Start where you are and stay there.
This seems like odd advice if you’re trying to grow. Don’t we want to start where we are and move forward from there?
I found a meaning to this age-old wisdom paradox during trampoline practice.
We can move forward only by staying focused on where we are in the moment.
On the trampoline, linking skills is hard. Linking skills is difficult because you have to be more precise in the first skill to execute the second skill well. Also because of the tendency to think ahead to the second skill before you’ve completed the first skill.
Although you need to know where you’re going, if you’re thinking too far ahead, you won’t land the first skill well, and then you won’t get to where you want to go.
Most injuries happen when we’re already moved on to the next thing in our head before our bodies are there.
Off the trampoline, in the realm of my “real” life and work, knowing the intended outcome is crucial to identifying what steps I need to take. But if I’m thinking about the final step while still in an earlier step, I won’t be focused enough in the earlier step to execute it well, and then I won’t make it to the subsequent steps.
Things fall apart when the mind gets ahead of the body.
The lesson I’ve learned on the trampoline is to identify where I want to go and the steps I need to take to get there, then focus on one step at a time. My conscious mind stays focused on the present moment, even as my subconscious holds the intention for where I want to go.
Start where you are and stay there.
It doesn’t mean to physically stay where you are. Instead, it’s a reminder to stay present to where you are. Don’t get too far ahead of yourself. Trust that if you stay focused and present in this moment, the next steps will happen with more ease.
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