I think what I notice with people who are a little older is it’s really easy for them to dismiss social media as, like, this vapid and shallow thing in which you’re trying to get likes and engagement, but what they don’t realize is it’s like a huge part of some people’s social lives and it’s, like, very much a part of how you see this world and interact with the world. And it’s not just “oh I wanna get likes to, like, seem cool” it’s like “Oh, this is my social life in many ways, and it has been for a very long time.” And that’s kinda how I view applause at basecamp in many ways, too; It’s like my social life at work.
It is really easy to dismiss social media, because it is vapid and shallow.
The insight here is that eventually you too will stop acting like a 14-year-old, become an adult, realize social media is vapid and shallow, and then dismiss it easily.
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Ville Leppanen: Life-long learning, coaching, and intervals →
What lessons can we learn about personal growth, community building, and training innovation through parkour?
Craig sits down to interview Ville Leppanen, a lifelong learner and member of the Finnish Parkour community. Ville discusses how he uses different tools in his coaching, how to work smarter instead of harder, and how he uses interval training to help him in parkour. Finally, Ville touches on how his coaching has evolved over the years and how his teaching has helped him learn things about himself.
For me, the process is, ‘okay, I have this idea and… I have no idea…’ Is it any good? Will it work? Will it be interesting? But what the hell, let’s give it a go!
~ Ville Leppanen (4:00)
The conversation highlights Ville Leppanen’s innovative approach to coaching, focusing on using tools, questions, and unconventional methods to inspire curiosity and adaptability in training. Ville shares his perspective on integrating scientific principles into parkour, aiming to combine rigorous research with the sport’s creative essence. Discussions also touch on interval training strategies for maximizing physical performance while balancing intensity and recovery.
The dialogue explores the Finnish parkour community’s cohesiveness, influenced by cultural tendencies toward collaboration and organization. Ville reflects on how confrontation and cultural differences affect community dynamics. He emphasizes the value of stepping outside the parkour bubble by exploring other disciplines, fostering a holistic movement practice, and gaining new insights to improve coaching and community-building efforts.
Takeaways
Ville’s philosophy on tools — Using simple objects in creative ways enhances learning and training processes.
Interval training — Tailoring work-rest cycles to optimize endurance and intensity in parkour practice.
Finnish parkour community — Unified by collaboration and early organization, reflecting Finnish cultural traits.
Confrontation avoidance — Addressing how cultural norms shape community interactions and growth.
Questions as tools — Facilitating personal and student growth by fostering curiosity rather than providing answers.
Exploring diverse disciplines — Engaging with other activities enriches perspectives and enhances movement skills.
Long-term physical goals — Prioritizing sustainable, playful training to ensure lifelong movement capability.
Family classes in parkour — A Finnish innovation promoting intergenerational bonding through shared movement experiences.
Resources
American Rendezvous — A well-organized parkour event Ville attended, noted for its professionalism.
Supreme Parkour Armageddon — An annual Finnish parkour event known for its evolving, humorous naming tradition.
Parkour Generations — Features coaching and events that Ville mentioned as impactful early in his training.
Sisu — A Finnish concept of perseverance and resilience, central to Ville’s outlook.
You will get hurt. You will embarrass yourself. You will wish you did things differently. You will forget things that are too important to forget. You will lose things you can’t afford to lose.
Things that are every bit as great happen every day in scientific labs, and no one cares. Maybe as a society we’ve become anesthetized to science — when really, it’s so exciting. We have so much to gain as a country if we invest in science and knowledge and understanding. I don’t blame the public for not understanding, though, or even legislators for sometimes not wanting to invest. They all look so much like my family.
There are several science-y details in this interview that really startled me; Our knowledge of embryo development is vastly improved since last I looked.
…but mostly I just like the sentiment of wonder she expresses. “When is the last time I learned something new?” is a question I try to update the answer to every day.
While I’m worrying in my little apartment about getting my writing done or doing my laundry, it lends me some perspective if I can remember that somewhere out there, precisely as I’m tending to my human to-do list, there are beavers taking down trees, ants hustling to feed their queen, rabbits feasting on backyard gardens, and elephants showing their children where the water hole is.
In the beginning, a few months of summer vacation represents a significant portion of your life’s memories. Years later, each month flies by. In the beginning, the first project you create is the greatest idea the world has ever been shown. Years later, the projects are too numerous to recall, and the next one is considered with a weathered gaze before being sent out into the world. Challenging physical activities are dopamine-fun in the beginning. Years later, the physicality brings only a pleasant, difuse joy.
When our mind is tranquil, there will be an occasional pause to its feverish activities, there will be a letting go, and it is only then in the interval between two thoughts that a flash of UNDERSTANDING—understanding, which is not thought—can take place.
I’m not sure I’ve experienced the not-thought which is that flash of understanding. I think things are even more simple; Year after year, as I quiet my mind, understand simply expands into the new space.
Let the other person have the privilege of being the first one to be understood. The biggest distraction to understanding someone else is self-importance. Needing to say something means you have to be thinking about it, and thinking about it means you have very little mental capacity left for empathy. Free up yours, and it will free up theirs.
Empathy is the most useful ability I have ever developed. Sure, I first had to develop my abilities of self-awareness and self-assessment. But at that point, the need for empathy and compassion became plain as day.
