This is the final post from my old parkour blog. That means you will no longer be able to find that blog. Have no fear though, everything that was there is now here. Enjoy this last one!
October 2009
Through reading and watching interviews with some of the founders of modern movement disciplines, and in watching them move, I have arrived at a sort of philosophy or approach to my training that hangs on three concepts. I will begin by explaining my understanding of these three ideas, including their benefits to the individual who pursues them, and then I will show how they link together in my training and wider life.
It is important to be clear about something at the beginning. I believe these concepts are a part of my wider life and existed before I began training. I am certain that if I didn't do parkour these ideas would manifest themselves in some other way. However, parkour has given me a context to form these ideas together and develop them. Other movement activities and non-movement activities may also be legitimate forms of developing the same ideas, but I think parkour is one of the better ones because of the need to incorporate both body and mind into training at the more advanced stages of development.
Creativity
The bible says that man is made in the image of God. Creativity in man is considered to be one way that man shows similarity between himself and his maker. One way to describe creativity is by giving an example of a creative person. Someone who is creative is able to come up with something new out of something old or something considered as waste. As mortals, we cannot create anything physical out of nothing. So here I am considering creative use of pre-existing materials. John Britten was a creative genius who most people associate with the creation of the Britten motorcycle. Many do not know that he also built a home out of recycled materials, being creative with what he had, to reduce costs and to produce something totally unique. This was not the only amazing thing he produced with his creativity. That's another story though.
Some people think that creativity needs to have a useful purpose for it to be real. I don't think it is possible for creativity to be useless because the mind is developing its ability to think in different ways no matter what the use. Creative thinking can be applied to anything.
Parkour is a context for movement creativity. It doesn't even matter that much of the movement is discovered for the first time on a regular basis by every new practitioner that tries something they've never done before. There is almost nothing that beats the feeling of joy and elation that rises from within and fills our limbs with something wonderful as we move. This is the joy of creation in movement and can be experienced in a number of other contexts, e.g. writing, singing, playing music. It is creativity that gives energy to our training to keep it up and to push the boundaries. It is the desire to share something wonderful and new that leads to positive and fulfilling interactions with the rest of mankind. Creativity is the doorway to so much more.
Discipline
Discipline is also easier to explain with some examples. Someone who is disciplined will train regularly in a controlled and thoughtful manner. Distractions and excuses are not something that the disciplined person allows. They train hard and strive to do the best they can at whatever they apply themselves to.
Without discipline our creativity would stagnate and the boundaries of movement would come crashing in. High repetition of movement gives us the technical mastery that becomes instinctive movement as well as the physical fitness to move where, when, and how we want.
Except for a few geniuses, we must train regularly to grow and widen the boundaries of what we can do. This is a lesson that parkour teaches beginners very quickly.
Another side of discipline is developing the mental toughness to be able to push on through the discomfort of training to find the limits of our bodies. Very few people in the world will know what it means to strive against themselves and overcome, beating their body into submission. There is also the discipline of knowing when to rest so as not to over-train, which can result in injury or slow recovery and progression.
Altruism
Roughly speaking, altruism is helping others at your own expense. This expense could be in the form of time, money, even life.
In the field of parkour, traceurs often devote some time to coach and support beginners. Going beyond this, many will also look for opportunities to assist the wider community with their strength. This might be jumping at the chance to help push start a car with a flat battery, chasing down a purse snatcher, or assisting with community programs for holidays/camps/after school events.
Without the creativity and discipline that shapes a traceur, they are in much less of a position to assist others. The stronger we are, the more strength we can bring to bear on a difficult scenario. The more creative we are, the greater our range of options for applying ourselves to a problem.
Even the lowliest beginner can be altruistic by having a "give it a go" attitude that will inspire others, or by not making excuses for their weakness and instead seeking to improve from where they're currently at in their abilities.
Why are these things so important to parkour?
Lets imagine what parkour would be like without any one of these individual aspects.
First, without creativity we would not have the ability to become strong in a wide range of movements. Our "vision" would be dark and we could not see over the hill and far away to the furthest boundaries of our potential. Many people walk through life trying to fill up their day with shallow pursuits. We would be one of those, without creative insight into our own lives.
Second, without discipline we would lack the ability to fulfil our creative potential. With grandoise goals and no drive to reach them we would settle for an easy and shallow life once more. However, we would be incredibly frustrated with our lot because we would be able to see what we could've been, if only we had the discipline to make it happen.
Third, with no drive to help others we would be left to pursue our limits in total selfishness. People would only come to dislike us since we would never do anything for them. We would be reckless with other peoples' property and would likely leave a trail of destuction behind us at local training spots. Beginners would get no assistance and would be left to their own devices which would prove destructive all over again. Without the time and effort of experienced traceurs we would not have constructive communities online, and in the physical world, that build a positive and healthy segment of society, which in turn feeds this altruism into the world as a whole.
Each one of these three ideas builds into my life (and my parkour) in a necessary way. Without any one of them I would not be who I am. While they don't describe the complete me, i.e. I am more than just these three things, they are one framework to hang ideas on that would build a picture of my life. I would even go so far as to say that these three things should be a large focus in the lives of everyone in the world. Parkour is a great way for young people to approach these key concepts, and as such it should be something offered to children everywhere while they are young enough to latch on in a natural way.
Finally, these three ideas are where the simple joy in movement comes from. Expanding ourselves, growing into our ideas, sharing with others, and forming valuable relationships with communities. In all of this there is much happiness to be had!
Now its time for you to go away and think about how these ideas apply to your life.
Think hard, train hard,
Sam
If you are familiar with Sir Ken Robinson’s famous TED talk on how schools can kill creativity, or his more recent RSA Animate piece on the need to change education paradigms, then you will already know what to expect with ‘The Element’. It is more of the same strong call that is rapidly spreading across the globe to develop a society that will nurture human talent. This is done so using a host of wonderful stories of people who have discovered their element and how they have reached amazing success through this. People including musical artists Bob Dylan and Jay-Z, The Simpsons creator Matt Groening, Actress Meg Ryan, Broadway Choreographer Gillian Lynne, physicist Richard Feynman, athletic legends, business leaders, and more.
I would recommend this book to anyone at all, though if you are already familiar with Sir Ken’s work it is more for your own inspiration via the collection of stories of people’s lives. The drum that he is banging will not be unfamiliar territory, though the the print form of these ideas give more time to reflect and absorb the details than the video presentations. 
From Guy Claxtons “What’s the Point of School, Rediscovering the Heart of Education” is a list of key resources that are basically common sense habits of mind that we’ve forgotten about or, for some reason, don’t focus on in our classrooms and when building education systems:
- Curiosity
- Resilience
- Balancing imagination and logic
- Being able to ask for help and take feedback without getting upset
- Being able to take a step back from a difficult situation
I intend to unpack the ideas and applications behind these concepts as I understand them, giving examples that I’ve noticed from students in my classroom or from my own learning experiences across various fields.
Curiosity - the desire to learn
If someone is interested in a wide range of topics, or can find something of interest within a new topic fairly easily, then they are more likely to experience a wide range of learning experiences. This is because they will more easily engage with new material and new challenges through the desire to learn about these interesting things. The more topics they engage with, the more learning will happen, and the more cross-topic links they will make, further enhancing their range of interests and learning experiences. It is true that learning leads to better and more efficient learning. This is why all learners are capable of great things. Even those who are very slow to begin with can accelerate the learning process over years of dedicated persistence in actively learning. Yesterday I wrote about learning within a sporting context and the idea of curiosity is relevant because that is how you find out what you want to know and what you need to know to accomplish a goal.
Resilience - Sticking with it till you’ve got it
Clearly, someone will be a better learner if they try hard to understand something or if their curiosity is enough to keep them going when a concept seems to be taking a long time to master. The same is true for technical skills, not just academic knowledge. If you are learning how to vault a wall you must develop strength and technique. Technique to master the most efficient way and strength to be able to perform the technique properly. Both strength and technique take time to develop, likewise memorisation when learning vocabulary in an academic context. If a learner is not resilient enough to be able to stick with the task over a long period of time, maybe even years, then they will not learn anything that is particularly difficult and time-consuming to learn.
Balancing imagination and logic - creativity and practical purposes
To learn new things we need to be able to think outside the square using our imagination and creative talents. To apply concepts we must also be able to think creatively. In physics we learn about many different equations. The easier questions tell us which equation to use and the harder ones expect us to work out which two or three or more equations are appropriate to use. This ‘working out process’ is the creative application of the knowledge of equations. If we jump to the field of art and design we can see a wide range of imagination and creativity, but until we consider the practical purpose it is a fairly empty skill to be able to ‘draw a pretty picture’. Good art considers the audience and tries to communicate using ideas and images that the audience will understand. Design can’t just produce the latest trendy architecture, it also has to consider the practical side of structure and purpose.
Going hand in hand with creativity and practicality is impulsiveness and planning. If we try and understand creativity we will see that there is something “out of the blue” and impulsive about it. Too much impulsiveness leads to recklessness and abandon, ignoring the real needs of the people and plans around us. At the same time, we can focus on practical issues so much that we lose the ability to meet the needs of warmth and emotion that make us human. If you consider for a moment, that warmth and emotion is linked quite strongly to creativity and humanity. This is what separates us from the animals, and makes the human being something special.
Being able to ask for help and take feedback without getting upset
There are two parts to this. Firstly, being humble enough to ask for help when you know (or even just suspect) that you need it will get you out of a hole that is caused by pride and fear of being seen to be a failure. This is the curse of young people who are pushed ahead in class or year level when they are not yet developed enough in character to admit when they are wrong or need help. There is the high stake of having to maintain your perceived “smarts” to justify your position in the advanced group and so any weakness or lack of knowledge is not something that you want to admit. The reality is that you will move forward so much better if you can share your weakness and your struggle so that others who have been there, or are there, can support you to higher development.
Secondly, we can see that you must be able to remain calm or even happy when receiving correction. It’s not a problem for most of us to receive positive feedback without getting upset but if the criticism is negative it can be cutting to our ego. Too often we have a misplaced self-confidence that we feel we can be more than we are just by telling ourselves that we are. It is hard to grow from this position because we don’t have a true picture of the foundation to build upon. You can’t grow tomato plants if you pretend there is enough nutrient in the concrete which you plant it in. If we have a realistic view of ourselves and our need for outside input to enhance our current condition, then we will be more likely to apply advice joyfully, knowing that we are improving. If we think we are more than we are, or are trying to maintain a facade while knowing the truth about ourselves, we will reject that which will grow us.
Being able to take a step back from a difficult situation
When you are upset, or have dealt with just one too many criticisms of your work, especially when they are coming from yourself or someone close to you, it is of enormous advantage if you can take a deep breath and sort of “reset” your emotional state. If we let our emotions get on top of us we are more likely to miss the breakthrough that comes from persistence and worrying away at a difficult problem. If we get angry at someone telling us we are wrong, even when we know or suspect they are right, we will have a hard time taking their advice because of stubbornness and pride. Sadly, that person giving us advice will also be less likely to give us feedback in the future because of the angry response which conditions them to keep away.
It is useful to be able to look at yourself and assess your emotional state. This way you can learn what triggers you and when you need to take a mental step back to breathe. Taking rest when you need it is one of the hardest things to learn, especially when you have a test the next day and you have a set amount of material to get through. Sometimes it will be more beneficial to your test results to just stop there. It is also worth noting that in the bigger picture, and what Guy Claxton is getting at in his entire book, is the reality that the test doesn’t really matter. What matters is your personal development and ability to cope with life.
Life is hard and all of the above attributes build towards a good learner and a good liver. You can’t have as much fun, happiness, joy, and even love in your life without these skills. I hope they will help you.
From the preface:
“[quoting Winston Churchill] “The only time my education was interrupted was while I was at school.”
The purpose of education is to prepare young people for the future. Schools should be helping young people to develop the capacities they will need to thrive. What they need, and want, is the confidence to talk to strangers, to try things out, to handle tricky situations, to stand up for themselves, to ask for help, to think new thoughts.”
My thoughts
I’m not sure if Winston Churchill was making a deliberate commentary on the education system when he said this, but sadly it seems accurate. Instead of being educated according to the noble purpose presented above, students learn to stop asking questions that will develop themselves as people. Their focus is instead upon passing assessments and meeting requirements for literacy standards that have little bearing upon the real world due to their formulaic and predictable nature. The real world is not so neat and tidy and real people need to be able to cope with the unexpected.
I would frame the situation as such:
We should be aiming for personal development and character building, developing an understanding of the base principles of learning, rather than focusing on such narrow measures of academic ability as exam results.
I have three concepts upon which I would build my ideal education system. Creativity, discipline, and altruism. I have written about these things on my parkour blog in the context of parkour.
