There is a lot out there on Jordan Peterson and his stance on specific issues. I have a completely indifferent stance on him. I am personally concerned with the general message from his writings. If there is someone out there who takes exception to me reviewing his book, I sincerely hope it is coming from a non-partisan perspective. 

The book is excellent. There is no denying that Peterson is an excellent writer. His ability to pull from countless examples in religious and political history is profound. I would not go as far to say this is a checklist on how to live a purposeful life. I find the approach that everyone can just simply focus on 12 things and be happy is really audacious. 

However there is one chapter that I think is important for S&C coaches to understand. Rule 7 – Pursue what is meaningful (not what is expedient). The chapter itself is that most religions are focussed on delayed gratification. The ones that can be responsible and patient are the ones that get to heaven (either literally or metaphorically). 

Is this not the central theme of training? We are investing time and energy into exercise, nutrition, and even recovery for something better. The ones that want the quick fix or rely on anecdotal struggle and constantly come up short. 

Peterson discussed that in all walks of life, the ones that can sacrifice short term enjoyment for long term prosperity are the ones that are successful. Confucius’s line of “on the path to enlightenment, chop wood and carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood and carry water.” Is what we are asking of the people we train. Or least hope. 

It is the ones that are trying to reach nirvana without the work are the ones we resent. The people that when you lay out their plan will 100% not comply. The pragmatism of training is what separates the successful from unsuccessful. Taking each year, month, week, day, set, and rep one at a time with focus on execution is what training really is. 

What Peterson spoke to was that we have thousands of years of religious teaching that delayed gratification leads to prosperity. Reaping the harvest is contingent on planting and tending to the crop well beforehand. If you want food in the winter, you better put the work in spring, summer, and fall. The same is true for training, if you want something you better be willing to put the work in well beforehand. 

This blog post is not to push any agenda, it is leveraging a really good explanation of what training should be. Teaching someone patience is a virtue in training is so much more valuable than any goal accomplished. The process of training to a prescribed amount of days in a week, for months on end is what people should be striving for. Think of how religions asked people to attend church weekly, donate to their church, and live with purpose in between for thousands of years. The same is true for training.