Mental Muscle Memory

In Physical Education, we are taught that our muscles will work themselves back to previous level of endurance.

In psychology,  we learned that successful people, serial entrepreneurs for instance, will climb back up to their previous height despite many setbacks (Steve Jobs for one).

What made an outlier?

Malcom Gladwell studies this phenomenon up close. He particularly noticed a common denominator: 10,000 hours of skill mastery (The Beatles, Bill Gates).

Bruce Lee said he wasn’t afraid of enemies who tried all sorts of martial arts moves. Just those who had practiced the same kick 10,000 times.

They must be onto something here.

Keep perfecting your skill set.

Hit the target, many times over.

Lower your target if needed, but hit it. And hit it hard.

We all store up in our brain those great moments of victory: a table d’honeur, a winning prize, a shared memory worth cherishing.  Work back to those moments. Freeze-frame them. Transfer the energy to present set of circumstance.

And let go the energy.

Let the world know we once exist.

Let yourself know you can reach the apex many times over.

The once unknown is now a known fact.

So what’s there to be afraid of?

We have what it takes to overcome fear and obstacles.

Those stored up memories are treasures in and of themselves.

Use them.

Exploit them. Cash in.

Surprise yourself.

It will  be painful at first. But then reflex will take over. Up to the point of earlier muscle strain. So they say. And I believe it.