What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From Tai Chi
by Larry Slusser on April 9th, 2008
Entrepreneurs have been described as many things over the years in a variety of mediums. Aggressive, type A, intelligent, calculating, assertive, savvy, and many other terms and descriptions have been used.
Tai Chi is often called a passive martial art form, and “whole body and mind” form of exercise. Known throughout the world as a form of exercise to help with stress, how can Tai Chi be compared to being an entrepreneur? After all, one of the more famous quotes in Tai Chi is action through inaction which would seem to run counterintuitive to the entrepreneurial spirit.
Dig deeper in to Tai Chi and those entrepreneurs who succeed in business and you will find many similarities. In fact, on a value and conceptual level, it is striking how much the entrepreneurial spirit and this form of martial arts has in common.
* It Starts Simply , with warm up exercises and breathing to gain focus. Even the most coordinated expert in Tai Chi starts their lessons with warms ups and breathing exercises to gain focus. No entrepreneur succeeds without focus. Think about that tough problem you had to solve. What was the first thing you did? The chances are you focused on coming up with a game plan, and then decided where to start first.
* There is no Substitute for Experience or Time. In Tai Chi, there are no short cuts. To learn the sequences it takes repetition which requires time. A good instructor helps, but the individual must work hard to succeed. The same is true in business. Even if you have a fantastic mentor, you learn by making decisions, gaining experience, and by practicing. Study the world’s most successful athletes, entertainers, and business people, and you will find they are nearly maniacal in their practice regime. Think about what you should be practicing for your success, are you?
* Take Time to Meditate and to Focus beyond just warming up. Built into Tai Chi is time for meditation and focus. To achieve success in Tai Chi you must be able to focus and take that focus and apply it to you physical achievements to attain mastery. The same can be said of your efforts in business. If you are too busy working running your business to focus, you will forever be overwhelmed by tasks. Take time to focus, to plan, to do root cause analysis and you will succeed. To become a successful entrepreneur you must work “on the business” not just “in the business”.
* Push Yourself Beyond Where You are Comfortable is a catch phrase for many areas of life. This saying, however overused is true in Tai Chi and in business. You simply must push yourself beyond where you are comfortable if you are going to grow. Taking risks can come naturally to the entrepreneur but it is still not an easy thing to do on a regular basis. Recognizing when it is time to step beyond where you are comfortable is a skill you find in people who are able to achieve the pinnacle of success in their endeavors.
In Tai Chi there are many similarities that can be taken and applied to success in business. As an entrepreneur, make sure you are studying and applying these fundamentals in all the areas of your life to find what true success means to you.