#14: A Secret to Great Performance
Dear friend,
There’s a secret to great performance that’s not often talked about.
Confusion
I’ve been musing about the lure of easy paths. Logically, we know easy paths hide hard work or clever marketing, yet we fall for them anyway.
Last Monday, Mark Matousek’s Seekers Forum recommended me Joseph Campbell’s gripping documentary interview.
Campbell is known for discovering a common theme across all myths: the hero’s journey. He has inspired copious creatives, including George Lucas’ Star Wars. The hero’s journey is characterized by three stages: departure, initiation, return.
That’s why “confusion” is so central to Centered Choices, with links to initiation and difficulty. In Campbell’s words:
“And what all the myths have to deal with is transformation of consciousness. … [The consciousness is transformed] by trials, by tests, or certain illuminating revelations. Trials and revelations are what it’s all about.”
Connection
But there’s a solution towards greater centering and transformation. Campbell described it as listening to yourself:
“If a person doesn’t listen to the demands of his own spirit and heart life, and insists on a certain program, you’re going to have a schizophrenic crackup. The person has put himself off-center. He has aligned himself with a programmatic life and it isn’t one the body is interested in at all. The world is full of people who have stopped listening to themselves.”
He makes a lot of sense. When I reflect on my burnout and times of disconnection, I was subconsciously distancing myself from what my soul and heart really yearned for.
Then Campbell went one step further. Listening to yourself will strengthen your center, which you must access for great performance:
“The athlete who is in championship form has a quiet place within himself and it’s out of that that his action comes. If he’s all in the action field, he’s not performing properly. There’s a center out of which you act.
“Jean, my wife, who’s a dancer, tells me in dance this is true too. There’s the center that has to be known and held. There, it’s quite physically recognized by the person. But unless this center has been found, you’re torn apart. Tension comes.”
Clarity
Campbell’s “quiet place” reminded me of what my former pilates instructor taught me.
To not fall over, she said, I need to keep my eyes focussed on one point in the distance. That’s how ballet dancers keep their balance too when pirouetting.
The most gravity-defying moves, including great athleticism or profound artistry, involve knowing your center and connecting to it amidst action.
These prompts can help you connect to your quiet center on your hero’s journey:
- What do the “demands of your own spirit and heart life” say about what you really value? This will form your center.
- How can you translate your center into a visual, written, aural, or tactile mnemonic for easy recollection?
- Think of situations that would normally knock you off-center. Visualize recalling your mnemonic during such times, to bring you back to your center.
My mnemonic is a mental collage of my literary role models who have lived life authentically, courageously, and resiliently.
When I feel doubt, thinking of them keeps me calm and recentered, as I act and plant the seeds for my desired performance.
What do you hope to be a champion in? How can your quiet center help you get there?
Always in your center,
Yiling
I hope my insights from Ep. 1 have whetted your appetite. Joseph Campbell's dazzling documentary series can be found here:
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