Staying true to what I promised yesterday, I will write my thoughts about one of Sir Jesse Robredo's email to Ms. Aika.
I will not dissect each line on his email. I will just write here what stayed with me for days.
The concept of deliberate practice is very much appealing to me. It is the conscious and intentional striving that one may be better in things that are difficult and often unpleasant to the self. According to Sir Jesse, he read somewhere that deliberate practice is actually one of the elements of a person's success. Because more often than not, we will find ourselves in the middle of things that we do not want, but we need to do. He said that if we would always stop doing things just because it doesn't make us happy, we will end up nowhere. Because there will always come a time where things will be boring, and hard. Actually, even if we started off as happy and contented with what we are doing, there will come a time where we will eventually lose our fire.
It is a painful reality, but it is so damn true. If I keep leaving things behind, just because it's not enjoyable anymore, I would end up nowhere. How? Think about this: Supposed that you started learning how to play the guitar, but then one day, you suddenly felt unhappy with it. With your calloused finger tips, and stiff hands, you become demotivated because you think it is too difficult. You already studied it for a month, but then you decided that it is not just for you, because it doesn't make you happy anymore. So, you tried to find another hobby that could make you happy again. Upon hearing the sound of the piano, it made your heart leap. And so, you thought to yourself that maybe, you are meant to be with the keys, not with the strings. So you started off with it. As days passed, you discovered that learning piano is not that easy too. The sound of the keys became monotonous, and your frustrations eventually deafened you. And just like the strings, you left the keys again. This cycle goes on and on and on. This is humanity's vain search for happiness.
But do you know what's the most unfortunate part of this grueling cycle? That person searching for happiness, he became master of none. He cannot even be considered as Jack of all trades! Because long before he can absorb the skills that might be useful for him in the long run, he already left the training ground.
You know. I think, the road to success is a straight but rocky path. It is a difficult one, and often it seems so so loooong. But actually, it is much longer if a person makes so many unnecessary detours in his life. Like instead of just going straight down the rocky path, he turns to the far right, to the left, turns around and run in confusing directions. All because he is searching for what makes him happy (but is often disappointed because happiness goes away faster than a bubble). So right now, I want to take the shortest route to success. The straight but rocky path. And to do that, I need to deliberately practice the difficult things that I never wanted to do. Because in the future, I would often find myself in the midst of difficult places and I won't ever progress if I keep running away from such destinations.
Right now, the concept of deliberate practice has been guiding my every day. Even just once each day, I try to identify the things that I do not want to do, but I need to. However small. I try my best to accomplish it deliberately. With full consciousness, concentration and intention. So that, when great discomforts come my way. I can already face them and triumph over them.
— And that's where true and lingering happiness lie.
