Getting Things Started

The Idea

Shugyo, as explained by Richard Strozzi-Heckler in his book, 'The Leadership Dojo,' can be understood as 'self-cultivation, carry[ing] the meaning of developing the human spirit through physical practices' (26-27).  As a martial artist, shugyo is a central part of my practice, one that aims to bring the virtues of budo into the 'world of the self.'  The world of the self, for me, includes physical, emotional, financial, professional, spiritual areas of life that all deserve attention in order to cultivate a full life.  This blog will, I hope, serve as an reflection of how I best aim to go about these areas of life for the benefit of myself and those I care about.

The Setup:

Depending on what seems pertinent to the demands of life, I will try and focus how shugyo affects the choices I make in the 5 areas of life described above:

• Physical
• emotional
• professional
• financial
• spiritual

Things might change down the line, but for now, these are the areas I have chosen.  These are not meant to be so cut-and-dry that there is no room for maneuver.  The whole premise of shugyo is that all come to reflect the quality of life as measured through through activity.  Hopefully my blogs will reflect how these will work.

The Purpose:

The purpose should be self-evident, but just in case it's not, I'll state it here.  I want to continue to improve the quality and effectiveness of my life, for myself, and for those who I care about.  Not so jazzy, but true.  As time goes by, I'll probably modify this, but for now, it's down and I can move on.

Where to begin:

This is always a challenge, but for now, I'll just start with a quotation by Thich Nhat Hanh: 'Our own life is the instrument with which we experiment with the truth.'  Here is where I lean to play.