Throw Away Constraint

I decided this week to stop fencing for points, or at least reduce the occasions on which I did so. Why? Well for two reasons really:
a) I was putting myself under pressure to win and in an attempt to focus exclusively on scoring was losing the wider picture needed to fence effectively
b) Fencing wasn't fun any more!
As a coach I'd got into a mindset that I should be winning in order to retain respect. Actually what this was doing was preventing me from seeing my students as students and instead viewing them as opponents. This stopped me being able to help them develop. I realised that I don't have to win all the time, so therefore I could do more good by helping rather than competing. Also, by freeing myself of the limiting desire to win I would be able to experiment and assist in other's development. Over the last few weeks fencing for points has been more of an angry experience than anything else and sometimes if something's broke you've just gotta go fix it!
It's fair to say that work and outside life have been a bit stressful of late and the thing with stress is that it accumulates without notice. The other thing about it is that it takes the lustre from the important things and emphasises the less important things. Enjoyment gets stifled by the perceived problems and it was time to get back to enjoying my coaching, job and everyday activities. I'm sure there will be times when I shall get out on the piste in earnest again but for the time being I'll just concentrate on having some fun!