Reflection

Research + Practice = Improvement

One of the personal benefits of developing a new program like my Sports Chi is that it gives me the opportunity to research and cross reference various Tai Chi themes and techniques.

Not only is this research beneficial for the Sports Chi program but also for my own personal training.

With a greater depth of knowledge I feel my skills are improving as I practice on a daily basis.

Rather than overload on the knowledge obtained, I simply take one theme or skill learned and apply it to a specific aspect of my training.

For example, one of the areas I’ve worked on is making sure my knees are properly aligned.

This is easy to do if you are stationary, but when moving from posture to posture in a Tai Chi form it’s difficult to do.

As I do my research on areas I already know, I’m reminded of what the famous former UCLA basketball coach, John Wooden, once said – ‘It’s what you learn after you know it all that counts‘.

Wu Wei: Doing Nothing

By Chris Leave a Comment

Here is an interesting short clip from The School of Life about Wu Wei, which is a key concept within Daoism.

In Chinese “Wu Wei” means “non-doing” or “doing nothing”. But it’s not an invitation to relax or, worse, become lazy or apathetic. 🙂 Instead, it’s referring to ‘effortless action’ or the ‘serene acceptance of events’.

So if you sometimes feel you’re swimming against the tide or struggling with your workload, this clip is worth watching.

Leadership

By Chris Leave a Comment

A quote on leadership that I believe in.

What Have I Done That Really Matters

By Chris Leave a Comment

In the documentary ‘More Than a Game‘, Dru Joyce II reflects on a decision he had to make when his son’s high school basketball coach left and Dru was asked to take over as a first year coach.

The team, St Mary St Vincent, was a potential title winning team and had a young Lebron James on the team – now a famous National Basketball Association player and rated by many as the best player in the world.

Dru said he was already making money as a businessman and, when considering the offer, he asked himself ‘what have I done that really matters?’ Well, he decided what really mattered to him at the time was to accept the role as coach.

And I suppose it’s a question many of us ask ourselves at some stage in life.

For the first half of my working life I did mainly boring jobs that did not really mean anything to me apart from collecting a wage to pay the bills.

After several years I decided to do things that really mattered to me. So I went back to university and completed a Bachelor of Arts degree, majoring in Psychology and Media Studies.

Later I followed my passion and built a business around Tai Chi, which has given me the opportunity to travel Australia and New Zealand to run specialised Tai Chi workshops. These have included Chair Chi training for Aged Care staff and residents, as well as workshops and programs for teachers and students at both primary and secondary school level.

Looking back, I could have made a lot more money if I’d stayed working in those boring jobs. But I have no regrets, because I have done and still do now what really matters to me – and I hope also matters to others with whom I’ve worked.