5Cs - Courage Confidence Connection Commitment Conquest

The journey to become a champion begins with yourself and end also with yourself. And remember, no one (except The Almighty) can stop you. Yap! that's the 5 Cs. Ever made it to champion a championship, irregardless of the ranking and level of the players. Whether it is a company tournament or just within the club, you have gone through the 5Cs.

Nobody has ever decided to play this game, picked up a racket and Wala, Abra ka dah Bra, is playing like he/she has played for years. Nobody ! Everyone starts off first by watching. Months perhaps even years he is still watching. Until ... finally...

COURAGE

Until finally he/she gathered enough courage and decided to play. Wait a minute, I thought it was interest in the game ? Nope, it is courage. Interest was when they like to watch.

This is the reason why, parents hoping their children would pick up the game should without exception bring them along when they play and or watching others play. Children have very short span of "focus" after about half a dozen times (some requires more) they would start picking up a racket and "muck around" . This is the pre interest stage. Likewise for adults too, mind you some adults are still like children in their physiological profile, taking years before they finally pick up courage to play the game. Without this stage there is no moving to the next. Courage is a pre requisite because the learning stage can be quite embarrassing. So never allow anyone to make you feel small.

CONFIDENCE

So you are now playing the game or are you still mucking about ? The first thing you need to learn is to pinch the negatives in the bud, know what I mean ? No, you don't know what I mean. So here's the directive, learn the good and leave aside the bad "advises" There will be lots of "Sifus" and teachers who while they mean well, are not able to show you the way. So as a newbie, you do not want to be arrogant and put up with their advises and politely listen to everything they say. Just take the good ones and leave the ones not suitable for the time being.

Build your game properly step by step. Be patient to learn a stroke with due attention given to the right and proper technical process. Eventually, you will build confidence as you build accuracy and consistency with the strokes you are practicing. Focus (at this stage) on returns. Make use of the racket cover (rubber) to do the job, you paid for it so let it go do the job. Jobs like how to return a top spin, how to return a side spin serve or back spin serve. It is perfectly natural to make mistakes, learn from them, do not celebrate "success" too early. There's more variations of spins, speed and trajectory to learn, get with better players and challenge yourself to learn. An important note here, don't go around calling everyone better than you teachers, sensei and or "Sifus", your best teacher is yourself and the each moments you spent playing ping pong. Also don't be arrogant and get "big headed" when others praise you for your progress. (Not at this stage, not in the future and not ever) The moment you thing you know it all, you stopped learning. And most important of all, be patient, do not be in a hurry to learn to smash and drive the ball like you watch others do.

CONNECTION

Get connected ! Nope I am not talking about the internet nor being connected to any institution (later perhaps) But get connected with the rhythm of the ping pong ball, it's trajectory, it's rotation and spins or no spin. Remember the 500 counts of stroking with a partner I mentioned in my earlier blog "Push, Block and Attack" That exercise will help you get the connection with the bounce of the ball vis a vis your footwork, body / hand and eye coordination.

Getting connected means, you are dancing during each rally. Beginning with Ready Position, Serve and Return, each rally is like a dance. Like "Tai Chi" graceful and rhythmic. This connection is crucial without which you cannot progress further. This is because in it's absence, you will develop bad habits and strokes which will hinder you to move to the next level. Get into the rhythm of the ball in rally, much like you are dancing when you are engaged in each and every rally. When you are in sync with the ball in rally, you have made the connection !

COMMITMENT

This is the part when, after the connection is made, you are in sync and have what they call "ball sense" you find yourself restless and yearning to play, to practice the dance, to get consistency with the forehand top spin, to win those you have lost many times before. You are there 15 minutes before everyone arrives and you the last to leave the club's premise. You are committed to "Sharpening the Saw" or training and improving constantly. as we move on to conquest after conquest where you find yourself looking forward to play with players who are known to be good players and better than yourself .... to continue your learning process.

The legendary Bruce Lee, shares ..... Enjoy the journey.

Still in the commitment segment, let me make a few comments. You will find that the late Bruce's 10 rules in a "higher" level of consciousness, well he's Bruce Lee but remember you are you and you are not me. In short, there is no Chinese style ping pong or Swedish style ping pong or German style ping pong or Malaysian style ping pong. You are you, be you and don't copy someone else style.

CONQUEST

I could best talk about conquest in a metaphor. Once there was a very great conqueror, you could say he is like the one and only Genghis Khan, who conquest after conquest has brought him an empire that stretches over 3 continents. Yet his heart is troubled and restless, tiring him by day and haunts him by night. He is powerful, rich and commands his empire with an iron fist.

He traveled in search of a wise man in the east, high up in the mountains. When he finally found the wise man, he pleaded, "O wise man of the east, I have conquered the world and my empire spans from east to the west under my rule, why am I still unhappy and unsatisfied, emptiness surrounds me, Teach me the secrets to a happy and fulfilled life."

The old wise man replied, "O great conqueror, you will not succeed in the attainment of a fulfilled and happy life unless and until you conquer that which is the size of your fist."

As though being insulted and humiliated the conqueror held up his fist, and said, "What is it that I cannot conquer when millions of lives is in my rule, and that which is only the size of my fist ?" feeling frustrated,

The wise man comforted him. "O great conqueror, that which is the size of your fist is your heart - First conquer your own heart." he continued, "When you give freely and am sincere, they (your subjects) will give freely and will be loyal"

"When you loose money, you loose nothing, when you loose a friend, you loose something, when you loose hope, you loose everything ..... similarly, when you gained money, you gained nothing, when you gained a friend, you gained something, but when you gained love, respect and loyalty, you gained everything"

"Chee Yan Hau Meen Put Chee Sam" you must "Ling Yan Sam Fook Hau Fook!" Oppss I did it again, okay in the english language, We can observe peoples facial expressions and their speeches but we are not able to gauge the degree of sincerity in their hearts, thus we must give freely of ourselves to gain love, respect and loyalty

With that the great conqueror understood that no amount of gold would be enough to reward the wise man except that he should earn love, respect and loyalty from his subjects and this wise man.

Morale of the story is, once you are at the top, you must be humble and graceful. Love, respect and loyalty cannot be demanded, It must be earned !

CONCLUSION

At whatever stages you are, you must be grateful and give thanks to Our Creator, The Almighty, for it is all a gift (yes FREE) from Him, and He has promised that if we are grateful, He will give more and without measure.

So there you have it. Whether you are a player or an adviser or a champion or a team manager or a coach or an official or a referee or an executive officer or a president ...... we all have to have love, respect and loyalty!

Remember Ping Pong for Health, Wealth and Peace. Stay tuned ... next the 5Ss

Be You. Believe in Yourself, and Yes, go get them Tiger. !

Cheerioo