It is often said that people overestimate what they can do in a month and underestimate what they can accomplish in a year. How about what you can do in five minutes? I want to share a tip with you that I learned from my high school art teacher. He must have done something right. I have made my living as an artist for over twenty five years. Do you want to know his secret? Here it is... "The Magic of Five Minutes".
How does it work? When we are fired up and motivated we can't wait to get to the dojo or get started working out. As we all know it's not always that way. What do we do when we are less than fired up. Many times we get cranking and try to fire ourselves up. We might even set higher goals and commit to working twice as hard. More often than not we fail to fall for our own bluster and bravado. We get overwhelmed by our own aspirations and can end up throwing up our hands and saying "whats the use". A lot of times It just doesn't work.
As an artist it looks like this. Instead of saying "Tonight I'm going to start my Sistine Chapel!!!". Instead I just say to myself "Just draw. Just draw for five minutes". In doing this you give yourself permission do stick your toe in the pool. You get started. That's the biggest hurdle. Once you are over that, more often than not you can get into the process far enough to experience "flow". When you do that you can ride to the end of an enjoyable and productive session.
It works with the martial arts as well. Give yourself a break. Don't say to yourself "I'm going to create my own style" or "I gotta get into the UFC". Tell yourself "Just five minutes". You might be surprised how long you go and what you end up accomplishing.
