Going through the motions

At a time of low, gloomy mood due to injury, these wise words by Michael Kofuzi are just what the doctor ordered.

There are times when you may find yourself simply going through the motions. And we’ve all been conditioned to think that this is something we should feel bad about. That it means that we don’t care. Or that we should quit. Do something different. Or find something else.

But I think that, in those moments, when we feel like we’re stuck in a rut, going through the motions is exactly what we need. The deepest depths of a ravine and that moment before you can see the crest of a hill can feel exactly the same. But no matter where you are on that climb, the only way up and over is to put one foot in front of the other. As long as we keep going through the motions, we will get to where we want to go.

One step is action. Many steps is habit. Habit becomes ritual. And ritual becomes identity. And when we endeavor so bold as to improve ourselves —to change our identity— we think that it needs to a gilded epic of mind over matter. But we live in a world where matter can move the mind.

Haven’t you ever felt like you really didn’t want to go for a run. But then you did anyway and it turned out great? That didn’t happen because running is magical. It happened because you pierced through that mental self defense mechanism. You put one foot in front of the other. You went through the motions.

When your muscles are weak, you work over and over again to get stronger. When you want to strengthen your resolve, you do the same thing. Work over and over again. Go through the motions. You will get stronger.

Porque puedo