THE MOOD OF THE WARRIOR
The hardest thing in the world is to assume the mood of a warrior . . . A warrior is a hunter. He calculates everything. That's control. But once his calculations are over, he acts, He let's go. That's abandon. A warrior is not a leaf at the mercy of the wind. Carlos Castenada: A Separate Reality
Years ago I used to work with a guy named Ralph. He was officially in charge of the "I told you so" position. No matter what we wanted to do or needed to do, Ralph was against it. When things would inevitably not work out quite as planned, Ralph would always be there to say "I told you so."
There are guys like Ralph in every group and that's not necessarily a bad thing, because they do serve a purpose. They are the worriers, the ones who see only what can go wrong, who can tell you in great detail why it can't be done. More often than not, they are right to worry.
The problem is that there are times when you have to act, when you have to change. Those times may be dictated by external events or internal feelings. Either way, you need to find a way to overcome the natural resistance to change.
The quote suggests two things. First, think it through. Nobody is saying that to act means to act rashly. Follow the old adage of measure twice, cut once. As The Godfather put it, you can’t afford to be careless. So exercise due diligence. Try to anticipate what can go wrong and what you can do about it. And always have a Plan B.
A warrior is a hunter. He calculates everything. That's control.
But once you have considered carefully your options, pick a course of action and commit to it. Concern yourself with everything except whether it will work or not. We already know it won’t work out exactly as you planned. So what? Nothing ever does. You'll figure it out.
But once his calculations are over, he acts, He let's go. That's abandon.
This is the hardest part, not worrying about whether it works or doesn't work. If you have done your homework and built a careful plan it will work well enough. And if it doesn't, there is always Plan B. Mostly though you just need to trust your process and your instincts.
The key thing is to develop the habit of listening to your head and your heart when they are telling you that something needs to be done and then trusting that where there’s a need, there’s a way. It's all about the mindset.
The hardest thing in the world is to assume the mood of a warrior . . . A warrior is not a leaf at the mercy of the wind.
October 27, 2009
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