Have you watched the recent animation movie from Dreamworks, Kung Fu Panda?

I watched the movie recently. It is very entertaining, but more than that, the movie taught me a number of lessons on success journey.

It shares a story of a Panda named Po in his journey of becoming a kung fu master. Despite of all the inadequacy and limitations, he does not give up.

Robert Hruzek from Middle Zone Musings has got another group writing project in his WILF (What I Learned From…) series. This month’s topic is all about animal, what we can learn from animals.

This movie may not reflect the real panda, but I will try to combine on the things that we can learn from both the giant panda and the movie.

The first lesson

In the movie, Po is a big fat panda, his belly and everything about his look can’t justify why he will become a kung fu master. If he is willing to look an honest look at himself, he will easily judge himself to stop following his dream and selling noodle just like his father.

No one believes that he can become a kung fu master, except one person. That’s his great master, Master Oogway who has chosen him to become a dragon warrior. He believes in him despite of all his non-affirming looks.

Checking the Wikipedia page on the real Giant Panda, I learned one more thing about doing the impossible. It is the giant panda’s strange diet. Here’s from the article…

photo credit: tinyfroglet

Despite its taxonomic classification as a carnivore, the panda has a diet that is primarily herbivorous, which consists almost exclusively of bamboo.
~Giant Panda @ Wikipedia

Do you think that it will change their eating behaviour if he knows that he was made to become a carnivore? Both the real panda and the panda ‘Po’ in the movie taught me one lesson; that your knowledge of yourself doesn’t have to limit you.

The personality trap

I have one friend that hated taking personality test. He found that personality test will only limit you, ‘box’ you into a particular type. People also often use their knowledge of themselves to make an excuse on their behaviour and actions.

He has made a point there that some people, because of their knowledge, mistakenly trap themselves into their own classification. Those are the personality that often we think it will limit us. Neither introversion nor extroversion should limit you. It may help you understand why you behave in a certain way, but they should not hold you back from pursuing what you’re passionate about.

Another lesson from animal

photo credit: *Micky

There is another animal that can teach us more about how its ignorance can get us what human think is impossible. They have flown even before human renewed the law of aviation. Despite of what men have researched and believed for a long time, they are still flying. Those are the bees.

According to earlier laws of Aviation, there was no way that a bee should be able to fly.
Its wings are way too small to get its fat little body off the ground.
The bees, of course, flew anyway.
Because bees didn’t care what humans thought was impossible.
~The Bee’s Law via Too Crazy for A.. B.. C..

A little test
Try folding your arm! Which arm is on top of the other arm? If you notice, some of us will put our right arm on top of our left arm, while some others doing it the other way round.
Similarly, personality is only a preference and not a classification. They should not ‘box’ you; they are also not the excuse for you to stay in your comfort zone.

Unlike my friend, I don’t despise personality tests. I found it useful to understand yourself and others. They help you not to judge yourself or others too fast. Those are what I think they are useful for, not to limit you, but to help you grow. Personality is not your master to obey; it is your assistant to help you.

The past and future trap

Yesterday is history, tomorrow is mystery. But today is a gift. That is why it is called the present.
~Master Oogway (Kung Fu Panda)

The second trap that people often use is their past and future. We are often too attached with our success and failures in the past that we afraid to make another mistake today. Sometimes, we also worry too much of the future that we are petrified to make some action that we really need to do today. If we want to be happy, it’s good if we can just accept the gift that we have, that is today, and we can make the best out of it.

Pursue your passion
Scott H. Young has one article that question us, “Should you work on your strengths or weakness?” We often think too much about which ones are our strengths and weaknesses that we forgot a more important thing. That is your dream and passion.

Al from 7P shared a similar article here. Inside he quoted Marcus Buckingham (of Go Put Your Strengths to Work who also worked with StrengthsFinder) on the definition of strength that you should focus on…

Strengths must include knowledge, skills, and talent, and true talent energizes you when you do it rather than drain you from the effort.
~Marcus Buckingham

If you find yourself avoiding or procrastinating on doing what they love, I would like to share the following article from Jonathan Mead on why some of us are hesitating to do what we love. One crucial thing that Jonathan shared is to suspend judgment. Imperfection is normal in the beginning so do not judge yourself too early.

The second lesson

Spoiler alert: The second lesson is what I learn from the ending. If you plan to watch the movie, you may want to read it after you watch.

Po the Panda is chosen to be a dragon warrior, someone that will be needed to defeat Tai Lung, a greedy leopard that threatens the academy existence. However, Po need to train himself to be qualified of becoming a dragon warrior. More importantly, he needs to get and learn from the dragon scroll to become a dragon warrior and defeat Tai Lung.

Tai Lung is a former student in the academy. He is very well trained on his kung fu but it’s not the same case with his character. He went mad when he knew that he was not chosen to become the dragon warrior. He wanted to get the dragon scroll by force. He was even willing to hurt his teacher, his step-father to get it. He was detained in prison after his first attempt. In the movie, he managed to escape from the prison and he wanted to get the dragon scroll again.

Making the story short, both of them eventually get and read the dragon scroll. Unfortunately, the dragon scroll is nothing but a mirror that they can see their face on it. Unfortunately, their search for the kung fu secret ends up in vanity. There is no secret; the secret is only they themselves.

The mirror after success
Imagine you look at the mirror after your success, will you be satisfied with who you are? Will you be happy with who you have become? I’m not talking about what you have gained after your success, but internally who you have become after your success.

If your pursuit of success takes a lot of backstabbing, cheating, dishonesty, or maybe ignorance to the people that matters a lot to you like your families and friends, I’ll guarantee that it won’t make you happy.

At the end is not about what you have gained, but who you have become. That’s the question that we all need to ask ourselves in our success journey.

The highest reward for man’s improvement is not what he gets for it; it’s what he becomes as a result of it.
~John C. Maxwell (Be A People Person)

Success or significance?
Which one do you pursue? Bob Bufford shared in his book Half-Time shared a message which is aimed to people in their middle age. He made a point that we all have to switch our game plan from success to significance when we are reaching our half time.

If success is not your master but your servant, you’ll be willing to use it for the pursuit of significance. It’s not an exchange where you leave all what you have achieved so far, but it’s an adjustment on the priority, purpose, and vision on what you are doing.

Bob introduced the 50/50 proposition to start working on the pursuit of significance. That is spending your energy and resources 50% for the things of your own and your families’ need, and the other 50% for others, developing others and lifting people up. It’s the key to a significant life. It’s a life that will make you proud and satisfied of who you are after you reached your success. It is someone that you won’t be ashamed of when you look at the mirror eventually.

Be true to your heart!
Don’t give up on your dream, but don’t exchange your value for what you dream. Be true to your heart! It’s a song from the movie Mulan that I hope will encourage you. The video below combines the pictures in Kung Fu Panda with that song. Listen to it and start listening to your heart! Your heart cannot tell you lies!

For your significance,
Robert

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