I was in one of Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim's martial arts class in which she was going over the philosophy of the art of Jung Suwon. Grandmaster asked us, are you training for you? are you really? Or are you just training to stroke your Ego?
I said to myself, of course I am here training for myself. Why else would I be here? But then she asked if I was here to please others opinions, or was I here to really focus on my own learning and advancement? Hmm...
Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim said to me, "when you have a large # of people in the class, do you train as hard as when there are only 3 people in the class? Are you performing for others around you to see? Are you training to get a good reputation among your peers? Is it your Ego you are trying to stroke, or are you really training for you? Are you really focused on your own weaknesses and trying to improve them? So often people are quick to criticize others... For example: Oh look at them.. they are doing that wrong. or they are doing that funny, but put that all aside, and how often do you self analyze yourself. Ask yourself truly, what should I be working on? Turn the focus from judging others, and point it towards yourself. Then you will really grow and excel..."
Hmm, I sat down and thought about it deeply. At first I didn't see it. My first reaction was to be argumentative. At first I thought this is ridiculous, but the more I thought about it, the truth was there. I did let others effect me. I let their opinions matter. I often criticized others, and I rarely turned this sharp eye on myself. So it was hard to hear the truth, but Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim was completely right. This was a big step in my training to excel and learn.
Thank you Grandmaster Tae Yun Kim for sharing your Jung Suwon teachings, and for the willingness to share the hard truths with me.
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