The martial arts are a great place to look if you want to extrapolate the lessons you learn physically, and incorporate them into other areas of your life…
In fact, some of the greatest philosophy texts you will read have come straight out of the dojo…
- Tao of Jeet Kune Do by Bruce Lee
- The Book of Five Rings by Miyamoto Musashi
- Zen in the Martial Arts by Joe Hyams
- The Art of War – Sun Tzu
…to name but a few!
Now, as I’m sure most of you know, the martial arts mostly work on a grading system. You begin as a beginner, and are given a white belt to signify your pure nature and your commitment and determination to learn and grow.
After a minimum period as a white belt beginner you are deemed to have learnt enough to move on to a slightly more advanced level, and are rewarded with a belt of a different colour.
This process happens throughout the time you spend in the dojo committed to learning, developing, and growing…
In the dojo, your sensei will be at pains to tell you that the best way to progress through the belts is to keep pure of nature and stay committed and determined – in other words, KEEP A WHITE BELT MENTALITY!
This is absolutely crucial to understand…
If you approach everything in life with a white belt mentality you will progress so much faster than if you come at it with an ‘I already know everything’ attitude…
Thinking you know all there is to know about something (you don’t, you never can, there are infinite possibilities in the quantum field, remember) is the definition of a fixed mindset, and fully engages your ego as the primary driver…
Knowing that you don’t know much, that there are many things just lying outside of your awareness, and you are open to all possibilities, is the definition of a growth mindset and allows you to align with the natural laws of the universe as you work towards a solution…
So look at your life today…
Where are you failing to adopt a white belt mentality?
Where can you be pure of nature and stay committed and determined?
