The secret to always being at your best, according to samurai

The secret to always being at your best, according to samuraiThe secret to always being at your best, according to samuraiReading a few books by samurai, there was one thing I saw repeated again and again and again that surprised me.It has nothing to do with swords, fighting, or strategy.Actually, quite the opposite when you think about it.What did so many of historys greatest warriors stress as key to success and optimal performance?Being calm.And it wasnt one random samurai mentioning it off the cuff.Were talking about some of the greatest samurai who ever lived writing about it over and over for five hundred yearsShiba Yoshimasa(1349-1410)For warriors in particular, if you calm your own mind and discern the inner minds of others, that may be called the foremost art of war.Suzuki Shosan(1579-1655)When you manage to overcome your own mind, you overcome myriad concerns, riseabove all things, and are free. When you are overcome by your own mind, you are burdened by myriad concerns, su bordinate to things, unable to rise above. Mind your mind guard it resolutely. Since it is the mind that confuses the mind, dont let your mind give in to your mind.Kaibara Ekken(1630-1714)A noble man controls frivolity with gravity, awaits action in a state of calm. It is important for the spirit to be whole, the mood steady, and the mind unmoving.Adachi Masahiro(1780-1800)The imperturbable mind is the secret of warfare.And, of course, the man probably considered the greatest samurai of them all, Miyamoto Musashi, in his classic,The Book of Five RingsBoth in fighting and in everyday life you should be determined though calm. Meet the situation without tenseness yet not recklessly, your spirit settled yet unbiased.Nobody really needs to sell us on the value of staying calm.You know the benefits you think clearly, you dont make rash decisions, you dont get scared.But how do you get and stay calm?Our society is energy drinks, 24-hour news cycle, Starbucks on every corner, and relentles s social media feeds. GO GO GO.And even funnier, much of what we know about relaxing and being calm is dead wrong.The samurai had answers. And they line up with the science. Here we go.The scientific samurais guide to staying chillThe samurai trained in martial arts a lot and they thought about death a lot.Really, they thought about death a lot.ViaCode of the Samurai A Contemporary Translation of the Bushido ShoshinsOne who is supposed to be a warrior considers it his foremost concern to keep death in mind at all times, every day and every night, from the morning of New Years Day through the night of New Years Eve.Hey, you would too. Death was pretty much in their job description, right?But research showstraining very hard and imagining the worst that could happen are two powerful techniques for promoting calm.Samurais trained relentlessly.They strongly believed you should always be prepared (they were like the deadliest Boy Scouts imaginable.)Research shows that preparation reduces fear because when things get tense, you dont have to think.Who survives catastrophic scenarios like samurai battles? The people who have prepared.Via David McRaneysYou Are Not So SmartAccording to Johnson and Leach, the sort of people who survive are the sort of people who prepare for the worst and practice ahead of timeunterstellung people dont deliberate during calamity because theyve already done the deliberation the other people around them are just now going through.And how about all that thinking about death?Negative Visualization is one of the main tools of ancient Stoicismand science backs it up.Really thinking about just how awful things can be often has the ironic effect of making you realize theyre not that bad.From myvorstellungsgesprch with Oliver Burkeman, author ofThe Antidote Happiness for People Who Cant Stand Positive ThinkingIts what the Stoics call, the premeditation that theres actually a lot of peace of mind to be gained in thinking carefully and in detail an d consciously about how badly things could go.In most situations youre going to discover that your anxiety or your fears about those situations were exaggerated.Okay, but you dont want to spend all day training in sword-fighting or thinking about death.I get that. Frankly, neither do I.So whats the key here?Research shows the most powerful way to combat stress or anxiety - to stay calm - is to have a feeling of control.For samurai, training tirelessly and visualizing the worst that could happen gave them a feeling of control while in battle.The US military dramatically increased Navy SEAL passing rates by teaching recruits psychological methods for gaining a feeling of control.Without a feeling of control, when stress gets high we literally cant think straight.ViaYour Brain at Work Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter All Day LongAmy Arnsten studies the effects of limbic system arousal on prefrontal cortex functioning. She summarized the impo rtance of a sense of control for the brain during an interview filmed at her lab at Yale. The loss of prefrontal function only occurs when we feel out of control. Its the prefrontal cortex itself that is determining if we are in control or not.Even if we have the illusion that we are in control, our cognitive functions are preserved. This perception of being in control is a major driver of behavior.Anything that gives you afeeling of controlover your situation helps you keep your cool.So what does it for you?More information? Practice? Support from others?Thats the thing that will help you keep your cool like a samurai.Note I said feeling of control - it doesnt even have to be legit control, justfeelinglike you do can work wonders.Even a good luck charm can help - because good luck charms really do work.Good luck charms provide a feeling of control, and that feeling of control actually makes people perform better with them.ViaThe Courage Quotient How Science Can Make You Braverpeo ple with a lucky charm performed significantly better than did the people who had none. Thats right, having a lucky charm will make you a better golfer, should you care about such things, and improve your cognitive performance on tasks such as memory games.Sum upI know what some of you are thinkingCalm? Arent samurai the ones always screaming at the top of their lungs while waving a sword?Thing is, that was adeliberatetactic to frighten their enemies.Musashi explainsIn single combat, also, you must use the advantage of taking the enemy unawares by frightening him with your body, long sword, or voice, to defeat him. . . In single combat, we make as if to cut and shout Ei at the same time to disturb the enemy, then in the wake of our shout we cut with the long sword.Sneaky. These are the kind of smart ideas that come from a cool head.The samurai were great warriors. They fought against their enemies in epic battles.But as Musashi and the others make clear in their writings about being calm, the most important battle is to overcome yourself.ViaThe Book of Five RingsToday is victory over yourself of yesterday tomorrow is your victory over lesser men.Join 45K+ readers.Get a free weekly update via emailhere.Related posts4 Lifehacks From Ancient Philosophers That Will Make You HappierWhat 10 things should you do every day to improve your life?How To Make Your Life Better By Sending Five Simple EmailsThis article originally appeared at Barking Up the Wrong Tree.