"Find your place to stand -- your place of wisdom, peace and strength. From that place, remake the world."
I recently found this quote from Arianna Huffington from her book Thrive. It got me thinking about position in life and how we use our platform. In Chinese, the word for stance is "bu," in Kungfu, stance is everything.
Long ago, if a student wanted to train in martial arts, they would be first tested by how long they could maintain a horse stance, Ma bu. If the standard was met, then training would begin. It was not unusual to train in only stances for the first six months to a year. Stance is that important. It defines the level of excellence of the martial artist. Your root determines your strength. The solid stance or strong foundation enables the moves to be performed with power. The more grounded the stance, the greater the power. In this way, the stance forms the foundation for all that follows.
In the same way, in order to make a powerful impact in life, you must have a firm foundation. You must have a sure sense of what you stand for and why. People who make a powerful impact are people who are grounded. They become leaders because they know who they are, what they want and what type of impact they want to make on the world.
Leaders have a strong commitment to following through on making a positive difference with their lives. Decisions are carefully made in light of core beliefs, goals and purpose, not based on impulse or only emotion. They also surround themselves with wise and trusted advisers. No matter how right the cause, there will be those who oppose it. Therefore, your stance must be firm enough to resist opposition, but flexible enough to accept wise counsel.
It has been said if you stand for nothing, you will fall for anything. By knowing yourself and your beliefs, you can take a firm stand. You can "fasten your feet on the ground as if fastened by strong glue" as the Eight Skills of Kungfu states. Then you can use this firm stand to speak up for what matters to you.
I recently had the honor of being part of Miri Ben-Ari's Project B. It was a powerful presentation of music, art, lights, spoken word and video. The theme was that we each have our own Project B. We each have a message that we want to share. We can transform the world by using our platform, our position in life, to make a positive difference in this world. There are many things that I don't believe are right, but I choose to speak up for what I do believe in to encourage and empower others to unite towards a common goal.
As a Martial Arts instructor, life coach, public speaker, author and parent, I get the opportunity to change lives every day, to influence other adults and children to be their best, to live life with purpose and to make a difference with their lives. I help people think about what they want to achieve and then make it happen. This is my purpose, to help people who are at a crossroads to discover possibilities in their life, career, relationships and health.
If you want to be a person of impact, ask yourself: What are my core beliefs and principles? What am I standing for? What is my purpose in life? Who are my trusted advisers? How am I using my platform to make a positive difference? Then resolve to strengthen your stance and from there, aim for your highest goals. And be prepared to be a person of great impact.