The Detox
At certain times in my life, I’ve felt the power of cohesive environments co-created by determined individuals. I have been chasing that feeling ever since. A space has a sort of “health” status, whereby it is the sum of all who share it. This can easily be thrown into disorder by simple, shitty human behavior.
These states of cohesion are temporary, or at least cyclical. But the ability of an environment to shape those who work inside it is incomparably powerful—so any of us who have experienced it, are chasing that high. Our own space has been a wild experiment in trying to capture this "vibe" and keep it. Sometimes we nail it. For a few weeks, it feels like the perfect breeding ground for development. People make huge leaps in effort and perspective, simply because they are exposed to others making excellence a routine. This in turn gives us what we need, to believe in the power of change. It is a "high fives all around" scenario where you don't look too closely at why it's happening, you just enjoy it. Other times it wanes, and I feel an almost inevitable urge to burn the place down.
I don’t blame others for their inability to create this space, but people are often responsible for letting it fall apart, or keep it from happening. Most people seek to make their environments comfortable, even if they realize that the only way for an environment to change you is by allowing it to challenge your comfort.
In the past, the best groups I was part of came together momentarily, rarely out of conscious design but by happenstance with one shared ingredient: a desire to improve. There were always rules. It was not an open system; it was discriminatory. Each environment required sacrifice and, mostly, attention to one’s own behavior.
The first time I felt it was at an MMA gym in 2003. The sport was new, attracting a wide range of characters; everyone was nervous, and that set the stage. I felt it next at Gym Jones, which was one of the reasons I ended up working there, you couldn’t help but be enthralled by the energy of it. It was great until it wasn’t. I felt it again in Detroit at CrossFit Maven, and two years later in London at a small under-the-bridge gym called Perpetua. I’ve felt it in BJJ halls around the world, specifically at my own, Unified BJJ. And I have felt it at our place, though for shorter periods than I’d like to admit.
In talking to other gym owners and coaches, they know of this feeling, yet it remains elusive. You might get it during fight training camps, seminar weekends, or competitive training groups, but no matter the subject or sport, almost all agree that these are temporary highs. It’s almost as if others don’t try and create it, for fear of failing and being stuck in the low. Perhaps this is the problem with potential, once you see it, everything else feels dull.
I used to think I could just carry the culture myself. I thought if I kept the pace and kept pushing, others would eventually follow. But either I couldn’t, or it didn’t matter, because as consistent as my own training is, the transformative feeling I associate with those special places never lasts.
And maybe it shouldn’t. Perhaps it’s like chasing youth—it is elusive, and you are worse off for holding on too tight.
Some days we won’t have "it," but hopefully, we usually will. On those days we don’t, it’s vital that others can carry the energy, so this needs to be an open concept where people try to understand what “it” is. They should realize that there are periods of very high peaks that we can all ride, but the real work begins when it seems to ebb. This is my list of necessities that I recently shared with our training group. These aren’t rules but rather, a guideline or set of standards to be aware of. I believe they are the ingredients to maintaining a space that continues to cultivate an ideal.
Seek Improvement
First, come here to change. That might mean changing your body—adding lean mass, losing fat, increasing speed and efficiency—or working on skills to support other endeavors. But it could also mean changing your mind. It means learning to deal with the dichotomy of who you are versus who you envision yourself becoming. You must look at yourself through a new lens, adopting behaviors you want and shedding those you don’t. Whatever you decide, is up to you, but you need to be changing something.
Cultivate Excellence
Second, use the space to cultivate your highest ideal. The space only works when it is separate from the average. Humans are excellent at dragging things down to their level; ambition in the average person is often crushed by an unyielding gravitational force of complacency. Do not bring your average conditions inside and risk diluting what we are fostering. In simple terms, do the hard thing. It is easy to complain, to leave a mess, or to talk poorly of others. It is easiest to quit, and easier still to have never shown up. Whatever your natural inclination is, it is likely worth doing the opposite because we are conditioned toward ease. What you are now is comfortable to you. Change will happen when you challenge that comfort.
Ruthless Self-assessment
Third, help create an environment for positive criticism. We all have varying standards, but when we step inside a space dedicated to improving ourselves, the standards must rise. We aim for perfect movement. In its absence, perfect attention to the details of what should improve the movement is required. At no point should someone have to tell you that you are short-cutting reps. The shortcut is to your own detriment. But if someone does tell you, know that it comes from a place of wanting us all to improve. Assume criticism is for your personal growth, not a personal insult. If you lose track of reps, start over. It means the set wasn’t important enough to pay attention to. Do the hard thing. If you compete, do so to win, but only if the standards are met. If you change the structure of the training to win, you are not healthy enough to compete, and your focus should return to perfect movement and attention on the parts of yourself that are injured or compromised. If you don’t know, ask—nothing great gets built on assumption.
Radical Responsibility
Finally, the space is what you bring to it. If you consider how you can add energy, attention to detail, and a willingness to explore—and you do this for others—then on the days you are missing the drive, someone else will be there to pick you up. None of these guidelines imply you should hurt yourself with training or effort. Quite the opposite. The "hard thing" is usually doing what gives us the greatest odds of doing this for a lifetime.
If you have ever been part of an environment that fosters exceptional performance, you will respect its power. You recognize that it waxes and wanes, but we should always aim to keep the highest ideal. When it peaks, we should celebrate it. When it falls, we should look inward to see how we can rebuild what we all depend on.
By acknowledging our influence, we recognize our individual responsibility. If you agree, reply: I AGREE.
