, or whatever it was. We were eventually able to get better and get to a point where we wanted to be at, and if we didn’t make it, we got much closer and we didn’t stay where we were. Even right now, we may not be where we want, but one thing is for sure we are much better than what we were before. We as martial artists know how it is to put in the time and effort to seemingly surpass what we thought, for a while, was a physical limitation. We know that feeling and we know how great it is.
I want us to know as martial artists, the same way we break through plateaus in our martial arts career and get better, the same way we watched ourselves get stronger when we thought we couldn’t, the same way we watched ourselves get more flexibility, the same way we watched our technique get better even though we thought it was impossible one time, we can do the same thing in anything else. We have the capability, the capacity, to surpass any limitation we may think we have. So let’s do it!
Don’t think that you can’t sound more native in that language you are learning, or you can’t sound better with that instrument you’re playing. Don’t think you can’t be better at your job, or you can’t learn new technologies. Remember who you are! Remember you are the same person you thought would never be able to do the amount of pushups you did for that belt test! You are the same person you thought would never be able to do that many jumping jacks! You are the same person you thought couldn’t hit as hard as you do now! You have no limitations! They may seem like limitations, but that’s it, they just SEEM like limitations. Don’t forget, you are a martial artist! You got this! The same way your teacher used to coach you, or still coach you, telling you, “You can do it!”. The same way you internalized that, you practiced your technique despite thinking it is too hard, it is too much, it is impossible, but got better anyways. This same way, you can get better at other things in your life. Internalize this “You can do it!”, “You got it!”. Whether it is learning how to draw, finishing that college degree, preparing for a new career opportunity, you got it. You have no limits, and every time you seemingly come across a limit, tell yourself, “I got this”, and SURPASS IT!
