Are you willing to give your attention to the fundamentals, paying the price in private?
Watching highlights from a classic championship boxing match, it’s easy to be impressed with a really good punch. What we’re probably not thinking about is what’s behind it, what makes up a good punch.
As Brogan says, “Fists are just the far end of a long process.”
I think there’s something to be learned here that can help us raise our level in just about anything. See Chris Brogan’s piece.
A powerful, impactful punch is not just the immediate contact of the fist hitting the flesh. It’s sound technique and mechanics like footwork, positioning, leg strength, hips, core, and leveraging the back and shoulders.
What about preparation? Nutrition and water. Running, rope work, weights, crunches, hitting the bag, working with sparring partners. Coaching, visualization, mental skills. Increasing your mental toughness.
Everyone who competes in the games exercises self-control in all things. They then do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable. Therefore I run in such a way, as not without aim; I box in such a way, as not beating the air. ~ The Apostle Paul, 1 Corinthians 9.25-26 NASB
What’s On the Inside?
And what about heart?
Boxing is about passion, strength of will, state of mind, sentiment, emotion, and zeal. What’s on the inside? A real champion wins from the inside out. All of this and more is behind the effective, successful punch in the public ring.
Anything of value involves preparation, attention to the fundamentals, and hard work. Delayed gratification is necessary to attain success. Do we have the strength of will for the process?
You can apply this to anything … even writing and publishing.
Getting and staying inspired. Writing when you don’t feel like it. Writing more. Educating yourself about the new face of publishing. Planning that pre-launch phase. Executing on it. Doing the marketing work (… unless you’re a Max Lucado, everyone does marketing work today). Rising again when you’ve been knocked down. Preparing. Working harder.
When you’ve been given something to say, you must say it. For the Christ-follower, it all fits into the framework of His Glory … His Story.
Q4U: Are you willing to pay the price in private? Will you be consistent?
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Cross-posted at TrueNorth Publishing. For more about today’s publishing, visit TrueNorth Publish …
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© 2012 Brian Del Turco. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.
