Week 8 – Dirk Herfurth

“Lay your plans with true measure and then perform the work according to plan, thus you pass through life. Create your plan, and then work your plan.” (Miyamoto Musashi)

This piece of wisdom is from “The book of five rings” from Miyamoto Musashi, the greatest sword master and strategist that ever lived. I tend to agree, you should have a certain plan when you walk through life – a least a very rough one. However, my German kinsman Prussian Field Marshal Helmuth von Moltke the Elder wrote an essay about military strategy in 1871.

He said: “No plan of operations extends with any certainty beyond the first encounter with the main enemy forces”. And this happened to me last week.

As my avid blog readers know, I signed up for a university course in Supply Chain management as my personal goal this year. This course requires me to write an essay about the week’s topic and hand it in by Saturday night. In addition to that a larger project has to be worked on during the 12 weeks of the quarter. The mid quarter review of this said project was due Saturday the 12^th. Well, my plan was to work on it after Saturday’s karate class and finish it up during the rest of the day. The enemy of my plan was – just life itself.

20 minutes in, sitting at my desk, I received a phone call. My son (who was playing at his friend’s house this afternoon to give me peace and quiet to work on my thesis) fell at the playground, and most likely broke his arm.

Well, sh*t!

I picked him up immediately and together we spend the next 5h in the good care of the US health care system. Fortunately, it was just a micro crack that should heal quickly with no major limitations during the next 4 weeks. Thank god! However, I could kiss Good Bye the idea of finishing my work. Sitting next to my son’s hospital bed, waiting for doctors, nurses, x rays etc., I was watching the minutes pass by on the clock.

What do you do? What can you do? Nothing! Make a new plan. What is important at this point of time, how can you deal with the necessities of the moment?  I calmed, realizing that.

I took care of my son. I texted my professor and asked for some more time. I even managed to do some breathing exercise while waiting. We left the hospital at 7:30pm that night, stopped for some food, watched a half movie together, talked about the day, and went to bed at ten.

I still had a thesis to finish and hand in on Sunday morning – on SUPERBOWL SUNDAY!!!

I tell you what. I managed it, sent in my work, watched the whole game and even got some rounds of sparring in with David and Elijah san.

Worrying about this whole delay, the implications of it were not important this Saturday. My plan changed on me and I needed to adapt.

This strategy works both in the martial arts and life.