Chasing Hard: Experiments

Thank You...

for being here. I hope I can do justice to the time you will be investing on this page. Before you get on with the post, I would encourage you to read my previous article on this topic for better congruency.

1. Chasing Hard 101

Now, let's get started with the topic of the post.

Introduction

The last post was basically a reminder that none of us could have gotten to where we are today without having overcome a substantial amount of effort as children. Initially, we were pushed by our instincts, then by our parents, then by our peers but eventually, we got to a point where we were the "masters" of our own destiny. We were now capable of "Independent Thinking". Unfortunately, very few of us got the training in how to Think. We all were blessed with the most sophisticated machine known to mankind but nobody gave us the user manual. Left to our devices, listening to our Monkey Mind, we often end up making the worst possible decisions when it comes to handling this incredibly sophisticated piece of machinery.

Now, coming to experiments. As head of engineering, I have to deal with different projects. Products and services that are valued by clients take a lot of collaborative brainstorming and iterations. Whenever we are attempting a new project, there are known and unknown variables. The way we attack the unknowns is by setting up experiments. A number of unknowns can be clubbed in a small, sandboxed experiment to improve our understanding and enhance our confidence. Every experiment is an opportunity to learn. I think the same approach of experimentation and iteration can be applied to our own personal lives. I have committed my life to becoming a human guinea pig and the learnings so far have been pretty amazing. I will attempt to share some insights in this post (briefly).

Embarrassing Myself

• Mixed Martial Arts: When I joined my MMA gym, I was fairly heavy (and clumsy). I quickly realized that executing combinations isn't as easy as Keanu Reeves makes it look on the screen. Even a simple punch requires a lot of focused practice and a humble appreciation of the technique. However, the biggest revelation was during my first "sparring" match. In sparring practice, people are paired up and a fight is simulated. Mind you, nobody is trying to hurt the other person but all punch/kick movements are allowed (without serious power). I was paired up with a guy who was half my size (and age) and the guy literally toyed with me round after round. I was hopelessly outclassed. It was not that I was getting hurt but my instinct to "run away" was so strong that I would turn my back every time he got close. The first rule of fighting, you never take your eyes off your opponent. It was amazing how strong the urge to turn back really was even though, the risk of getting even a scratch was close to zero. My conscious brain just couldn't keep me from turning. In fact, getting over this instinct has been my biggest takeaway from the practice of MMA. Getting into sparring matches over and over again, embarrassing myself with better fighters over and over again was the only way to get over this.
• Horse Riding: I tried my hand at horse riding in 2020 (had to stop it due to some allergy issues). In the beginning, it was scary and hard. A horse is a massive creature, all muscle. It goes around with a grown human being as if the weight doesn't matter at all. When I started, I was bouncing all over, trying to hold on tight, the poor horse must have cursed me like anything (I did bribe him with carrots after every session). Experienced riders do not bounce, they are able to match the motion of the horse with their own hip and body movement resulting in no jerks. I like to keep videos so looking back, I can only laugh at how bad I was during the initial sessions but I can also feel some satisfaction with the progress I made over a short period of time. In fact, I think kids would laugh themselves silly watching a "grown-up" like me struggling on the horse :)
• Writing: I have always had a love for language. I got active on LinkedIn sometime in 2019. I spent a lot of time, "weeding out" unnecessary posts and "influencers" and seeking good content to follow, it was an effort but was totally worth it. I shared posts I liked for well over 1 year. It is only recently that I started adding a few lines while sharing the posts. Mustering up the courage to start writing took even longer. The biggest fear was "embarrassing myself". I have shared the experience here .

The point is that whenever we try anything new, we need to be mentally prepared to feel embarrassed. It is ok. Experienced teachers understand this and that is why they will always motivate you regardless of where you start. If we can overcome our own inhibitions about looking "bad" we can get past the first hurdle and eventually, we will get better. It is like a child learning how to crawl, if he gives up the first time he falls, he'll never "graduate". Instead, he boldly goes for it, falls, looks around, and "smiles" and the world smiles with him :)

Fearing the Unknown

• Legal Training: In 2018, I got into some legal issues. For somebody whose extended family has never had to deal with the law even indirectly, dealing with police, lawyers, judges was a scary experience. Dealing with people with discretionary powers to hurt you can be unnerving. The Monkey Mind is always on high alert and playing the "worst-case scenario" tape over and over again. It's exhausting. It has gotten easier with time. It never got anywhere close to the "worst-case" scenario and today, I am reasonably comfortable dealing with police, lawyers, and the system. Once we apply second-order thinking and realize that every person in the system is just another human being with normal human problems like tough bosses, a thankless job, dealing with criminals daily, managing expenses/family, etc, we can learn to develop a better connection. Sure, they can still trouble you so you need to tread carefully but very few people I have met are actively seeking to hurt you.
• Business Training: There are no businesses in my family, there are no businesses in my extended family. So, growing up, we only understood "naukri". Focus on your education, get a job, get married, live happily "ever after". The last decade has taught me a lot. The Good, the Bad, the Ugly of this Passive approach. Every time, I thought to move out, I was overcome by fear and lack of confidence. It took a lot of talking with friends and serious reflections before I could take the plunge. The funny thing is, everything sort of started falling in place, the moment that I made up my mind. The fear of the unknown was pretty much the biggest obstacle and mental block in my way.

Comfortably Uncomfortable

• Cold Showers: For most pursuits, things start to get progressively easier with time. If I regularly run 10kms, doing 5kms on a whim is easy. However, the one thing that is hard to get used to is cold showers. It never gets easy. Even though I have developed "elaborate protocols" on how to jump into the shower but choosing to do it every time is still hard especially when it is so much easier to just "chicken out". The first 30~60 seconds do sting like anything but then, it is just normal, the body adapts very fast and the follow-on benefits (lasting throughout the day) are amazing. More than the physiological benefits, the psychological benefits are even more staggering. The fact that I chose to do it and then I didn't let my instincts talk me into "chickening out" is an amazing feeling to start the day with.

From what I have understood, low-level discomfort is really important for our body and the mind.

"Are you willing to be uncomfortable for 5 minutes?

Exercising is easier once you've started the workout. The conversation is easier once you're already talking. Writing is easier once you're in the middle of it.

But many rewards in life will elude you if you're not willing to be a little uncomfortable at first."

Neural Networks

From whatever little I understand about the human brain, I think it is a collection of neurons that form connections and fire in set patterns. So, if I am trying to ride a bike, a dedicated set of neurons will create a pattern which then fires the appropriate muscles. With practice, the connections between the given set of neurons get stronger, and executing the motion becomes increasingly "effortless". Now, if I am trying to execute a kickboxing combination, another set of neurons will create a bunch and a firing pattern. So, every activity that we execute with our body is nothing but a bunch of neural connections stored in the brain in individual "compartments". What's fascinating to me is that I don't believe that the capacity of our brains to keep creating such compartments has any limits, rather, I am now convinced that most of us will never get anywhere close to the limits. Every time that we engage with a particular compartment, the brain opens it up, strengthens the connections, and again puts it back safely. So, the individual compartments keep getting richer and the patterns keep getting stronger. I think we can keep training the brain constantly, creating endless compartments for various pursuits i.e. one for motorcycling, one for writing, one for kickboxing, one for running, one for business, one for family, and so on.

I am also convinced that we can get to an above-average level of competency in multiple pursuits. Yes, if I am trying to become Bruce Lee, it'll require way more focus and prioritization of one compartment over others but if my goal is to develop an "above average" level of competency, I think it is possible to juggle multiple such compartments with proper time management, planning, and training.

Concluding Thoughts

Not All Risks are Rewarded. But What is Never Rewarded is Stagnation...

My physiotherapist keeps telling me that there are close to 800 muscles in the Human Body. The complexity of the movements that the body is capable of executing through the interplay of these different muscles is so amazing. Mastery is achieved by increasingly getting better at using the body. A star athlete has developed the respective muscle group strength and the associated mind-muscle connections to be able to execute flawless moves. Mother nature wasn't partial to him, he just put in years (sometimes decades) of focused practice in the pursuits of perfection.

It really boils down to choice and focus. Every day, it is possible for each one of us to "choose" just a little bit of "hard" and the cumulative returns truly can be life-changing.

Choose Hard because Easy is Harder.

As always, do share your comments and feedback. If you have some suggestions that you can share with the readers, that would be much appreciated so please don't hold back.

Read Next >>

I hope I could do justice to the time you have just invested. If you wish to explore more, I have linked the next article below for easy reference:

• Chasing Hard: OQP

Footnotes

• Start Here
• Growth Mindset
• Stephen Duneier | TEDx
• Joe Rogan
• Cold Shower Therapy | TEDx
• Muscles