What's the price I'm willing to pay?

I recently did some professional training and this question was raised.  Its been on mind every day since and multiple times a day.

Its really a simple question that if you think about it mindfully you'll realize the answer.  The answer is the easy part, paying the actual price is the hard part.  

I've actually come to realize that I wasn't willing to pay the price when it came to my training.  I wasn't going to give up time in the morning (payment) to get some extra push ups some or some forms.  How could I ever expect to get stronger or see my forms improve if I wasn't willing to pay the price for it?  

Over the past week i've started to pay the price.  I'm making the hour between 7am and 8am my time.  I'm using it to invest in myself with push ups, sit ups, form practise and I'm also learning Spanish.  Its my personal victory and it sets the tone for the rest of the day.  

Mr. Repay

Investing in myself

I've been thinking more about this as I start preparing for the upcoming I Ho Chuan Rat team.  The following are things that are important to me and worth the investment.

Diet

University education

Rest

Kung Fu

Giving back

Conversational Spanish

Broken relationships

New relationships

Mentorship

Leadership

Fitness

These all need some refining but they're the starting point.

Mr. Repay

Student of Silent River Kung Fu

Interested or Committed

I've been thinking about this quote for the past couple of weeks.  I came across the concept while watching an Oilers hockey game.  The commentators were discussing some of the players and their off season training.  In particular Ethan Bear's training this past summer.  Ethan took a hard look at his training in the past and knew if he wanted to make the club this year he'd have to be committed not just interested.

Over the past month I've been busy with work but there've been times where I could've made class but it wasn't "convenient".  I'm not upset with myself because I'm starting to understand why I'm making these decisions.  I'm also understanding that I have to commit and accept everything that this entails.  I know it's going to be hard, it's going to hurt but it's going to be rewarding both mentally and physically.  The hardest part is the committing to the process.  I totally committed earlier in my training.  I wasn't going to miss classes for any reason.  I moved things around and I committed to ensuring that I was at class and was engaged.  The results were amazing and I think back, envious of MYSELF!!! I know that I can get back there and the only thing holding me back is me committing.  

One of my favorite quotes is "the journey of a 1000 miles begins with the first step".  This is so true but the hardest part of the journey isn't the first step but it's the next step and the next step and the next step...

Mr. Repay

Student of Silent River Kung Fu

It's all about value

I'm huge believer in the power of value.  Value in my world is defined as something that isn't driven by price as the main mitigating factor.  Price has to be at the lower end of the scale.  In fact I'm willing to pay more for something that to me has value.

I travel a lot for work and Calgary is a regular destination for me.  I choose to stay at the Hotel Blackfoot.  They don't have a "points program" or are they the cheapest.  What they do is treat me like a valued customer.  They know my name, they great me by name and the smile when I walk up to the counter.  They sometimes leave  me a handwritten note thanking me for my business! This has value to me and the price isn't that much more than a comparable hotel that has a rewards point program. 

As consumers we all have choice.  We can choose and reward value totally on how and where we spend our money.  Next time your looking to exercise your choice with your money, ask yourself if the product or service your purchasing provides value?

"I'm the absence of value, price is King"

Mr. Ian Repay

Basics before application

I've been doing some thinking on practical Vs application.  When I've been away from SRKF over the past two years I dipped my toe into some "practical" martial arts training.  It was pretty interesting to experience this.  I've already had 5 years of training under my blue belt but I was very interested in watching the new people. 

You see there was very minimal time spent on proper stances, alignment and technique.  There was a lot more emphasis on the moves for say blocking and countering.  I found this interesting as without proper alignment and grounding there wouldn't be much power to either block or counter.  I watched how the students went through the motions that they were taught and some looked pretty good in a controlled environment. 

However the next main focus of the school was sparing.  It was then that I really saw the deficency of this style of training.  From my perspective the students sparing were off balance, not centered and when it came time to throw a punch or a kick it lacked power.  When the speed of the sparring session increased students with little proper understanding of how to generate power from a properly centered stance quickly either covered up and become defensive or wildly threw punches and kicks.

I love the style of Kung Fu that we're learning at SRKF and the foundation of everything is learnt at the white belt level.  I personally have forgoten this lesson as the techniques has increased in complexity.  However when I get back to basic everything falls back into place again.

Mr. Ian Repay

Steady pace

I'm a person that likes to go all in on what I do.  I can say that when I've reflect on the past nine years of my training and life this has been my "MO".  Upon reflection, I've seen massive highs and massive lows.  Rarely have I seen steady and calm.

As I get back to training I've already had to battle myself not to repeat the past.  I can't get back into shape overnight no matter how hard I want or try to.  I need to listen to my body more than ever, if it's too much too soon then I might have to take a knee in class.  In the past I would've seen this as a sign of weakness.  However now I see this as a sign of intelligence. 

I'm extremely happy to be back and I will approach my training and progression at the pace of consistency and what my body allows me to do.

Mr. Ian Repay

Reflecting on the last 9 years

I recently made a decision to get back to my training with Silent River Kung Fu.  I reached out to Sifu Brinker and we had (as always) an amazing conversation.  In fact we both had been thinking of each other as recently as two weeks ago.

I've recently gone back and re read a number of the blog posts over the past 9 years.  They all seem to have a similar theme to them, failure, self doubt and and self pity.  Re reading these posts has helped with perspective and growth.  I like many are not the same person nine years ago let alone one year ago.  I've changed significantly and I've grown as a individual.

The main area of growth is in the area of ego.  This has been one area that I've struggled with but over the past number of years I've been humbled and that's a very good thing.

I'm embarking on this journey for a number of reasons.  The number one is to achieve what a very small percentage of people achieve and that's my black belt.  Is achieving my black belt self serving and selfish? No, it's just a symbol or a marker of where I am in my journey.  I won't stop there as I want Kung Fu to be an integral part of who I am for the rest of my life.  I want to keep learning and teaching.  I want to mentor and develop as many students as I can until I can't do this anymore.

I feel rejuvenated and excited.  This is what I need and where I need to be.

Ian Repay