Don't see it as sacrifice

My karate instructor lives what one might describe as an austere—or even ascetic—lifestyle. He rarely drinks alcohol, abstains from sugar (no, not even cake on birthdays), and he adheres to a strict training and teaching schedule. No wonder he’s considered one of the best martial artists and teachers in the world, and he doesn't look his age.

In a recent interview, he talked about commitment, discipline, purpose, efficiency, and authenticity and why he moved to Japan.

“I wanted to be in an environment where people wouldn’t question my commitment. And I felt Japan because of the culture—the Ikigai, the ‘raison d'être’ culture more than anywhere else—people would accept it at face value: this is what he does, he does karate," he said.

His advice?

Rather than seeing discipline as sacrifice, "I would say… try to get rid of as many distractions as possible which is, of course, what you have at home,” he said.

His words got me thinking about anything we do in life. Like a sculptor who carves away excess rock to create a masterpiece, we must carve away distractions that take away from our purpose.

Those distractions in our modern world are plenty: social media, junk food, a sedentary lifestyle, busyness, mind-altering substances, indulgence, indolence, promiscuity, obsessions (such as trying to fix other people who don’t want to be fixed or any attempt at controlling things that are out of our control), etc.

To learn more about my instructor, I invite you to read a 2020 interview: What are the 5 karate principles and how they could benefit any leader.