Thoughts of a Predicate Hustler #6: Shoulder to the Wheel
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The reason for this title is for most people, the one thing that scares them the most about anything is being decisive (myself used to be included) and dealing with the consequences of said
decisions so they straddle the fence not going one way or the other. It’s the urge to not want to make a wrong choice that fuels that fear and in truth it limits more than it helps. Someone on top of their game realizes that there’s only few circumstances that can’t be rectified somehow and even then second-guessing yourself should be done sparingly.
“Shoulder to the wheel” is a saying that I picked up from an episode of one of my favorite shows right now Dollhouse and in the scene where it was said, a psychotic huntsman chased after Eliza Dushku’s character for sport after being romantic with her earlier. As he chased her, he kept saying it and even though he eventually got knocked off, the saying stuck with me. If you can paint a mental image of driving an old school big, bulky 18 wheeler with no power steering and having to turn, you’d have to put everything you had into it and literally put your shoulder to the wheel to turn it. My interpretation of the saying is that you have to commit yourself to your decision 100% or it won’t happen the way you want it to.
One of my favorite books Hagakure, written by Nabeshima Mitsushige, speaks on the process a samurai might use when facing choices (paraphrased mind you): think deeply and within the span of seven breaths decide. After the seventh breath, whatever your decision is the one you stick with. In practicality, seven breaths may not be long enough but I remember Jay-Z saying something along the same lines with pondering something for a while and deciding quickly without worry of second guessing. When you practice this, it becomes easier to do and you learn to trust the inner CEO speaking to you. The line that Launchpad from the show Duck Tales said best, “Any good crash is one you can walk away from.” You live; you learn and you learn to live with your decisions. Always waiting for the sure thing is the sure way to not get anything done
. Stay up, stay focused and stay grinding. -CZA myspace.com/thecza
