what do you do when you loose your motivation?
 

maybe I should have posted this in "concepts" but ive intentionally posted this thread here becouse this question not only matters in kendo, but in your life in general.

personally, kendo speaking, I know that "motivation lost" stuff is something that everyone of us have to pass trough sooner or later, usually in the middle of the transition from kyu to dan. and has happened to me too, sometimes it felt like almost quitting kendo, especially this year when Ive trained so hard like 6 times per week to end up with a broken finger and after 3 or 4 months of inactivity start all over again... but the fact that im about to go for shodan (next week) gave me new strenght.

my intention is not to talk about this particular kendo stuff, becouse this is not an issue right now, my intention is to put it as an example becuse usually I try to apply what I learn in the practice of kendo in the common life, study, relationships, music... and so on.

right now for example I have a BIG test in university, okok is not that big anyway, but ive lost about 8 - 10 clases becouse I was sick on quarantine for a couple of weeks for a damn virus, and in a couple of days I have to face the test with almost no classes at all... but thats not an issue too becouse it is not that hard anyway. the thing is that I have NO motivation in study, specially for that dumb asshole that calls himself teacher. for reasons that I dont yet understand I had him for teacher for more than two years in different classes (personally i dont want to see him AGAIN in my life) can you understand that???!!! and in EVERY TEST with no exeption he had to rise my grades becouse "conviniently oops!" he had mistaken the correction/missed some points/forgot about the guideline... etc, and always with the same old excuses like "your answer is correct but you didnt do it as I told" or "I didnt teach you that, and I dont matter if it is in the book, the answer is right, but not the way I teach so im gonna put it wrong"... or stuff like that. at the end of semester I aprove the course with him anyway (all except one last year). but I had NEVER got the grade that I supose to have or that I deserve he always lower it some way or another. (may be it has to do becouse my dad fired his wife from her work like about 5-7 years ago??)

two years later of seeing the same asshole (YES he is University teacher but he is still a dumbass, and im not kidding), listening to the same stupid excuses IM SICK OF IT and now I have to study but is like my mind says "you gotta study, the clock is ticking" but subconsciently my brain is like "I WONT WORK FOR THIS TEST, PERIOD!". and thats what I point now, last semester I was like so motivated (even had a girlfriend) that besides my normal classes I even took an advanced class that I didnt had to take until next year and I studied and I aproved it as no big deal even that I didnt had none of the prerequisites for it (complex analysis), but right now I have only 3 important courses nothing else! and only one of this is hard level the another two are only in medium difficulty (besides another 2 more easy ones but this doesnt count as courses at all becouse they are so easy that almost aproves by themselves) so generally this should be no problem but right now really feels like dying. Im so damn stressed that im thinking about quitting this semester and start again next year

again this is an example, everyone of us have a different way of life, some work, or have a family, some study, some are still in school, etc. but I really dont know why, and I dont know if it only happens to me or is natural thing in everyone else, that there is a point that is like your mind says "no more of this s*it" no matter as much as you like it. thats why I putted kendo as an example, I love kendo but there was some time when even that I still love it i wanted to quit, this is the same, I love college and study and all this stuff but right now I just wanna travel some place away fom all this worthless and meaningless crap. and like deep inside of me right now I dont give a damn about the test or anything that involves university. I right now im taking a look at about 40 notebooks and a mountain of loose papers made or written by me trough all this years, that should be about 1500 to two thousands solved problems (no kidding) from all this books that I have, and all hours of study and all that stuff that sincerilly right nor feels like this means nothin at all. I try to remember what Ive learned in this 4 years of kendo and make it fit this situation but right now nothing works. I wish that I could study by osmosis hahaha.

ever happenes to you something like this? in some way in your life/work/relationships/kendo/etc??
i know that this is not exactly kendo related, but in some way it is, becouse kendo is more like a way of life, but today it doesnt seems to help at all.
have you ever feel the same? what have you done to overcome it? in other words what waza have you used to achieve ippon in front of a stronger or bigger enemy? I ask becouse some advice or tip may be usefull for all of us that, I supose, have been, are, or will be in the same situation but have never talked about it.

I hope I dont get flamed...

Actually I'm quite glad you asked this question. I was contemplating putting up a similar post yesterday but didnt quite know how to word my question, but you seem to have covered it pretty well. I can't offer any insight but I do share your dilemma. Often times I'm just not motivated to train or to study or whatever it may be. It's almost like a lack of spirit. Lately what I've been trying to do is meditate to counteract this. Sit in a quite place and just focus really hard on your goals, what you want to accomplish and how badly you want it. Try to build up your fighting spirit through this. You can't use your fighting spirit if there's nothing for you to fight against, so identify what your obstacles are and fight against them, hard.
As far as your exams go and studying it seems that your biggest obstacle right now is yourself, not him. If you really don't like him then study SO hard, do SO well, that he can't do anything but give you the high grave you deserve. Fight him so hard that he has no choice but to recognize your accomplishments. The way you describe him he sounds as if he's playing games with your grades, and you've made it clear that you're familiar with it, so play his game and beat him at it. There's your motivation, if there's something that you want to accomplish then treat the journey to your goal as a battlefield and blast through everything in your way. If you have the desire to fight hard enough your motivation, your fighting spirit, will kick in.

BUT!!! That's just what's running through my mine. I'm young and I just started college so what do I know right? But take it for what you will. I would love to hear from the senior members of the forum on this.

mee too.

I think you are right, but i think the motivation to do something has to be something yours, not to show someone else that you can...

ive read frome someone that I dont remember something like this "troubles appears when you loose sight of your objectives" and thats very true, may be so much university bullsh*tness make you loose your objectives, some sort of trees that doesnt let you see the forest...

i really dont know...

I think I´ve been in a similar situation with university a coulpe of times...the best thing I can say is do not give up. don´t lose sight of your bigger objectives because of those little HDPs that have nothing better to do or because things are wrong, make your way to your major goal, animo.

thanks!

what means HDP??

Almost everyone asks this of themselves about some aspect of their lives. The answer may be different for different people. For me the answer is that you have to have something to strive for, work towards, and something to accomplish. If you don't then it is too east to give up. The real question for many people is... how to set yourself a goal that is meaningful to you and that you are willing to sacrifice for.

Way back when I was in college my goals were to make it through college at first. I wanted to succeed and graduate. If you give up then that won't happen. After I made it through college I had no real goals for a while except to enjoy life. But after my kids were born I had a new goal and that was to give them a good life and see them through college so that they could live their own lives. In addition my goals are to be able to leave my wife financially able to take care of herself after I die. These are life goals. When it comes to kendo I have so much going on that sometimes it is hectic. But my goals in kendo are for myself and no one else. In kendo my goal is to train hard and do my best both when it comes to being in the dojo and outside the dojo (I do a lot of non-dojo related kendo activity with running a club and web site maintenance and BOD activities for the SEUSKF). In some ways it is a matter of honor and I could walk away form it tomorrow and in a couple years people wouldn't even remember I was gone, but I would.

So find something that is important to you and strive for it. When times are tough and you are tired, remember the goal and the promises you make to yourself to help keep you on track. Remember, seeing some teacher that you don't like or is ineffective in class for a few years is nothing compared to the rest of your life.

it´s a chilenismo.

i know the feeling well.

i agree with MikeW that it is probably different for different people.

personally, i tell myself to stop being a wuss and that being responsible enough to do all the crap that you don't want to do, but ought to do, is just what it means to be a grown-up. that's more or less what my mom taught me when i was little.

kendo helps me get through those times because it can be very, very hard to keep going. it is a way for me to keep practicing forcing myself to keep going even when i don't want to or don't feel like i can. that practice makes it easier for me to keep going in other circumstances. it isn't like there is a specific lesson that i try to take from kendo in order to apply in life in these kinds of circumstances. rather, i think that kendo helps make me the sort of person who can just go and do the thing that needs to be done regardless of how i am feeling, because that is exactly what kendo demands of us.

Son of a B*tch in Spanish , the whole word is Hijos De P*ta xD



mmmmm , Sometimes i feel that ..but it happens because my damn fumikomi

cante reach the men of the taller people in my dojo ...mm i'm better than

most of my dojo but there is like a group of 4 or 5 that I can't just beat them , I don't know , someone told i'm scared about their KENSEN , thats why i'm so practicing kaeshi do or nuki do , im good at those techniques but sometimes that's not enough for them , thats why I practice those 2 techniques every single day , even when i'm not in Kendo , http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif...

but that's one of the four kendo deceases ...but sometimes my motivation appears again when i'm in shiai with someone i can beat ... by the way i been about 2 years in kendo ..but sometimes looks like i'm 4 or 5 ..i know practice will make me get better .. but damn i can't wait .. http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif , when i get better i feel i gotta GET MUCH BETTER , is it bad what i'm feeling ? http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif.

But , still I LOVE KENDO , actually i've been thinking in saving money so i can travel to japan , and become a Cop , http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif !


Thanks for reading it http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif , i know what i wrote sounds kinda funny :P but is the truth, maybe i'm not well informed http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif.

Sorry if someone feels offended (BTW english is not my main language)

maybe thats it...

the test is the day after tomorrow, it is too late for debana-teacher tecnique, but im gonna kaeshi do that HDP

mmm i"ll tell you this , think you're like a samurai demon or somethin XD , then try this KATATE TSUKI - DO , so you begin making him think youre gonna do KATATE TSUKI but you change to DO , man try it , sounds hard but do it without thinking on it http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif , dont think too much about doing those techniques just make them!!!!

http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gifxD

http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gifxD , I practice kaeshi DO speed, first begin doin' do Cuts as fast as you can then instead of raising up your shinai , raise it as if you were blocking a men , got it? , then practice it slow and when you do it good slow , do it faster then faster until you are tired, dont forget you dont go FORWARD in DO , you go like of you were doing a side-cut, a good example of it would be watching the video on youtube when Miyazaki scores a Kaeshi DO , just copy his feet and his arms , but after you strike DO keep with both hands got me? http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif .

Hope it helps you http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...lies/smile.gif , I started practicing this since I lost agaisnt some guys during the Tryouts for the national team O_o , it works for me http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif .


PD: don't forget your Zanshin http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/biggrin.gif

some people think too much. go have few pints, and get back to the dojo.. or few more pints over few more weeks, and get back to the dojo.. so have 3 day drinking binge and sleep it over the weekend and get back to the dojo.. don't know the question, but beer is the answer.

pete

Sounds like your university training is good preparation for working life--a mix of enthusiasm and misery. I've got a few of those low motivation situations going on. My method is to just keep plodding along. Highs and lows are somewhat normal. When the stress and calendar get overloaded, my motivation tends to be very low and I don't want to do anything. This topic always makes me think of the Kendo Reader and the "Why do it?" discussion. Unless there are clear reasons to change things, the low points are just low points.

I'm in a low point. Rough few weeks at work, coaching a difficult group, and after a few unavoidable weeks off of kendo (kids/family/work/etc), it's feels easy to skip tomorrow. When problem personalities make what should be at least tolerable work unbearable, it can be hard. I can remember a few difficult prof's, dropped classes, and making sure to schedule classes to avoid them again (ah, he doesn't teach the summer class). The low points really make it seem like life is suffering. Pick your goals/dreams and don't give up until you reach them. Enjoy the good times on life's path, and push through the poor times.

Besides, Pete's answer won't work for all of us--I don't have any open days to sleep it off, and we have too many alcoholics in the family already.

If it becomes loose, I tighten it.

I watch this video of bullet08.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgGtjNqrdHA

news from the battlefield:

after shiai it seems that I DID kaeshi do my teacher, but I didnt have enough zanshin to avoid completely his men strike, it seems that somehow he managed to hit me with the tip of his shinai.
I missed so much classes becouse of my sickness I missed a part of all the stuff to study, I had no idea that it was in the test, otherwise I would have studied it too, and in the easy question I "sold it" as we say here, in the rush of the keiko, i did get to the right answer but I fortgot to explain it properly, for sure he would give me less points for that, anyway the other 3 questions seems to be ok (at least to me).

so its up to the shimpan, I think it is still my ippon but i cant say for sure, damn

Try to make your muscles to learn how to kaeshi DO for reaction ^^

And don't worry about that too much if you gave your best , it only means you have to train more and more dedicated.


And this can only be done with motivation .^^

Stop think negative stuff , don't let external factors control your mind.

Relax dude xD ^^

I took a break from college due to burnout in my senior year. I went to work on the night shift in a steel mill and trained judo and tkd during the day. After a year and a half, I was ready to go back. When I did come back, I found out that my major had changed and that I needed to take about two semesters to graduate. I guess I needed to grow up some but I also needed to work some stuff out. Working double shifts helped me break through the mental exhaustion through physical labor. 15 years later, I don't regret that break. I made money and worked my butt off while I figured out what I wanted to do.

All things considered, my personal suggestion is to seriously consider taking a break if you are in rut. My last semester before I took a break was a mess and I was basically not there even though I was enrolled. I would have been better served had I taken my break a semester earlier but I wasn't ready to admit the problem to myself... You should try to overcome your difficulties but you need to be honest with yourself and see if you are in a situation where you are able to do so with decent results. If you are just spinning your wheels, you are better off taking a break to collect your thoughts and see if you are doing something that is right for you and for which you are willing to put in the time and effort.

YMMV

So what do you do when you've taken the time off and still find yourself needing to fill a hole in your heart and soul that kendo doesn't seem to fill anymore? Seems like a bad decision to leave the people you love to see and spend time with, just to make yourself feel better. Some times it's like I'm just going through the motions, especailly when I feel like I"m having a great night and all I get is critisms. To add to that, seems like the more you progress, the less fun there is.