Winston Churchill through the ages!

"It is no use saying, 'We are doing out best.' You've got to succeed in doing what is necessary"

- Winston Churchill

     I stumbled across this thought provoking quote in the same book: Healthy Eating Healthy World by J. Morris Hicks. I stared at the words in awe. Every musician has faced the moment where they hit the wall and had to contend with this idea. There is always another plateau in our development and usually it is reached by realizing we have exhausted our current development. 

     Every pianist has looked at a Debussy prelude and been baffled at where to start. When you play Bach, Mozart and Beethoven the patterning seems obvious and the rehearsal techniques fit right into scales, triads, arpeggios, and primary chords. Once you play your first Debussy Prelude you realize all bets are off! At first it seems daunting, like the mountain is just too high to climb. Then once the patterning of Debussy speaks to you, it becomes clear. Then you progress into more complicated  Impressionistic works until you encounter, Rachmaninoff. Then you are dealing with a completely different beast, physically and musically. With time, Rachmaninoff speaks to you. Rachmaninoff leads you to even more esoteric music like Scriabin. Now you are looking at poly rhythms and a whole new landscape in every way. The choice is clear. Do I continue with where I am or do I alter my mindset to encapsulate this new musical philosophy? Do I relax into 'doing my best' or do I step my game up and push through?

     The very same concept exists in our physical practices. As our practice evolves, so do we.  Our mindset and expectations evolve. Once we have achieved a certain fluency in standard postures we begin to see the headstand and the handstand becoming a not-so-far off reality. The headstand and handstand, though, will not be as easy to attain as Warrior 1 and Warrior 2. Our mindset and work ethic have helped us achieve those warrior poses, and that will help, but now we need a stronger core,elastic hamstrings and stronger shoulder rotator cuffs. We have to step into that new reality by leaving behind our previous 'best' and stepping into a new 'best' to match our plateau. Of course no one needs either a headstand or a handstand to have a lifelong beneficial yoga practice. They represent part of the outside limits of the practice. To attain new goals in our lives, we have to change our perception of 'our best' to meet the demands of where we want our evolution to go. 

     Every teacher worth her/his salt knows that every day their classes are a new entity and we have to change and adapt to meet their needs. Yesterday our best was for yesterday. Today requires a new 'best'. Being open minded, observant, and empathetic help us to realize what is needed in this educational moment. Our intuition tells us so much,sometimes referred to as: reading the room. This goes for music education as well as teaching yoga and group fitness. The axiom is: meet your classes where they are and enhance them from there. Not every class is going to progress at the same pace or even need to progress at a pace. All of our classes, regardless of age, are seeking exposure and knowledge. If we can set aside preconceived notions and expectations we can actually help our classes increase fluency faster. I didn't make this up, I am just smart enough to observe and sense Nature's patterns as they are happening around me. We have the knowledge and can help our students grow by being aware of how much they can absorb today and how they can absorb today. It will always be different. A varied and diverse toolbox coupled with a teacher of high level competency will help students grow and evolve in ways they never imagined possible. 

     We can all use our collective imaginations to plug this quote into all the many turbulent themes in the world around us. We can choose one aspect of life that we see as crucial and examine: Am I doing my best or am I doing what is needed? Two very different statements. Doing my best is limiting. By design it means I am staying with what I am comfortable with and not pushing myself past what I might be capable of doing. Doing what is needed calls us to greater action and a greater purpose. I am curious to hear your thoughts about this quote. Please share here on the blog.