Mental preparation for a contest or an exam is necessary, but not sufficient, for an overall training regiment in kendo. This concept translates to any kind of learning or skill development.
I wrote earlier about photography contests, but I believe the value of competitions extends beyond receiving external feedback on your performance. It is learning about my subjective reactions to an atypical situation that I find most valuable.
Besides the pragmatic usefulness for learning and character development, there is a tremendous social aspect of competitions in any field. In kendo in particular, the comradery built by doing keiko and shiai with people from different countries, of different ages and walks of life is one of my most precious experiences and perhaps the greatest gift of this Way of the sword.
