José Aldo vs Conor McGregor: Repetition vs Development

The UFC’s biggest fight in their history is happening this Sunday. The fighters names may not ring a bell, but their differing personalities share one goal.

If you are not a fight fan, how does it relate to you? The introvert, José Aldo, defending champion for ten years versus the extrovert Conor McGregor.

Both fighters inspired me to follow my dreams, start training in an MMA gym to get fit. Be more honest to yourself and to the world.

As an introvert and web designer, I present concepts to clients, get criticised, justify my decisions. This can be brutal on different levels. The same daily routine happens for years.

Become an extrovert from time to time, be outspoken, speak the truth. Let the shackles come off. You need to develop your inner self and break out of those repeatable habits.

When you go into your shell, you are letting all the users down — let alone your coworkers. Pluck up the courage to develop your character and defend the users and people in your profession.

Guess what, if you just say:

Enough of this sh*t, no more yes man or woman anymore. The client needs the truth.

Introvert or extrovert, the self-awareness to be either one will do you wonders.

Aldo’s repetition of training

Watching his UFC fights, the fighting style has remained the same. Refer to Robert Greene: 10,000 hours of your time will set you on a path to mastery.

If you repeat daily tasks they will become habits, then second nature. The danger of this pattern is the difficulty to break out of it.

Conor McGregor voices his strong opinions and comes across as a nightmare to deal with. But on the inside, he is a humble inspirational person. He has mastered the art of repetition and development to have the slight edge over Aldo.

People in your industry can get complacent in their skills with a closed mind. A senior rejected my wife’s advice to improve his work because he has 10 years experience. He was wrong and wasn’t around for long.

Conor’s Development

Conor became a coach on the Ultimate fighter and has a different outlook on training. Bruce Lee was way ahead of his time with his thoughts on being fluid. Conor is not stuck in his ways.

He was honest with the fighters and he will not babysit them but help harness their ability.

According to the pyramid of learning, the highest form of learning is when you teach someone else. Conor has improved his knowledge being a coach and a fighter.

To last long in a job, you put in the time and work crazy hours to hit a deadline. Does this equal progression? Is there another way to work better or to live your life?

Do you repeat every day to pay the mortgage and expenses to feed the government and corporations? Do you repeat your actions to take the same path or dare to develop a thought to do something else?

Laid back vs ambition

I was a lazy teenager, relying on my mum. Stuck in retail, doing the same robotic routine, it sucked the life out of me.

An inspirational friend helped me. He has the courage to chase his dreams and influenced my journey as a web designer.

I went on to learn web design and development, do freelancing and then worked in a software company for six years. If I stayed in that company my development as a human being would have stalled. They didn’t believe in progression and development.

Conor McGregor is a unique fighter, someone that Aldo or the UFC has never seen. His talk about movement, different methods of training has opened up a lot of debates. He opposes the old training of pushing your body to the limit. It hinders your preparation for the actual fight.

José Aldo’s recent fight was a brutal one taking a lot of damages. Even though he was victorious, the same pattern of training injured his rib. He couldn’t fight for a year.

My prediction

They will meet in the centre of the octagon, Conor’s movement will evade Aldo’s vicious leg kicks.

Conor uses his reach, to land on Aldo, who has an unbelievable chin. Aldo tries to force his will, Conor will get hit and leave his chin out there, but can Aldo reach it?

Aldo’s timing and knees produce knockouts. If he can catch or predict Conor’s tricky movement, it could be lights out.

Conor continues to land to the body with his movement and reach to slow down the explosiveness of Aldo.

Aldo will not resort to taking Conor down, he will refuse to back down. If the opportunity presents itself, the ground game is where he could prevail.

Aldo gets frustrated. An accumulation of powerful left hands will force the referee to stop the fight. Conor McGregor is the new featherweight champion.

How does this make a difference in your life?

If you’re stuck, living like a robot, repeating actions every day, is this what you want for the rest of your life? Be brave, admit that things need to change, be true to yourself and realise that you need a kick in the ass.

If I can change, then you can change, we can all change. — Rocky Balboa

If you like this post, please share or follow me for more articles. You can subscribe on my blog www.awwesome.com

Originally published at awwesome.com on December 12, 2015.