Becoming Comfortable with Discomfort (and other lessons)
I've trained at a Mixed Martial Arts gym for six years or so, and as many practitioners will tell you, the journey for me has been as much about mental growth as physical skill building, with applications beyond the dojo. This is a post about teams and team health, in business & beyond. Note: In training, I have a personal focus on ground fighting (as opposed to striking - getting punched in the head is bad for you), so my examples will be from that viewpoint. Becoming Comfortable with Discomfort The first day at an MMA gym goes something like this: You don your workout attire and attend a trial class, not quite sure what to expect. The first half of class, you might learn a Jiu Jitsu (submission wrestling) technique and drill the technique with a partner. The second half of class might be live "rolling" (wrestling). You choose a partner, wrestle for a 3 - 5 minute round until the bell rings, choose a new partner during a 1 minute break, and repeat for 30 m...