Week C5 Practice makes Perfect
Arrggghhh!!!!
Have you ever tried to do something you thought would be simple and only take 5 minutes, only to discover that it is taking hours and hours? I have been sitting here attempting to record my own vocal commentary over a video. Almost three hours later and I still have not completed the task. Why does consciousness of being recorded suddenly make me sound like a demented Dalek?
Take 57!!!! Arrggghh!!! I know, I know….Practice, practice, practice! One of the 7 laws of the mind we learnt during the Masterkey Experience was that ‘Perfect Practice Prevents Poor Performance’. Right now I would like to see a little more perfect practice and a little less poor performance because it is driving me nuts!
‘Weakness is the only barrier to mental attainment; attribute your weakness to physical limitations or mental uncertainties and try again; ease and perfection are gained by repetition. (Haanel 17:13)
Is it possible to try too hard? When you have been working on something for hours and you keep hitting a wall of frustration what do you do? Take a break? Carry on? Decide you are not up to the job and give up? As a musician I understand the benefit of practice, to gain control and develop fine motor skills, correct posture, breath control, rhythmic tempo and dynamic variation. Even though you may love playing your musical instrument, the laborious hours of practice over many, many years can feel like hard work at times. But the satisfaction of mastering a concerto by one of the great composers is reward enough for the dedicated musician.
But what about when you are trying to master something important that you do not enjoy so much? Feeling very self conscious, frustrated and somewhat disheartened because you know you should be able to do it, but it is just not happening is tough. Another two of the 7 laws of the mind are ‘The Law of Substitution’ which says you cannot think about two things at the same time, and ‘The Law of Dual thought’ which says we can attach any feeling to a thought we want, have helped me to stop and reflect. I have a choice. I can think this is hard, that I am rubbish and feel bad….. or…… I can think I am overcoming a new challenge, see that I am making progress, and feel proud of my persistence, however painfully slow it may seem!!
‘Man is the sum total of his own thoughts; so the question is, how are we going to entertain only the good thoughts and reject the evil ones? At first we can’t keep the evil thoughts from coming, but we can keep from entertaining them. The only way to do this is to forget them — which means, get something for them. This is where the ready-made affirmation comes into play.’ (Haanel 9:27)
The affirmation Haanel is referring to here is ‘I am Whole, Perfect, Strong, Powerful, Loving, Harmonious and Happy’.
‘If our predominant mental attitude is one of power, courage, kindliness and sympathy, we shall find that our environment will reflect conditions in correspondence with these thoughts; if it is weak, critical, envious and destructive, we shall find our environment reflecting condition corresponding to these thoughts.’ (Haanel 9:30)
With so many other things going in the right direction in my life, I recognise this is a minor hump in the road and I will get better. Take it steady, focus Danielson, and you will overcome. With a problem free philosophy, onward I go to perfect my performance – Take 58!! 🙂 Hakuna matata 🙂
‘Do not hesitate to aspire to the highest possible attainments in anything you may undertake, for the mind forces are ever ready to lend themselves to a purposeful will in the effort to crystallize its highest aspirations into acts, accomplishments and events.’ (Haanel 21:17)
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