There are moments in life that leave and indelible impression upon a persons psyche. Some people refer to these as seminal moments. These types of moments plant a seed in our minds that change us forever. These moments can be positive or they can be negative, but we have a choice as to how we use them. You can always turn these moments into a positive force for fitness and for life.
When I was a student at Ole Miss I was a typical junior in college somewhat torn by the question of what my major should be. I settled for political science. I’m a news junkie, so that major did fit, but at heart I’m an artist. If I had it to do over again, because hindsight is 20/20 of course, I probably would have majored in art. I did take 9 hours of art classes at Ole Miss and each of those three classes taught me things that I have carried forward in my career to this day. I find, in business, that some of my most enjoyable discussions are those that involve art in the form of marketing and brand symbology.
So here is a story from one of my college art classes that gets to the point of this article…
It was 1984, half way through the semester on this spring day, and I found myself seated at an easel along with about 20 other art students in Drawing 111. The studio classroom was located in Ventress Hall, an old, red brick building built in 1889 that looks like a castle. At that time Ventress Hall was home to the Art & Art History Department of Ole Miss. The building stands next to The Grove on campus.
When the art teacher came into the room on that day, she said to all of us, “Class, today we are going to learn perspective.” Then she said, “Now, I want you all to take your pencils and place a dot on the center of your drawing pad.” So we all proceeded to do just that. When we were done, she went straight to the point with this statement: “Now class I want you to never forget that all perspective flows from that one point of origin!” My life would never be the same again after she said that. My view of life had just been altered. The way I looked at everything shifted. Her statement was more than just a lesson about how to draw, it was a life lesson.
Here it is, 38 years later, and I am still telling that story. It changed my philosophy on life in that moment. Since that time, I think about perspective, point of origin, and the “why” in everything that I see. Everything has a point of origin and if we can focus on the why, then we can break through to another level of understanding, and motivation.
It takes something profound to forge a mental tectonic shift. It takes a powerful statement, along with an exercise and an image to leave such an impression. It was the point of origin statement from the teacher along with the motion of drawing the dot, and then looking at the dot itself to create that life changing moment for me.
What does this have to do with fitness? EVERYTHING!
Fitness requires movement. Movement requires motivation. Motivation requires a spark, a moment that moves you, a point of origin that makes you take the first step…a WHY! This is the reason a training environment must be filled with encouragement. This is why HOTWORX uses wall imagery of fitness professionals encouraging you to take fitness action, otherwise known as motivational posters! A well done motivational poster can evoke a response for fitness like the one life changing experience in my art class. A shift in your fitness perspective might be in order.
Find your workout point of origin!
Remember, it takes a statement, an image and action to create a change of mindset! Find the right studio. Take the action and DO the workout.
Change your fitness perspective.
Change your life 👊🔥
