Selective Hearing
We all have something special in us. We have Greatness and Failure in us. We have royalty and poverty in our DNA.
It’s the voices that you hear that you choice to listen to that will make or break you. I have students that could probably recite word for word my lessons and there are others that I can tell are 1000 miles away.
I learned early in my karate training that it did not matter what others in class were doing. Some weren’t trying hard. Some would slack when Sensei would look away and others just didn’t care. But the ones that got to Black Belt had a dream, a goal, a desire and a burning focus to become something. They listened to the voice of Sensei admonishing them to try harder, move faster and punch harder. Funny, my first Sensei Roger Vernon was famous for saying, do it again! You could sometimes hear a few mumble, aw! I would silently say oh yeah! I’m so glad Sensei would do that.
Sensei would say harder or faster. I would try to do both. He would have us punching, kicking or doing combinations up and back the length of our 75 ft training floor and guess what he’d say? Yep, Do it again, and he would add the words with speed. I thought I was doing it fast. I realize now he was trying to motivate some of the less motivated but it made me reach for more.
To achieve anything, you have to have selective hearing. There are thousands of things each day that we hear and think. We have to be selective as to which voices we hear and allow in. We all have things we think that are like voices in our heads. Crazy people are noted for hearing voices. We all hear voices but it’s the ones we listen to that make us great or make us crazy.
I always felt that karate was great for the mind. During class you need to focus on so many things! Is my hand closed right? Is my foot in the right position? Did I chamber my leg right? What is the next move in my new kata? Too much to focus on to hear external voices. To do karate right, you need to take your brain and set it on the shelf when you walk in the door. Karate class is like a mini vacation from reality. Our problems, concerns and worries and the things we were mad about are tabled for a short time so that we can train our bodies and refresh our minds.
Have selective hearing. Listen to the voice that says you can do more and not the one that says no you can’t. Listen to the voices that move you forward not the ones that stop you. Listen to the voices that pick you up and not the ones that put you down.
Listen to that voice that says, FASTER! Ignore that urge to say ugh!
We have the choice to listen to great voices. Just make sure you choose wisely.
Develop Selective Hearing!
Shihan Culver
