Page 21 - Taming Your Gremlin A Surprisingly Simple Method for Getting Out of Your Own Way (Rick Carson)_Neat

school.) Our coach, Mr. Tyrell, knew that the keys to turning the Overton
Oxens into a winning squad were speed and inspiration. He attempted to
ensure the latter by calling us “men,” letting us put black gunk under our

eyes, and telling us daily that, “It’s not the size of the dog in the fight, it’s
the size of the fight in the dog.” Jimmy Baker and I had total faith in Coach
Tyrell (though our faith took a minor dip the day Coach bellowed at the top
of his lungs, “All right, men, pair off in threes!”).

To get us up to snuff on the speed thing, Coach Tyrell used to shout
simply “Go!” and wave his right arm over his head in a circular motion.
With this cue from him we screamed, “Oxens, oxens, oxens!” and started
running around the football field. We did this almost every day of the

season, and miraculously, most of us got faster. We each developed our own
method of running. I learned to run on the balls of my feet, and Lee Jason,
our quick and feisty quarterback, unclenched his fists when he ran, pointing
his fingers out like karate guys do. He said it helped him cut through the air.
Jimmy Baker’s approach to becoming a speedster was to stomp the ground
fast and hard as he ran.

The intensity of Jimmy’s stomps increased in direct proportion to his

ever-heightening desire to run faster. He huffed, puffed, and sweated with
undaunted zeal. His desire was inspiring, but his pace remained deplorable.
The harder Jimmy stomped, the slower he got. Having witnessed Jimmy’s
frustration and that of others since, I’m sure, just as sure as I’m sitting here,
that one can’t run faster by stomping the ground harder. Certainly there are
times when gutting up comes in handy, but all in all, toil dominated by
tension is bad for your health and your disposition, and won’t help you do a

quicker or better job.

That’s the difference between effort and strain. When it comes to simply
noticing, and ultimately to taming your gremlin, the former applies and the
latter impedes. The kind of effort involved in simply noticing will be helpful
right here and now, in our relationship—yours and mine.

As you read on, trust the natural you inside that body of yours—the one
behind your concepts and preconceived notions, the one deeper than your

personality and identity, to simply notice these words. You need not try to
figure out anything. Simply notice and make a choice to read on or to stop