After a gorgeous, fun day at the lake with a few families, we tried out a new local restaurant. One of the dads mentioned that he couldn’t share food because they’re vegetarian. My wife turned to him and said something like, “My husband doesn’t really understand vegetarianism.” She then asked him why they don’t eat meat.
Internally, I could feel my ego fire up—my inner lawyer preparing for battle. I started silently picking apart his logic, spotting inconsistencies, finding hypocrisy, building a case for why his choices were wrong.
But I caught myself.
Because honestly, what are the chances that me arguing would lead to him saying: “Oh wow, I’ve been such a fool. I’ll start eating meat immediately—thank you so much for educating me!”
About the same odds as him convincing me to stop eating meat right then and there.
Later that evening, I remembered a core principle I’ve learned…
Seems the above statement should be a question until we get clear on what it means to be an expert.
I remember hearing a formula for so many hours of practice at a specific activity and then one becomes an expert. Where the weeds get thick is when this activity gets a label which implies one thing but in practice is nowhere near what’s been promised. One example that the internet loves to poke fun at is martial arts, when someone gets labeled a grand master black belt but their particular art is deemed ineffective in the street or in MMA, often dubbed Bullshido.
How to discern who is an expert? Are credentials essential? Does it matter who the credentialing organization is or who funds them? What’s the lay person’s litmus test?
The Tools For Surfing The Waves of Life course gives us the foundation to discern and decide what’s most likely true and the best decision we can make.
In the below video I explain the modern way one can become an expert:
I have so much fun and meet and reconnect with wonderful people at the Baykeeper Bay Parade. The 2018 parade was amazing and such a beautiful day with all these beautiful folks enjoying mamma ocean.
On day I added up the parts cost of one of the carbon fiber camera mounts I was making, the total was almost $200. I saw the bamboo poles that were sitting unused in my garage and remembered I only paid a few bucks each for them. So I spent the next hour hacking together a bamboo mount, tried it in the surf the next day, and it was a total and instant failure. I gave up on bamboo for a while.
Once upon a time surfing was a group activity where everyone knew each other, everyone was welcome, and every wave was a party wave. After surfing there was a beach fire party and a seafood feast with live music and dancing. Today it is likely that complete strangers sit next to each other and the only words spoken are to tell each other to get off their wave. Also beach fires are often illegal or limited, the fish are often polluted, and few people know how to play music and forgot how to dance.
Foil surfing can change this by allowing us to ride the swells in oceans, bays, lakes, rivers, and more...
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