A good warrior always works smarter, not harder. “Do nothing which is of no use” was one of the Dokkodo or the 21 precepts that Miyamoto Musashi lived his life by. As we reach out toward our goals, it’s not uncommon for us to think that all we need to do is work as hard as we can, and we will succeed. After all, William James said, “Action may not always bring happiness, but there is no happiness without action.” However, it is possible to work one’s self to death which is referred to as “karoishi” (過労死) in Japanese. In budo training, more isn’t necessarily better despite teachers throughout the ages admonishing us to, “Work harder, work harder” but I think what they really meant was that we need to work smarter. Working smarter means knowing the difference between what is right and what is right now. Furuya Sensei once said, “You don’t need to dig holes in every place, just in the right places.” Thus, it is possible to prepare ourselves for battle, but not be ready to fight because we put in so much unnecessary work that it overworked us. True martial arts training is the journey towards finding peace, balance, and centeredness. Overworking, like overtraining does not come from a place of balance and so the ramifications can be stress, burnout, and maybe even death. The journey of life is about learning to let go. We let go of those things which don’t technically serve us even if we think that they do or in other words we “do nothing which is of no use.” Being smart means know what do and what not to do, what to hold on to and when to let it go and also knowing when it is time to work hard and when it’s time to back off. When we are calm and centered, everything will fall into place and so a warrior knows the difference between right and right now. True warriors are always seeking balance and centeredness, and thus they always work smarter, not harder.
Today’s goal: What are you holding on to? Pause, take a breath and let it go. Do nothing which is of no use.