Music, Martial Arts — and the Beauty of Imperfect Progress

While rehearsing with a student just before we were summoned into the examination studio, I reminded her that should she happen to stumble midway through a piece, she should keep going; as her accompanist, I would keep pace with her and ensure we both finished the piece on track.

I was reminded of this today at the dojo. While trying to do an “escape to the back”, the wrong leg came up and my sequence came out wrong, so I stopped to try and fix it.

My sensei told me to continue on with my routine even if I messed up midway – the important thing is not perfection but getting back on track and finishing strong.

A great lesson for life and business as well.

The show must go on.

How you finish is more important than how you start.

It’s not always about perfection. Sometimes the best you can do is to do your best in the moment, and to bounce back quickly from the messes and uncertainty and mistakes that are part of this wonderful adventure called Life.