"Chop wood, carry water"

I've been traveling for the past week, so I haven't been doing much writing, but I have been doing a lot of reading (long flights are good for that).  I just finished the book Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success by Phil Jackson and Hugh Delehanty.  In many ways, this book is similar to Sacred Hoops, which I recently posted about as well.  However, rather than covering just the first of three of his eleven NBA championships as a head coach, Eleven Rings: The Soul of Success covers all of them, from his six NBA championships with the Chicago Bulls to his five championships with the Los Angeles Lakers.  There are many, many leadership nuggets in this book as well, which I hope to return to in future posts.

If you anything about Phil Jackson, you will know that he really likes Eastern philosophy, and he is often referred to as the "Zen Master" (see his book Sacred Hoops).  In the book on his eleven NBA championships, Jackson mentions a famous Zen Buddhist dictum that states, "Before enlightenment, one must chop wood and carry water.  After enlightenment, one must chop wood and carry water."  Enlightenment is the ultimate goal of the Buddhist religion - it is a state of perfect peace where there is no suffering (it's also known as "Nirvana").  "Nirvana" represents the highest attainment that a Buddhist can achieve.  "Chop wood, carry water" means that no matter how accomplished we are, how wise we have become, or what heights of ultimate success we have attained, there will always be mundane things that we have to do, because, well, that's life.  Even the famous celebrities and superstars put their pants on one leg at a time.  Remembering the phrase will help keep you grounded.  And no matter what your profession is - whether it's sports or medicine or business - there are always going to be basic fundamentals that you have to master and practice, over and over and over again.  Chop wood, carry water.