Training your mind
Living our best life can be tricky! Today I want to share two mindset tips that I think could help you.
1) Have a way of dealing with information overload
It doesn’t matter what system you employ! but life can feel so overwhelming, with everyone posting opinions and experts disagreeing over what is best. It is hard enough knowing what we should do let alone worry about execution!. We need a solution. I’m a big fan of ignoring the noise, simplifying life and finding real experts to teach me stuff… I’d go so far as to say it doesn’t really matter what you learn!… if you find a great teacher who is as passionate as they are skilled, then hire them! The key to navigating through information is to be selective and employ critical reasoning.
My first-ever podcast episode (which I only just recorded 10 days ago- yay!) discusses this in more detail and gives some additional insight.
2) Take the red pill… and change your limiting beliefs
Our beliefs help us make sense of and navigate through the world. They are easily formed yet rarely challenged (by ourselves). The brain is designed to be more efficient than accurate!
So, when we study neuroscience, human psychology, and modern philosophy, we realise that beliefs are not static but fluid entities that justify our actions more than an objective ‘truth’. Like Neo… I always recommend taking the metaphorical Red Pill and living a life full of (self-awareness. To live a fit, well and athletic life, we have to look at how we make decisions and see if there are any limiting thought patterns and inaccurate beliefs that are holding us back.
In my second podcast episode, recorded the other day, I discuss your beliefs and share a story of a client who had a negative belief about their body and what we did to reinforce a better ‘replacement belief’. I also share an essential exercise that helps you become more aware of your general beliefs surrounding your body and exercisee.
The MX Podcast
My brand new MX podcast explores fitness, wellness and is primarily here to support our many Methodology X™ fans, be they MX class goers or online workout club members. New episodes will drop every so often! To listen & subscribe to future episodes (via Apple, Spotify etc) please click here. Thanks.
Bodhichitta Vs Coronavirus
When we look backwards on our lives, if we are honest, the most profound learning experiences occur when everything is a bit shit!. This Pandemic is horrific. Too many families have seen loved ones die before their time, and too many people are experiencing financial and emotional stress. Anxiety is up and so it should be!… but what are we to do, how are we to think?
Taking a spiritual path
Yes exercise and routine are both massively important. Goals are always handy as they give us the gift of focus… but if we are ‘lucky’ enough (i.e don’t have kids, not a key worker, have some sort financial security and are healthy) filling our extra time with working our abs, writing poetry, baking, learning the guitar and many self-development practices are fun and nice.. but .. maybe we need to stop rushing, slow down and perhaps use this ‘opportunity’ to dig a little deeper and develop ourselves in a more ‘spiritual’ way.
There is sometimes a danger when ‘working on yourself’ that we become even more about ourselves, more egotistical, more self-absorbed even quasi-solopolistic in our outlook. I’ve seen it happen… and it’s always such a shame. A more ‘spiritual’ approach to life must always involve learning to transcend ones’ ego.
What the f••k is Bodhichitta?
As far as I know, all major religions and spiritual practices agree that this a good thing to try to aspire to, but it is Buddhism that places the ego and the false sense of ‘I’ with such disdain. A fundamental doctrine of Buddhism is that learning to let go of the concept of self is central to gaining a true understanding of life and the universe. We can only let get of self when we think about others. Compassion is therefore central to Buddhist philosophy and practice. Being kind and having compassion, without expecting anything in return is, as most of us would agree, a more spiritual, honest and rewarding approach to life regardless of our religous beliefs.
As for me, well… I’m far from living an ego-less life… so I know this isn’t easy! but during lockdown I’m trying to be improve myself in this way, and would love you to join me. Now is an ideal time to initially reflect on decisions we have made and on the person we want to be today (and on the person who we want to be when the lock down is over) and start living in accordance this. I’m often drawn to Buddhism as it has a lot to say about the dangers of being driven by ego and about the importance of compassion. In fact one of the aims of Buddhist practice is to develop an enlightened mindset…. a.k.a Bodhichitta.
The following is an extract from from a talk by Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________
The supreme good heart is bodhichitta. ‘Bodhi’ is the Sanskrit word for ‘enlightenment’, and ‘chitta’ the word for ‘mind’; therefore ‘bodhichitta’ literally means ‘mind of enlightenment’. It is defined as a mind, motivated by compassion for all living beings, that spontaneously seeks enlightenment.
Bodhichitta is born from great compassion, which itself depends upon cherishing love. Cherishing love can be likened to a field, compassion to the seeds, taking and giving to the supreme methods for making the seeds grow, and bodhichitta to the harvest.
The cherishing love that is developed through the practice of exchanging self with others is more profound than that developed through other methods, and so the resultant compassion and bodhichitta are also more profound.
Without great compassion, the spontaneous wish to protect all living beings from suffering, bodhichitta cannot arise in our mind; but if we have great compassion, especially the great compassion generated through exchanging self with others, bodhichitta will arise naturally. The strength of our bodhichitta depends entirely upon the strength of our great compassion.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________
If you want to develop your compassion and kindness and Bodhichitta, just open your eyes, turn on the news, take it all in. You can also watch fly on the wall the TV shows such as Hospital, Volunteer with the NHS or the Samaritans or at least reach out to those in your social circle and community in need and listen to their stories of grief, pain, unfairness and frustration. It is not “negative’ to put yourself in other else’s shoes, no matter how badly it fits. it makes you kind, useful and also gives you perspective on your own situation.
Hold that meme
On social media there are a lot of posts stating ‘we will get through this pandemic’. Under closer inspection, I’m not convinced that it’s as reassuring to others as it is to the person posting it. It is easy to tell everyone we’ll get through it when you are not directly effected. Those of us that have been in hospital by ourselves fighting off Covid-19, or losing our loved ones, are a front line worker, are now unemployed or have pre-existing medical conditions (that self-isolation is a harsh reality until a vaccine comes around) are all feeling extremely stressed right now and some of us sadly will NOT get through unscathed and unaffected at all. If i was to rant, I would mock the entitled TikTok generation, but that is too easy, not entirely accurate nor indeed unhelpful. Either way, if you love social media, It is always a good idea to think what it must be like for others less fortunate than yourself before posting about your own discomfort and offering ill-thought-out, meme friendly advice.
Seeing is believing
The only way I know of to develop compassion is through a mix of exposing the mind to darker realities and through contemplation/meditation. For example, How about spending 20 minutes today just thinking about what others less fortunate than you are going through in this pandemic will almost automatically make you more compassionate, empathetic.. and grateful for your own life and your own problems. Like a muscle; compassion, empathy and gratitude all become better and more toned up / refined with use. What else can you do?
Consider the millions of care workers, Nurses and Doctors all over the world directly putting their own lives at risk to help strangers, all of whom (as the UK PM stated so beautifully put last week) are ‘powered by love’. Think of the clear coming together of a communities as we clap for our NHS and pick up groceries for those neighbours we barely know. Think of the £26+ million Captain Tom has raised so far!. Does this not give us a hope that us humans are kind and compassionate by their very nature?
In the UK, we talk of social distancing, but reality is we are actually more social than ever. (all be it in different way). The human condition is fragile, we need each other to survive and there is something very beautiful about that. More than anything though, I hope you see what i see right now, as when you look closely enough to the world outside of us, forget our pain, discomfort, boredom or stress, we can always see the bigger picture… the truth.. that there is an abundance of kindness everywhere. I don’t know about you.. but I find that reassuring and it inspires me to be better human, to be more grateful and to consciously be kinder and more compassionate to others.
It is only with the heart that one can see
rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.
-Antoine de Saint Exupéry
Blog post written by Dan.
1
How to love your body
This past week has been mental health awareness week. The main focus for us this year is on body image, which is a complex and nuanced subject. As always, we like to go a little more in-depth and provide real education and insight and as such, we are very happy to share two resources with you.
Firstly is our brand new and 100% FREE body image guide, written by and starring our team Psychotherapist, Danielle Sandler. This concise guide is full of insights, videos, and practical tips for those of you. There is so much talk on body image within the fitness and wellbeing industry so it’s important to get a real expert into the conversation.
In addition, you can watch a candid discussion with Dan Roberts, taken from his live Radio interview yesterday. The topics discussed include male body image and the subsequent effect of movies and social media, Beta waves and mental states, zen and philosophy, monastic life, progressive resistance, martial arts, mindfulness, mindful movement, the dangers of the body positivity movement, and the importance of critical reasoning and self-awareness. Within this interview, Dan also offers practical tips to help you get fit and be happy.
1
Martial Arts & The Art of Business
What can entrepreneurs learn from studying martial arts?
I have been a trainer for well over 20 years, before the rise of social media and now I foresee an even bigger change to the fitness industry with the rise of technology – we all must adapt and change if we want to continue succeeding. Within my business, I have learnt a lot of different fitness disciplines and trained with many different kinds of people for varying needs. However, when thinking about business growth for myself and those I mentor, I can return back to a time when I trained and competed as a professional Thai Boxer (Thailand) and think about what we can learn as entrepreneurs from studying martial arts.
Any fitness activity has stress-relieving and well-being benefits, but martial arts, regardless of which ones are practised, are particularly mindful and skill-based; thus, they become quite meditative.
Eastern traditions have long used martial arts to develop physical attributes, tactical knowledge and character. For example, when Facebook was about to buy Snapchat, Stephen Spiegel bought his management team Sun Tzu’s Art of War, and CEOs around the world often cite the samurai classic text ‘Book of 5 Rings” as a how-to manual to raise the top.
I think entrepreneurs are missing out if they take intellectual lessons from reading warfare strategy and combat & martial arts guides though. Nine times out of ten, it is mindset, mental toughness and exquisite focus (and not actually business acumen) that entrepreneurs need to help get their businesses to the next level.
How specific Martial Arts teach us business lessons.
1) Learning Strategy, Attention to Detail and Problem Solving
BBJ, Judo and wrestling – all very technical sports where you learn to make good decisions under pressure. The more you know about yourself, your business, your customers and your market, the better.
2) Learning Connection and Rapport
Aikido and Wing Chun Kung Fu – these ‘soft’ martial arts require you to listen to the other person’s energy when you fight. When you learn to be sensitive in mind, you are perfectly empathetic and can feel other people’s energy, then you can work with it and use it to your advantage. Listening to your customers (often hidden needs) is key to business success.
3) Learning Perspective
Muay Thai / K1 / Kickboxing. These martial arts place a heavy focus on sparring. If you train in them, it won’t be long till you get punched or kicked in the face! Taking strikes can be alarming at first, your whole world momentarily falls apart, but with practice you learn to take the blows in detached way. You literally don’t feel pain as you are so focused. This is a brilliant lesson for the rollercoaster of emotions entrepreneurs can often feel on any given day or week. A calm outlook helps everything!
By Dan Roberts
——————
Dan Roberts is also a career development speaker for local schools via the Working Knowledge charity and via his roles as a Business Mentor for both Virgin Start Up and the Prince’s Trust.
Read more
[1] http://www.sentientdevelopments.com/2007/03/managing-your-50000-daily-thoughts.html
1