Becoming Complacent

Complacency is something to watch out for, and to guard against, because it is something that comes about easily with practice. The more you are used to doing something, the more likely you are to grow complacent while doing it. For example, if you are used to pushing hands with someone, and all the while you have been able to deflect away his force, you may end up being complacent when pushing hands with him, and end up being surprised when he manages to push you (because you are complacent). Or, you are so used to doing a form (after lots of practice) that you don't need to pay much attention to it and still can complete the set. It is easy to become complacent and miss out all the details when you are practising the familiar set.

The Japanese have a saying: 初心を忘れず, which means not to forget the basics. In order not to be complacent, you must treat each practice like the first one, paying attention to all the details just as if you were learning something for the first time.