(3/6) Tai Chi Basic Steps for Beginners: Balance and Rooting, Sideways Stepping 

Glad you like it!

Josh Sanford I'm glad to hear that the videos are helpful for you. :) I'm happy to share. Knowledge doesn't help very many people if it isn't shared. ;)

Staring at a fixed point is an excellent starting point. I wouldn't think of it so much as a bad habit, but rather a stepping stone. If you find you need to stare at a fixed point to maintain your balance, then do so and keep practicing. As your body becomes more used to maintaining its balance during this exercise you'll find that you need to stare less. Ideally you want to be able to do this looking anywhere or even with your eyes closed. Ultimately, your eyes should not be determining your balance, your awareness of your body and alignment should be. The fact that you're able to "space out" while practicing indicates that you're probably already developing the internal awareness necessary to practice without looking at a fixed point. But I would suggest, instead of spacing out, look inward. Instead of focusing on what you do or do not see with your eyes, focus inside on what your mind can see of your body structure and alignment and how that effects your balance. I hope that helps and I wish you all the best in your training!

+Andrew Plitt it makes a lot of sense and i appreciate your time and generous answer. it definately gave me short-term, intermediate, and more advanced goals for much later. i really enjoy your videos and explanations. you seem to immediately answer a lot of the questions i have and i like how you describe the purpose so succinctly. youll be getting plenty more views from me :)