09/04/2026
Preserving the Way
Exploring the history, philosophy, traditions, and people that continue to shape our karate.
The Problem With Trying to Be Perfect
One of the things I appreciate about studying older martial arts writings is that they often make me think about things I thought I already understood. Take perfection, for example. Most of us have heard that chasing perfection isn't particularly helpful, but knowing that intellectually and actually experiencing it in our own training can be two very different things.
In karate, it's easy to become caught up in the details. Is my stance correct? Was that punch fast enough? Did I make a mistake in my kata? Those questions are part of training, and paying attention to those details is how we improve.
But there comes a point where focusing too much on our mistakes can become another form of distraction.
I've certainly experienced this in my own training. I'll make a mistake and immediately start thinking about it. Why did I do that? What should I have done instead? How do I make sure it doesn't happen again? Meanwhile, I'm already moving on to the next technique, but part of my attention is still stuck on what happened a few moments ago.
That's one of the things I kept thinking about while reading Takuan's ideas about the unfettered mind.
The goal isn't to become someone who never makes mistakes. It's learning how to recognize a mistake without allowing it to take over our attention.
In the dojo, we get another opportunity almost immediately. The next repetition gives us another chance to adjust, learn, and try again.
There's a difference between learning from the past and being stuck in it.
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