11/8/12

Just finished 3 nights of budget deliberations, there's lots of balancing that needs to be done when we're dealing with a $45 million budget. Many things to address; what services level do we want to provide, what service levels do the residents expects, how are we going to fund major projects, how much do we need to put away so we're financially sustainable in the future.

I found that prioritizing the budget and making decision about what needs to be addressed now vs later is very similar to my journey in Kung fu towards mastery.  I few weeks back I prioritized my goals and responsibilities to see where they all fit into my journey and how I would accomplish them.

My path towards Kung fu mastery may be slowed a bit but I can see the parallels as I travel down the paths of mastery in my other facets of life.

www.wchoy74.blogspot.ca

big toe

It looks like I will be losing my right big toe nail in the coming weeks.  On Tuesday evening I had 45 minute gap from when I dropped the boys off at basketball practice and my meeting at the TLC.  I decided that I would go for a run around the track; I haven’t run since I detached my retina.  Maybe it was the nearly new runners (I think I have only worn them twice before) or the length between my last runs but I injured my big toe. 

The 45 minutes of sprinting, running, jogging and walking around the track seemed ok.  I felt great, was only winded when I sprinted but recovered quickly.  However, when I finished, I noticed that my toe was hurting.  After removing my sock I can see that it was black under my nail.  I was driving that toe into my shoe and with every step I was compressing it.  I will have to exam the way the runners fit my feet and my technique to why this happened and why just my right foot and not my left.  Am I compensating because of another injury?  Was it because the track direction was clockwise?   Regardless of why this happened, the more important thing is this is another step towards mastery: building on what I have and making it better.  Looking forward to my next run.

www.wchoy74.blogspot.ca   

update

I haven`t posted in a couple of weeks, I`m not sure what to post about these days. 

Things a have been crazy busy and I have given Kung Fu very little time.  I`m still able to push out a couple hundred push ups and sit ups daily but that has been the extent of my commitment to my training and the I Ho Chaun team (sorry guys, you guys did an awesome job on the demo).

I went through and read Mastery again this week.  I`ve been trying very hard to find a comfortable balance in my life with all my commitments.   Reflecting on Mastery, the more I surround myself with individuals that are liked minded (municipal government) the less I`ve surrounded myself with Kung Fu. 

www.wchoy74.blogspot.ca

Judgement

I have been working on my judgement the past couple months. I'm getting better but a long to go to get to a state where my better judgement will become natural and ingrained in how I do things.  For example, I love food and I always tend to eat more then I need. I have started to eat and order less food but I still tend to over because I finish the plates of my children. I have a problem food out, I think this comes from living in a country where we didn't have enough to eat when I was younger.

The past couple of weeks, I have been thinking about everything and what I have on my plate. And I'm exercising better judgement and not taking on so many things. I have already given up some of the things that I taken care of in the past for my Rotary club but there is still many things that I can not let go at tis time.  Another thing is to prioritize my commitments and allocate time to do them.
I would like to apologize to my I Ho Chaun team members, I should have not taken a spot on the team without fully understanding the commitments and time required to complete the task. I have not been a good team mate and many of our failings as a team are because I wasn't committedt to you guys. I'm Sorry!

My family is first, then my office as Mayor, third is my restaurant and staff, fourth is my extended family, fifth on my list is Kung fu, then golf, etc.   I will continue to training and be as involved as my time permits but for my NOW, Kung fu is not a priority.

?

I don't know what to blog about. There are so many things racing through my head and I don't know where to start. Life's been hectic to say the least. The more I try to get my personal goals accomplished the more I feel my training slipping away.

Priority time

I'm finding it really difficult to get everything in. If I focus on one area another drops off. Here I am trying to get a few things done and read before the conference tomorrow and I can't focus because I have all these others things that I haven't finished or started. For example, I wanted to have Zen read in six weeks, not going to happen. With everything getting back in full swing, my time demands has also increased with meetings, public appearances, speaking engagements, boards and committees. That's just my work for the Town, I'm short two cooks in the kitchen at the restaurant, so you can imagine the extra workload there.  The past three weeks I'm having to read agenda packages like crazy, with each package in he 250-300 page range, I'm read out so Zen gets tossed aside.

I've tried to prioritize my commitments, this is how I'm seeing things at the point.  Family, Mayor, Work, Kung Fu, in that order. Mastery is definitely a long process, good thing I'm young.

Point of view

Black belt? What is that? What a classical vs a romantic view of what it is.  How do you view? Do you see the a black belt as one whole unit, all the parts rolled into one and not given any thought to how that person has reached this level to become a black belt? Do you see all the little steps, sacrifices, and training that went into that person before they reached this level?

As I reflect on the meaning of the classic and romantic view according the Zen, I have started to apply those views to my life. I can safely say that my views differ based on the subject at hand. For example, I have a romantic view of many things mechanical, I will not make a good repairman. I'm not interested in how the parts fit together or work, I just know that it works. However, on other subjects like politics and investing, I have a classical approach to it. I want to know about all the parts that make up the whole. I will analyze things and break them down to its components and am fascinated every detail and the logistics of it.

I have a classic view of a black belt, I see all the parts that make up that person and how they work together to get them to this point. I'm intersted in all their little facets that have fit together to get them here. I'm intersted in their story.

How do you  view a black belt?