14 Walking the Plank



Walking the Plank

It was Lao Tzu who said that we must do what we are doing and do it well. If you are walking remember you are not running, if you are running remember you are not walking. If you walk then walk and walk well, and if running does so to the best of your ability.

There is a very interesting experiment. A teacher puts a plank of wood on the floor, not a great wide plank just a normal plank of wood, two by four. The teacher then asks all the students to walk across the plank one at a time. Every student would be able to walk across this plank with very little difficulty. It is in fact a simple task they have been asked to do.

But now think of this same plank, see it in your mind, it is now stretched across a high ravine. How many of the students would be able to walk across the plank now? The number would be a lot less than you might imagine. For some the very thought of it is more than enough.

Why do you think this is the case? It is because the point of focus has been changed. Now most people are focused not on getting over the plank they have switched the focus onto falling from the plank.

If you walk on top of a small wall it comes very easily but to stride across a mountain path with sheer drops on either side even though the path is the same width as the mountain track.

All things in life that have to be done well take your full attention. 

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