Perfect Poise, Perfect Life
Bring your body into balance and revolutionise your life
By Noel Kingsley
Publisher Hodder Mobius
AVAILABLE HERE
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Skill and Will
Muhammad Ali
"Champions aren't made in gyms, champions are made from something they have deep inside them - a desire, a dream, a vision. They have to have last-minute stamina, they have to be a little faster, they have to have the skill and the will. But the will must be stronger than the skill." Muhammad Ali
I remember reading about the virtuoso violinist Maxim Vengerov who began playing the violin at the age of four. He was enthusiastic and took to it easily. He also practiced for something like 7-8 hours a day and was allowed to go and play on his bicycle after he'd finished his violin practice at around 2.00am! (In Russia, I believe children don't start school until aged 7.) Vengerov was told he had a natural talent for the violin. And because he had such talent, he had to work ten times as hard as others in order to get the most from his natural ability. That takes time,.....a lot of time and dedication. But he says he enjoyed it otherwise he wouldn't have stuck at it.
If such dedication is required from someone who has a natural talent, how much time does it take mere mortals? Well we're probably not wishing to be concert performers or 'The Greatest' as Muhammad Ali says. So, how much time does it take for us to enjoy ourselves? Well some people might say that unless they can play well, they don't enjoy it. But in order to play well it seems that an enormous amount of time, dedication and perseverance is required; their will to succeed must be huge. But which comes first, the chicken or the egg?
The trouble with not enjoying oneself unless we do well, be it in sport, music, arts or any activity is that we will either not do anything because we will never be satisfied or we end up dissatisfied all the time, unless we're blessed with a rare gift. I don't know about you, but it's my wish to be happy all the time, or as much of the time as possible. So that would mean, if we follow the above trait of only being happy if we're successful, that either we have to be brilliant at everything we do....the instant we start, or we change our criteria; we change our approach so we can maybe enjoy the process of working and then let the end result take care of itself.
For instance, I know that I'll never be a brilliant violinist having only started a few years ago, but if I can gain pleasure in applying myself to the occupation; lost in my endeavours; consumed by the entire process; occupied both in body and mind to the point of it almost being meditational, then even if I only achieve very moderate success, I shall come away happy as a dog with a wildly wagging tale. (I currently take delight if I can make just make a single note on the violin sound beautiful!) And for me that's what life is all about. When I eventually reach the end of my existence here on this earth, I shall be mighty pleased if I can look back on all these years and truly say that I was happy for most of the time. Wow, what a great life. But I should be saddened if I look back on my life and see it as just filled with a succession of frustrated attempts to be brilliant. As I said in my blog entry 'Is being stupid good?', I would rather have a pleasurable time in ignorance and relative 'stupidity' than be an unhappy expert. I could take this further and say "It's just great being dim, as I'm totally unaware of my own inadequacy!"
It's my wish to find as much pleasure as possible in any activity I undertake; it makes for a good life.
"Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing you will be successful."-Albert Schweitzer
But if you're blessed with a rare talent, then please, please make the most of it. Enjoy the process, love what you do and you will reap the rewards of your endeavour. If you have the will as well as the skill, as Muhammad Ali says, then you can become a champion. But even if you're not blessed with a rare talent but you do have the will, you'll more than likely achieve some success in almost anything you do. But be happy in the process.
As the Buddha says, "There is no road to happiness; happiness is the way."
:-)
