Life Lessons from the Greatest Swordsman Who Ever Lived
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Miyamoto Musashi is considered to be the greatest swordsman who ever lived. After fighting in over sixty duels, Musashi reflected on the concept of strategy and what allowed him to win so many battles. He recorded these thoughts in a book titled ‘Go Rin No Ryu' – or, in English, ‘A Book of Five Rings.'
So why am I talking about sword fighting now? Well, because the book itself uses sword fighting as a metaphor for all things. The book is about strategy in general. It is considered such a masterpiece of strategy that some business schools, Harvard included, use it to teach business strategy.
In terms of the modern world and what lessons we can take from it now, I would like to quote one line from the book. Musashi says, ‘the way of the warrior is the resolute acceptance of death.' These eleven words are profound and contain the secret to a great many successes in them. The statement means that in order to do his best, a warrior must accept the possibility and reality of death. A warrior who did not do this would be afraid of dying in combat, and as such would lessen his ability to fight. Ironically, the more concerned a warrior was with dying, the more likely he was to die. Only by accepting the reality of death could a warrior get past it.
Taken outside of feudal Japan, this sentiment can have a huge impact on your success in a variety of areas. Like the warrior, rather than fearing the negative consequence, once you embrace and accept it as a real possibility you can move past it.
The same rule applies to business. If you are afraid of messing up a presentation, or a project, or a sales call, the more likely you are to mess it up. Once you accept the reality of failure, you free up your energy to allow yourself to perform to the best of your ability.
Remember, all you have to accept is failure, rejection, or embarrassment – Musashi had to accept death.
Avish Parashar is a dynamic professional speaker who shows organizations and individuals how to get what they want using the Art and Science of improv comedy. He weaves together humorous stories, witty observations, and interactive exercises from improvisational comedy to get people laughing, learning, and motivated! Avish is most commonly called upon to deliver programs on Motivation, Sales, and Communication
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