Improving on the Rustypup
Rusty is the dog. Queensland mix, part blue heeler. Very, very smart. Very, very playful. Very, very dominant. The first two make a great combination. Add that last part, and this dog becomes quite a handful.
We watch Dog Whisperer on National Geographic. Along with the book How to Speak Dog by Stanley Cohen, we are making progress. Rusty is now a little easier to manage than when he first arrived (although his first two days were deceptively quiet).
What's most interesting to me is that 90% of Rusty's behavior is clearly linked to my own behavior. What's even more interesting is how difficult I find getting myself into the "calm and assertive" state of mind that Cesar discusses on his show, even when I'm trying my best. Rusty is such an energetic dog that it's hard not to be influenced by him.
I find myself even calmer about approaching things that I might have had more difficulty with before. Especially, this means correcting myself. For years I've grappled with my tendency to overcomplicate or veer off the plan or just procrastinate. But with a calm and assertive mind, I can more easily correct myself when I'm going off the reservation.
I know I've thought about the Zen Buddhism principle of "a mind like water." I've achieved calmness. But not the assertive part. So I don't so much want to have a mind like water as much as a mind like a large pool of water — like a swimming pool or a reflecting pool. It will keep its "poolness" regardless of the splashes.
Isn't it crazy that I have to struggle so hard to do what comes so naturally to the pack leader? But I suppose that, really, I'm undoing a struggle. I've struggled against doing this for so long that now it seems unnatural to be merely calm and assertive.