We are what we practice.
Whether we are talking about physical, mental, emotional, or even creative habits, we are changed most by that which we most often do.
Over time, repetition and routine become character.
What we practice most is what we fall back on when we are under pressure, stress, or fatigue.
This is why it is so important to build habits around that which we want to become.
We have to practice achieving our goals until the behaviors, skills, and attitudes required for those goals become our natural state.
Through practice, we become that which we are striving toward.
We should, therefore, practice being who we want to be instead of settling for who we are in the habit of being.
Holistic Budo: As it is in budo, so too it is in life. As it is in life, so too it is in budo.
Robert Van Valkenburgh is co-founder of Kogen Dojo Self Defense Academy where he teaches Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.*
*Robert Van Valkenburgh’s black and white photography can be seen at My Darkness To Light
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